Growing up in Korea, I’ve always been fascinated by the intricate web of superstitions that seem to govern everything from when we cut our nails to what we eat before exams. These aren’t just random beliefs – they’re deeply rooted cultural practices that have shaped Korean society for centuries. Today, I’ll briefly list some of the most common Korean superstitions. If you find this interesting, please leave a comment about what you’d like to know more about, and I’ll explore it in more depth.
Understanding Korean Superstitions: More Than Just Old Wives’ Tales
Korean superstitions typically revolve around avoiding bad luck, premature death, losing fortune, or bringing harm to one’s parents. What’s interesting is how similar many of these beliefs are to Chinese and Japanese superstitions – a testament to our shared cultural history and centuries of cultural exchange.
The thing about Korean superstitions is that they’re not just meaningless traditions. Most have practical origins rooted in historical circumstances, hygiene concerns, or social needs. While some might seem outdated today, others still hold surprising relevance.
However, let me be clear: what I’m sharing here are cultural observations I’ve encountered throughout my life in Korea. Some might be regional variations or urban legends, so take them with a grain of salt.
Personal Hygiene and Safety Superstitions
Don’t Cut Your Nails at Night
This is probably one of the most well-known Korean superstitions. The belief goes that cutting your nails after dark brings bad luck or shortens your lifespan.
The practical origin makes perfect sense though. Back in the days before nail clippers, people used scissors or knives to trim their nails. Without electric lighting, doing this delicate work by candlelight was genuinely dangerous – one wrong move could cause a serious injury. Before antibiotics, even minor cuts could become infected and potentially fatal.
There’s also the matter of nail clippings falling on the floor in the dark. In traditional Korean homes, these could become hazards, and there were even folk tales about mice eating nail clippings and transforming into humans!
When I first learned about this superstition was from the famous animation “Meoteol-dosa”, a show that anyone born in Korea in the ’70s, ’80s, or ’90s would surely recognize. I remember the scene where the character uses a cloning trick — when I was a child I truly and innocently believed that if I clipped my fingernails, another one of me would appear and I wouldn’t be able to get back into the house. Looking back now, it’s a memory that’s both funny and a little scary.
The Spider in Your House Rule
Here’s one that actually makes a lot of sense: never kill a spider that has made its web inside your home. The traditional belief was that house spiders bring good fortune, and killing them invites divine punishment.
From a practical standpoint, spiders are incredible pest controllers. They eat flies, mosquitoes, and cockroaches – basically doing free pest control for you. Unless the web is enormous or in an inconvenient location, having a house spider is actually beneficial. It’s like having a tiny, silent roommate who pays rent by keeping your home bug-free.
Threshold Superstitions and Home Protection
Never step on the threshold – this rule was drilled into me as a child. The belief is that stepping on thresholds brings bad luck or shows disrespect to the household spirits.
Practically speaking, frequently stepping on wooden thresholds would wear them down, creating gaps that let in cold air and reduced the home’s insulation efficiency. Traditional thresholds weren’t as smooth as modern ones either, so stepping on them often meant getting splinters.
Symbolically, thresholds represent the boundary between inside and outside, the sacred and mundane. In many cultures, including Korea, these boundary spaces are considered spiritually significant.
Modern homes often don’t even have raised thresholds, so this superstition is gradually fading away.
Food and Eating Superstitions
The “Becoming a Cow” Myth
“If you lie down immediately after eating, you’ll become a cow” – every Korean child has heard this one. While we obviously don’t transform into livestock, there’s actual medical wisdom here.
Lying down right after eating can cause:
- Digestive problems
- Acid reflux and heartburn
- Poor blood sugar regulation
The “cow” comparison comes from the perception that lying around after eating is lazy behavior, similar to how cattle spend their time grazing and resting.
Corner Seat Dining Taboo
Sitting at the corner of a dining table while eating is considered bad luck – specifically, it’s thought to make you poor. The reasoning is that sitting at the corner makes you look like a beggar asking for food scraps, rather than a proper member of the household.
This reflects traditional Korean values about dignity, proper behavior, and one’s place in the social hierarchy.
The Number 4 Phobia
Like many East Asian cultures, Korea has a strong aversion to the number 4. This is because the Korean word for “four” (사, sa) sounds identical to the word for “death” (사, 死, sa).
