After having done research on Korean weddings – with a particular emphasis on customs and traditions – for my cultural project, I became interested in gift-giving practices, with respect to Korean weddings. This post highlights gift-giving practices related to present-day Korean weddings that were noted in Vivian Morelli’s “In South Korea, Weddings and Watches”.
For Korean weddings, there are two types of gifts to take note of: 1. yemul, gifts exchanged between the bride and the groom and 2. yedan, gifts given to the groom’s family from the bride’s family. Presently, couples seek to exchange gifts with practical uses, such as watches, which can be quite expensive. Due to social influences, couples are pressured to purchase lavished, brand-named gifts for their respective partners as a way to demonstrate their social standing or to match what their friends and acquaintances bought for their spouses. Instead of the costly presents couples buy nowadays, previous generations had, as Morelli claims, “simple” options, including rice and a mirror, both of which help particular symbolic meaning. Regardless, couples today are confronted with balancing the social pressure of buying such gifts for their soon-to-be spouses and the costs entailed in each purchase. According to the article, some make their purchases having been influenced by the media (including, American productions) as they showcase extravagant jewelry and other luxuries.
The gifts the bride’s family gives the groom’s family may be personalized and particular like an ingam, which is a tradition legal seal. It is also not uncommon nowadays for the groom to offer gifts to the bride’s family: such gifts include, alcohol, jewelry, a traditional dress and other accessories. While the gifts may be expensive, many argue that it is not about the cost of the present that makes it significant, instead, it is the meaning or significance of the gift that gives it value.
Bibliography
Morelli, Vivian. “In South Korea, Weddings and Watches.” The New York Times, 15 Nov. 2017. NYTimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/15/fashion/watches-south-korea-weddings.html.
Comments
I thought your presentation on Korean weddings was very interesting. Korean weddings just seem so much more complex than Western weddings. That might just be because they are different from what I am used to. I enjoyed learning about this cultural aspect in Korean practices.