The last cultural artifact I wanted to research was Haenyeo divers. On the island of Jeju in South Korea, there is a group of women called the Haenyeo who spend seven hours a day in the water, sustainably fishing and harvesting conch, seaweed, octopus, and many other items. The most interesting point is that these women do not use scuba gear, and many of them are in their 60s, 70s, and 80s. The history behind them is actually quite interesting.
Although now only women seem to be continuing this tradition, in the beginning, men were also included. In the 17th century, both men and women were diving into the waters and practicing this sustainable fishing tradition, but the role slowly got turned over to the women, and they stepped up and took on this practice as their own. Many men were dying in the waters, being drafted to war, and looking for other work, so they were leaving the sea. Another factor in the men leaving was that the abalone started to be taken from them as a tax from the government. Abalone were often harvested by the divers and were exceptional in seafood cuisine, so this new law drove many divers out of the water. The Jeju women realized the declining rate of Haenyeo, which is why they stepped up and turned the role into one that was mostly just for women. They saw the importance of the Haenyeo and knew their families still needed the help, so they continued diving. This is one of the roles that helped give women in Jeju more status and added to the movement of a semi-matriarchal society in Jeju.
After World War 2 and the split between North and South Korea, the South Korean government needed the island of Jeju to make an economic profit. Because it was an island, it was much more difficult to add factories to the area, so the next best idea was to make Jeju the island of mandarin oranges. Many Haenyeo continued to support themselves and their families through diving, but a great deal of them left the practice and turned to other jobs. Jeju also had an increase in tourism due to the oranges during that time, which created numerous other positions. Since World War 2 there has been a sharp decrease in Haenyeo. An article I read said there were 23,000 divers in the 60s, slightly over 14,000 in the 70s, and today there are about 3-4,000 divers.
Although the Haenyeo are deeply connected to the sea, many of them know how strenuous the work is and choose not to encourage their children to follow in their footsteps. Many of the Haenyeo started training at the age of ten and have been in the sea since, but they also know what they have gone through because of the life they chose. Part of the difficulty is that the Haenyeo never modernized. They only took on a few items, such as wetsuits, flippers, and goggles, but refused to use other scuba gear. This is because they want to keep the practice environmentally friendly. Despite their refusal of other gear, they are still able to dive down 30 feet into the ocean and can hold their breath for two to three minutes. Their work is arduous but amazing.
Before doing my research, I had never heard of the Haenyeo, but now I see the importance of them. Their belief in hard work, tradition, and providing for others is very inspiring. I also admire them for their willingness to stick to tradition and decline the modernization of their practice.
The Haenyeo, South Korea's Fearless 'Sea Women'
Replies
I really like this post! When I watch Korean TV shows and K-dramas, some mentioned the job of Haenyeo. It is known as a hard job but you posts let me get to know and understand the hard work behind this job. I really appreciate women who do these for their family and life. It’s fascinating how a government tax policy in the 17th century inadvertently helped create one of the few semi-matriarchal societies in the world. Your point about them refusing modern gear to remain environmentally sustainable really highlights the 'Intangible Cultural Heritage' status they hold.
I think that this was a very cool and informative cultural artifact you wrote on! Reading this reminded me of a pretty famous Korean netflix series known as "When Life Give you Tangerines" and it displayed the resilience of these Haenyeo as you had mentioned. I think that being able to go diving to harvest seafood in your 50's, 60's, and even 70's is incredible, especially in the context of providoing and supporting your family. Its interesting to see that the economy in Jeju had shifted to mandaring oranges as I do recall the island being famous for their "Hallabong" mandarins.