{"id":6774,"date":"2020-12-07T14:49:07","date_gmt":"2020-12-07T19:49:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/?p=6774"},"modified":"2020-12-07T14:49:07","modified_gmt":"2020-12-07T19:49:07","slug":"korean-social-norms-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/korean-social-norms-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Korean Social Norms (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

We talked about Korean social norms in a previous post. https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/korean-social-norms-part-1\/. <\/a><\/span>If you haven\u2019t had a chance to look at them yet, I suggest that you read them. As I promised, I will talk more about Korean social norms in Part 2, but the following social norms are more applicable in interpersonal relations.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Your girlfriend might want to walk arm in arm with you.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Let say you are a female and your Korean female friend hooks her arm around yours while you two walk on the streets. Don\u2019t be surprised! It is a very common thing to see in Korea. You will see two females <\/span>\ud314\uc9f1\uc744 \ub07c\uace0 \uac77\ub2e4 (ppal-jjang-eul-ggi-go-gut-dah<\/b>: walk arm in arm) in public. This doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that their relationship is romantic. This gesture generally reflects pure friendship in Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a>

    Image by Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

     <\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Your male friends might want to talk about their times in military service.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

      Healthy Korean men are obligated to provide <\/span>\uad70\ubcf5\ubb34 (goon-bok-moo<\/b>: military service) from 18 months to 21 months depending on the branches of the military. It is hard work and I am grateful for their service. People say that a man is fully matured after he finishes military service in Korea. It is maybe why Korean men love to talk about their experiences in military service even though you don\u2019t understand their jargon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Hugging might be acceptable only between close friends.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

         <\/p>\n

        In Western culture, <\/span>\ud3ec\uc639 (poh-ong<\/b>: hugging) is socially acceptable without anyone mistaking your intentions. However, hugging is deemed to be a very intimate gesture in Korea. Thus, you want to be careful not to be misinterpreted, particularly when you hug a person of an opposite sex.\u00a0 Although more young generations in Korea seem to hug someone without <\/span>\ub9dd\uc124\uc784 (mang-sul-im<\/b>: hesitation), as Western culture has deeply permeated into Korean culture.<\/span><\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        \"\"<\/a>

        Image by Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

         <\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Koreans are polite people, but you might not think that in a subway.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

           <\/p>\n

          The quality of <\/span>\uc9c0\ud558\ucca0 (ji-hah-chul:<\/b> subway) system in Korea is one of the world\u2019s best. Because of this, a lot of Koreans use subway daily for commuting, which causes madness. Koreans call it <\/span>\uc9c0\uc625\ucca0 (ji-ok-chul<\/b>: a train of hell) During rush hours, don\u2019t expect personal space. You<\/span> will be jammed by people. Hold your bags tight because you might get pushed and shoved by the crowds. Trains come every couple minutes, but there are usually more people waiting for the next train. When you get pushed by people, don\u2019t wait for apologies because pushing and shoving is considered to be inexorable for some people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

          10 . When you compliment someone, they might deny it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

          \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

          \"\"<\/a>

          Image by Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

          \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

          When you <\/span>\uce6d\ucc2c (ching-chan<\/b>: a compliment) someone, you expect a reply of \u201cthank you.\u201d However, Koreans usually don\u2019t accept your compliments right away and they are more likely to say <\/span>\uc544\ub2c8\uc608\uc694. (ah-ni-yea-yo<\/b>: no). They probably like your compliments, but they just don\u2019t want to sound full of themselves. Everyone likes to be complimented, Koreans are no exceptions.<\/span><\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Different noises are maybe bearable at the table in Korea.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

             <\/p>\n

            \uca5d\uca5d\uac70\ub9ac\uae30 (jjup-jjup-guh-ri-dah<\/b>: lip-smacking), <\/span>\ud6c4\ub8e8\ub8e9 \ub9c8\uc2dc\uae30 (hoo-roo-rook-mah-si-gi:<\/b>\u00a0 slurping) on a dinner table might be considered acceptable. You might have a friend who smacks his lips at the dinner table, and he might think it is okay because some Koreans think food tastes better when they smack their lips.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

            Noodles are a common food item in Korea and many ramen TV commercials intentionally make a model slurp noodles because it shows the enjoyment of the noodle. However, I advise you not to slurp food or make lip-smacking sounds in general, especially when you are dining with important people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

            \"\"<\/a>

            Image by Pixabay<\/p><\/div>\n

             <\/p>\n

            There are some other Korean table manners you want to be aware of. \u00a0 Avoid making <\/span>noises with utensils hitting <\/span>\uadf8\ub987 (gue-rut<\/b>: a bowl or a food container ), such as a\u00a0 <\/span>\ubc25\uacf5\uae30 (bob-gong-gi<\/b>: a rice bowl) or <\/span>\uc811\uc2dc (jup-si:<\/b> a plate). Also, do not hold a bowl in your hand during the meal. Some people hold a rice bowl in one hand while using another hand to maneuver utensils, but it is considered to be vulgar.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

            What did you think about Korean social norms? Were you surprised by different Korean social norms? What are social norms of your countries that others might need some explanations?<\/span><\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

            We talked about Korean social norms in a previous post. https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/korean-social-norms-part-1\/. If you haven\u2019t had a chance to look at them yet, I suggest that you read them. As I promised, I will talk more about Korean social norms in Part 2, but the following social norms are more applicable in interpersonal relations.   Your…<\/p>\n

            Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":158,"featured_media":6781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[3,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6774","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-vocabulary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/158"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6774"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6774\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6783,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6774\/revisions\/6783"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/korean\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}