There’s a certain type of body language in Korea called “skinship”, 스킨십 [skin-ʂip] that’s not as commonly expressed in America. What distinguishes it from other countries in body language or gestures, is that it’s normally expressed between the same gender. It essentially means skin touching skin, which is why it’s referred to as “skinship”. Furthermore, the reason why that concept may seem strange to non-Koreans is because usually lots of skin-to-skin contact is reserved for your significant other or in behaviors like flirting. However, in Korea, this is not the case. I’ve noticed it range from: draping arms over each other, sharing umbrellas, sitting in each other’s laps, massaging, playing with each other’s hair, holding hands, resting head on another’s lap or shoulder, and so forth. In a sense, it’s seen a platonic bonding through physical displays of affection with your close friends.
When I was younger, I visited Korea a lot for summer break and would engage in a lot of activities I would do back home. I had swimming lessons and went to tutor, and of course have time to do other fun things while there. My point in bringing this up is that I still remember to this day the close interactions people had, especially the boys. During swimming practice, I’d remember the boys would slap each other’s butts or just casually throw their arms around the other. At tutor, I’d basically see all the actions I’ve listed in the previous paragraph between the boys. And the same would apply for girls. I’d remember walking down the hallway and the new friends that I made a couple days ago, run up and link arms with me—and we’d just walk like that all the way to whatever destination we were going to. Although, I do have to acknowledge that “skinship” might be more prevalent in the younger demographic because children usually are more outgoing.
It is important to note that not every Korean enjoys “skinship” which isn’t that surprising. There may be some people that care for their personal space more than others. Then, there are others that don’t really express it as much but aren’t bothered when they receive such actions. Additionally, there are some that reserve such actions for people that they like, romantically. The action is mainly dependent on how close the person is with the other. So, this isn’t something that Koreans just do when they are meeting for the first time; although it could happen, more often than not it’s reciprocal to the relationship status. Furthermore, everyone’s perception on what pertains to “skinship” varies. There are some that think it’s simply when shoulders are touching each other or some that think it’s when you’re holding hands or hugging. Whatever the case may be, it is something that a lot of non-Koreans are shocked by and, evidently, could feel uncomfortable by the gesture. But the main point is that this action is commonly seen among Koreans, especially in the male gender.
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Since I was raised in China and really familiar with Asian culture, I thought skinship was really common until I came to the state. My Asian friends are really comfortable holding hands, sitting on each other's lap, or linking arms in public if we are close enough. I've talked about this with my friends in the state, and some of them did not get it and said it was kind of weird. I think this is an interesting cultural thing to talk about.
This was a major culture shock when I first went, I would see men being very affectionate and hitting each other on the thigh which made me very confused. I occasionally feel like it would be hard to see where the line is in order to be respectful to others, coming from a really affectionate Colombian household I wouldn't want to unknowingly do something rude.
Growing up in my Asian household, I can say that skinship is a very real thing even outside of Korea. My sister, my cousins, other Asian friends, and I have no problem with randomly holding hands or linking arms in public while walking. It is completely platonic and almost second nature to us. My American friends have commented on how ‘weird’ it is for us to be so close, but I think they were just raised to believe that such closeness is a sign of intimacy. I’ve often seen it among my Asian male friends too, so it’s definitely a cultural thing.
I also think this is an interesting topic. In America, children are taught to “keep your hands to yourself”, so I guess it does make sense why skinship is not part of the culture. When I went to visit Korea for the first time since moving to the U.S., I was surprised when my cousin randomly linked arms with me while we were walking. Since I grew up in the U.S., I learned Korean traditions, but not behaviors. Now, I’m pretty used to it and am unbothered by the gestures.