You’ll notice this everywhere in Korea:
- Buildings skip the 4th floor (going from 3 to 5, or using “F” for Four)
- Hospital room numbers avoid 4
- Apartment units skip numbers with 4
- Phone numbers with multiple 4s are less desirable
This is similar to how many Western buildings skip the 13th floor, but since 4 is used much more frequently than 13, the impact is more noticeable in daily life.
If you want to know more, please refer to my previous article, ‘Superstitions About the Number 4‘.🔗
Color and Writing Superstitions
The Red Ink Taboo
This might be the most universally known Korean superstition: never write someone’s name in red ink. This belief is so strong that people get genuinely upset if their name appears in red.
The origins are somewhat mysterious, but several theories exist:
- Red resembles blood, symbolizing violence or death
- During the Korean War, deceased soldiers’ names were written in red to distinguish them from living personnel
- Red traditionally represents violence and danger
Interestingly, even communist China – where red is considered a lucky color for celebrations – maintains this same taboo about writing names in red ink.
What’s ironic is that Korean movie posters from the 1960s and 70s featured red titles exclusively!
Gift-Giving Superstitions
The Knife Gift Dilemma
Giving someone a knife as a gift is believed to bring bad luck to the recipient. The practical concern is obvious – knives are inherently dangerous tools.
There’s a workaround though: if the recipient pays even a small amount (like 1,000 won), it becomes a “purchase” rather than a gift, supposedly neutralizing the bad luck.
Celebrity chef Baek Jong-won famously follows this superstition. When giving a knife to departing cast member Park Jung-chul on a cooking show, he insisted on receiving 1,000 won to make it a sale rather than a gift.
Shoe Gifts and Relationships
There’s a modern superstition that giving shoes to your romantic partner will cause them to walk away from you. This supposedly comes from the idea that nice new shoes make people want to go places and explore.
However, there’s a positive counterpart: some believe that beautiful shoes will take you to good places and opportunities.
For more information, please see my previous post, “Superstitions About Gifting Shoes.”‘🔗
Exam and Academic Superstitions
Korean students face intense academic pressure, so it’s no surprise that exam superstitions are particularly elaborate.
Lucky Foods for Tests
- Sticky rice cakes (찹쌀떡) and taffy (엿): The stickiness symbolizes “sticking” to the test or university
- Students sometimes stick taffy to school walls before exams
Foods to Avoid Before Exams
- Seaweed soup (미역국): Because seaweed is slippery, it’s thought to make you “slip up” on tests
- Porridge (죽): Associated with the phrase “making porridge for dogs” (failing)
- Octopus (낙지): Sounds similar to “failing” (낙제)
The irony? Nutritionally speaking, seaweed soup is incredibly healthy and would actually be great brain food for test day. Meanwhile, sticky rice cakes pose a choking hazard if you’re nervous!
Modern Academic Superstitions
The Hyundai Sonata Emblem Incident
In the early 2000s, there was a bizarre trend where students would steal the “H” emblems from Hyundai Sonata cars before university entrance exams. The reasoning? The “H” looked like the Korean letter “ㅗ” which appears in words meaning “to fall” or “fail.”
This got so out of hand that Hyundai had to deal with widespread emblem theft during exam seasons!
Modern Korean Superstitions
Fan Death Myth
One of Korea’s most famous modern superstitions is the belief that sleeping with an electric fan on in a closed room can kill you. The theory is that fans consume oxygen and produce carbon dioxide, leading to suffocation.
This has been thoroughly debunked by science, yet many Koreans still believe it. It’s become somewhat of a cultural joke among younger generations who are aware it’s false, but the belief persists among older generations.
The real danger with fans is fire risk if they overheat from running too long.
Electronic Radiation Fears
There are widespread beliefs about harmful effects from electronic devices, leading to a market for “protective” items like:
- Cactus plants (supposedly absorb radiation)
- Charcoal filters
- Electromagnetic field blocking stickers
Scientific research hasn’t found evidence that normal electronic device radiation is harmful, making most of these products essentially placebos.
Blood Type Personality Theory
While not unique to Korea, the belief that blood type determines personality is extremely popular here. It’s similar to how Westerners might discuss zodiac signs.
This pseudoscience originated in Japan and has been thoroughly debunked, but it remains influential in Korean dating culture and casual conversations. People will often ask “What’s your blood type?” when getting to know someone.
And this used to be an icebreaker between people who were meeting for the first time or were just getting used to it, but now people ask “What’s your MBTI?” more often than they ask blood type.
