Archive for the year 2009
Politeness Levels Posted by Ginny on Feb 4, 2009
A lot of people ask me, what is the difference between the standard polite form and the deferential polite form in Korean? The answer to that is that the deferential polite form uses a higher level of politeness than the standard polite form. While both the standard and the deferential forms are polite, you would…
Proverb of the Day Posted by Ginny on Feb 3, 2009
It’s that time again! The awaited Korean Proverb of the Day! Today’s proverb is kkamagwinun komodo salun huida (까마귀는 검어도 살은 희다). Let’s break this proverb down to understand its core meaning. Kkamagwi (까마귀) is a black bird, while the word kom (검) means black. Sal (살) means flesh while hui (희)means white. Altogether this…
Namul (나물) Posted by Ginny on Feb 2, 2009
Today’s post is going to be about food! I recently had a craving for namul (나물) and decided to write a post about the different kinds of namul (나물) out there. At this point you might be wondering what namul (나물) is. Namul (나물) is a generic term for a marinated vegetable or plant dish. …
Musumnal (머슴날) Posted by Ginny on Feb 1, 2009
Musumnal (머슴날) is a quaint, rural festival celebrated the first of every February. Musum (머슴) means servant or farm hand, while nal (날) means day. Altogether musumnal (머슴날) means the ‘festival of servants.’ This festival is celebrated on Jeju Island (제주). On this day a shamanistic rite called yungdunggui (영등구이) is performed. The rite is…
Minsok Chun (민속촌) Posted by Ginny on Jan 10, 2009
Minsok Chun (민속촌) is a Korean folk village in Youngin (용인) province. It’s a living museum of how Korean people lived; way before any contact with foreign nations. If you go to Minsok Chun (민속촌), you’ll get to see what Korean people did and how they spent their time. This is the age before television, so…
Yakshik (약식) Posted by Ginny on Jan 9, 2009
A typical snack enjoyed on Deborum (대보름), or the full moon festival, is yakshik (약식). Yakshik (약식) is brown in color and sweet in taste. Today, we are going to learn how to make yakshik (약식). First, soak about two cups of chapssal (찹쌀) or glutinous rice in cold water for a day. If you don’t soak…
Ogok-bap (오곡밥) Posted by Ginny on Jan 8, 2009
Ogok-bap (오곡밥) is a common dish consumed on Deborum (대보람) or the full moon festival. What is ogok-bap (오곡밥)? It’s a dish of five different types of grain. The most prominent ingredient in ogok-bap (오곡밥) is chapssal (찹쌀). Chapssal (찹쌀) is glutinous rice. When glutinous rice is cooked, it becomes sticky. Despite it’s name, glutinous…