Marriage for South Koreans is similar to that of their Western counterparts, but has unique features of its own. For example, Korean brides do not adopt their groom's surname as in many Western marriages.
Eligibility
Marriage in South Korea is a union between a man and a woman. A man over 18 and a woman over 16 years old can marry with their parents' or guardians' consent, and a person over 20 can marry freely.
Marriage within the same ancestral clan
Main article: Article 809 of the Korean Civil CodeIn the past it was generally considered a taboo for a man and a woman to marry if they both have the same last name from the same ancestor. From this cultural influence, the article 809 of the Korean Civil code regulated marriages within a clan in the past, considering it as a type of exogamy. However, the Korean constitutional Court found this piece of legislation unconstitutional and asked for an amendment by the legislative branch in a 1997 decision. (5 judges found it unconstitutional and 2 asked for amendment by the legislative branch and 2 opposed to the outcome of this decision) The court specifically asked the legislative branch to amend the current civil code article 809 para 1 by the end of 1998 and hold further adjudication of this legislation. However, with the legislative branch not providing an additional legislation to oppose the decision by the Constitutional court, the decision was set to be final, allowing the people within the same ancestral clans to marry each other.
Traditional wedding ceremonies
In ancient times, weddings were held in the bride's yard or house. The groom traveled by horse to the bride's house and after the wedding ceremony took his wife in a palanquin (cart) to his parents' house to live. The bride and groom wore formal court costumes for the wedding ceremony. Ordinary people were permitted to wear the luxurious clothes only on their wedding day. Hand lanterns are used for lighting the way from the groom's home to the bride's home on the night before the wedding. Traditionally, the groom's family would carry a wedding chest filled with gifts for the bride's family. Wedding ducks are a symbol for a long and happy marriage. Cranes are a symbol of long life and may be represented on the woman's sash.
The bride's attire
The women's attire includes a jeogori (저고리, short jacket with long sleeves) with 2 long ribbons which are tied to form the otgoreum (옷고름). A chima (치마), a full length, high waisted wrap around skirt is worn. ( See Chima jeogori or Hanbok ) Boat shaped shoes made of silk, are worn with white cotton socks. The bride's attire might include a white sash with significant symbols or flowers. A headpiece or crown may also be worn. The norigae (노리개) is a hanbok (한복) decoration which has been worn by all classes of Korean women for centuries. It is tied to the skirt or the ribbon on the jacket. The knot on the top is called the Maedeup (매듭).
The groom's attire
A jacket ( jeogori , 저고리) and trousers and an overcoat are worn. The jacket has loose sleeves, the trousers are roomy and tied with straps at the ankles. A vest may be worn over the shirt. A black hat could be worn.
The wedding costume for men is also known as gwanbok for the groom.
Modern style wedding ceremonies
In larger cities, luxury hotels will have 'wedding halls' or ballrooms used specifically for wedding ceremonies. These rooms are decorated with a wedding motif and are rented to couples. Other wedding halls are independent facilities that can accommodate several different weddings at once.
Today, many couples will initially have a more 'Westernized' ceremony with tuxedo attire and white wedding gown, then proceed with a smaller-scale, traditional wedding after the main ceremony.
Practices before weddings
Various exchanges that are so crucial to the Korean wedding. Those of household goods ( Honsu ); gifts of clothing and jewelry between the bride and groom ( Yedan , Chedan and Paemul ); gifts given to the significant kin of the groom (' Yedan ); gifts of cash from the groom's kin to the bride ( Cholgap ), and from the bride's family to the groom's friends ( Hamgap ); and exchanges of food and wine between the two families ( Sangsu ) though not all practices are still common.
The exchanges that are still common are those of ritual silk ( Yedan ), given by the bride to the groom's significant kin, and the negotiation of the purchase price of the gift box ( Hamgap ) delivered on the night before the wedding to the bride's house by friends of the groom.
Wedding halls
Whereas a hotel ballroom or church must retain the flexibility necessary for other functions, independent wedding halls are able to focus strictly on weddings, and even cater to specific themes. Weddings in luxurious hotels had been prohibited by the government in 1980, became partly permitted in 1994, and became completely permitted in 1999.
In busier wedding halls, formality (except for the couple and their families) is typically relaxed compared to Western standards. There may be a buffet hall on one floor in which guests from all of the different weddings come for a meal, either before or after the ceremony, which may take no longer than 20 minutes.
The most common gift for a new couple is cash, and in the hall outside the wedding salon, representatives from the couple's families will collect and log donations.
The official ceremony in front of the guests is followed by Pyebaek, which is a ceremony among family members exclusively. The bride formally greets her new parents-in-law after the wedding ceremony. Additionally, the groom often gives a piggy back ride to his mother and then his bride, symbolizing his acceptance of his obligations to both his mother and wife.
Wedding feast and reception
The modern Korean wedding feast or reception, ( kyorhon piroyon , 결혼 피로연) can be a mix of traditional and western cultures. At a traditional wedding feast a guest would expect to find bulgogi (불고기, marinated barbecue beef strips), galbi (갈비, marinated short ribs), a variety of kimchi (pickled cabbage with a variety of spices, with other ingredients such as radishes, seafood). There will be many accompanying bowls of sauces for dipping.
The meal is always accompanied with a vast quantity of white, sticky rice (밥, bap) as well as gimbap (김밥), which is rice, egg, spinach, crab meats, pickled radish, and other ingredients rolled in seaweed and sliced into 1-inch rounds. Mandu (만두), dumplings filled with cabbage, carrots, meat, spinach, garlic, onions, chives, and clear noodles. These dumplings may be deep-fried or steamed. Soup will be offered, very frequently a kimchi type, or a rice cake soup (rice dumplings with chicken broth), or Doenjang guk , a fermented soybean paste soup with clams.
Also popular are a light broth boiled from dried anchovies and vegetable soups rendered from dried spinach, sliced radish or dried seaweed. Steamed rice cakes ( tteok ) sometimes embellished with aromatic mugwort leaves or dusted with toasted soy, barley, or millet flour are presented as tasty ritual food.
A large variety of fruits, such as Korean pears, and pastries will be offered for dessert. A spoon and chopsticks are used for eating.
Current practice
First marriage
As of 2007, according to Korea National Statistical Office, the average age of first marriage is 31.1 for men and 28.1 for women.
Sociopolitics of marriage
In a large number of marriages, the male is older than the female. This age disparity is usually intentional. The woman always seeks a man who is at least equal to if not higher than her in socio-economic status. Rarely does an arranged marriage happen where the man is lower than the woman in socio-economic status, class or by height.
Wedding gifts
If someone brings a gift to the wedding, it is not expected that the gift will be opened immediately. The Korean custom is to open gifts in private.
Marriages within chaebols
Families of large conglomerates or chaebols such as Samsung Group, LG Group, SK Group, Hyundai Group, etc. are closely connected with marriage chains interlinking each other.
International marriages of Koreans and non-Koreans
There were 43,121 international marriages between Koreans and non-Koreans in 2005, up 21.6 percent from a year earlier, according to Korea National Statistics Office data published in the Korea Times newspaper on March 30, 2006. 14% of couples who married in 2005 were international couples. The majority of them involve South Korean males married to foreign females, from China, Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, United States, Mongolia, Thailand, and Russia. The foreign males married to Korean females are from Japan, China, the United States, Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Nepal. Between 1990 and 2005, there have been 159,942
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