Traditional Life Event Superstitions
Pregnancy and Birth Taboos
Pregnant women avoiding funerals: Traditional belief held that evil spirits at funerals could harm unborn children or swap their souls. Practically, funeral gatherings posed disease risks when medical care was limited and hygiene standards were lower.
Modern funeral homes have much better sanitation, though some still avoid them due to the psychologically stressful atmosphere during pregnancy.
First Birthday Traditions (돌잔치)
The 돌잡이 ceremony involves placing various objects in front of a one-year-old child to “predict” their future based on what they grab first:
- Books or pencils: Academic success
- Money: Wealth
- Thread: Long life
- Stethoscope: Medical career
Unlike Japanese versions that include diverse career symbols (rulers for construction, scissors for crafts), Korean versions tend to focus on prestigious professions like doctor, lawyer, or entertainer – reflecting Korea’s hierarchical view of occupations.
Moving and Important Dates
“No Interference Days” (손없는 날)
These are specific lunar calendar dates (ending in 9 or 0) when evil spirits supposedly don’t roam, making them ideal for important activities like:
- Moving homes
- Opening businesses
- Weddings
- Major purchases
These days are so popular that moving companies charge premium prices, and scheduling becomes extremely competitive.
Since the concept of “Son-eomneun Nal” (the Day Without Evil Spirits) is related to Saju, I will cover it in depth another time.
Food Superstitions and Social Customs
Chicken Eating Rules
Traditional beliefs about chicken parts varied by gender:
- Men shouldn’t eat chicken wings: Might make them unfaithful
- Women shouldn’t eat chicken legs: Might make them leave home
There were positive versions too:
- Men eating chicken legs become pillars of the household
- Women eating chicken wings will marry well
Obviously, these reflect outdated gender stereotypes and are mostly ignored today.
Alcohol Etiquette
Never leave a drink glass empty, but never top off a partially full glass – this comes from funeral ritual practices where drinks are continuously refilled for the deceased. Doing the same for living people was considered treating them like the dead.
The Logic Behind Korean Superstitions
What fascinates me about Korean superstitions is how many have practical origins:
- Health and Safety: Nail cutting at night, not lying down after eating
- Social Harmony: Proper dining etiquette, respectful behavior
- Resource Conservation: Not wasting food, respecting household items
- Disease Prevention: Avoiding crowded places during pregnancy, funeral hygiene
- Economic Wisdom: Being cautious about gifts and major decisions
Even seemingly arbitrary rules often reflect deeper cultural values about respect, hierarchy, and community harmony.
Modern Relevance and Cultural Evolution
While younger Koreans are increasingly skeptical of traditional superstitions, many persist because they’re:
- Embedded in family traditions
- Reinforced by social pressure
- Connected to expressions of care (parents warning children)
- Psychologically comforting during uncertain times
Some superstitions are evolving too. The red ink taboo remains strong, but digital communication has created new contexts and exceptions.
As a Side Note
While it’s perfectly fine to dismiss superstitions as unscientific, when it comes to widely held beliefs, you sometimes have to go along with them whether you believe or not. The hotel and hospital floor numbering I mentioned earlier is a perfect example. Even if the owner doesn’t believe in the superstition, ignoring it would just hurt their business.
Same goes for the red ink name taboo. Anyone with half a brain can see it’s nonsensical, but there’s really no benefit to writing someone’s name in red. Even people who aren’t into superstitions might find it odd if you deliberately choose red ink when other colors are available, and they might think you’re being weird or provocative.
In real life, people who are overly superstitious often get mocked, but interestingly, it’s the complete opposite in movies, comics, and other creative works. Nine times out of ten, the character who scoffs at superstitions ends up facing misfortune, while the believer escapes unharmed. Creators frequently use superstitions as plot devices and foreshadowing elements.
Korean superstitions offer fascinating insights into historical living conditions, cultural values, and social priorities. While we shouldn’t take them as literal truth, understanding them helps explain certain behaviors and attitudes you might encounter in Korean society.
Whether you’re visiting Korea, working with Korean colleagues, or simply curious about cultural differences, being aware of these beliefs can help you navigate social situations more sensitively. You don’t have to believe them, but simply respecting their cultural meaning can be incredibly helpful.
And try incorporating them into your conversations. For example, when talking to a Korean friend or colleague, try saying something like, “Hey, if you shake your legs, you’ll get a stomachache.” They’ll be delighted and ask where you learned that.
What superstitions exist in your culture? I’d love to hear about beliefs from other countries that might seem strange to outsiders but make perfect sense in context.
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