Lifestyle - The Korea Times

No. of King Sejong Korean language institutes to rise by 26 to 234

Culture Minister Hwang Hee, right, speaks at the press conference for unveiling new King Sejong Korean language institutes worldwide, held in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism By Kwak Yeon-sooThe King Sejong Institute Foundation will add 26 Korean language institutes in 18 countries this year, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, Wednesday. With the additions, the number of institutes to promote Korean language education and Korean culture abroad has increased to 234 in 82 countries worldwide, according to the ministry. The institutes were first established in three countries in 2007.The 26 new institutes were selected from among 85 applicants in 43 countries ― mostly national or state universities with Korean language courses. For the first time, the foundation will newly establish institutes in Morocco, Tanzania, Bolivia, Slovenia and Nepal.The ministry added that the foundation will open five institutes in Viet

Jun 9, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo

No. of King Sejong Korean language institutes to rise by 26 to 234

China's Confucius Institutes facing calls to leave Korea

Members of the Citizens for Unveiling Confucius Institutes (CUCI) hold an open press conference in front of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul on June 2. They accused Confucius Institutes of brainwashing young Koreans with Chinese Communist Party's ideology, urging all CIs in Korea to close. Courtesy of CUCICivic group leader says CIs are China's propaganda arm in the guise of language and culture program By Kang Hyun-kyungA group of nine middle-aged activists gathered in front of the Chinese Embassy in Seoul on June 2, accusing the Chinese government of its alleged use of the state-funded Confucius Institutes (CIs) to infiltrate Korean universities and high schools to disseminate the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda. Calling the institute China's global network established for espionage and brainwashing locals to support China's policies, the activists urged China to close the institutes on their own, before they are forced to leave. “Despite its title, there are no Confucian ideas whatsoever in the institute,” Han Min-ho, founder and president of the Citizens for Unveilin

Jun 8, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung

China's Confucius Institutes facing calls to leave Korea

Hanbok-inspired work attire on display

Hanbok-inspired business attire is part of a project launched by the culture ministry and the Hanbok Advancement Center to promote the traditional costume for daily wear. Courtesy of Korea Craft and Design FoundationBy Park Han-solWhat caught the attention of BLACKPINK's global fans when the K-pop girl group unveiled their new hit, "How You Like That," on NBC's "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" last summer was their stage costume: modernized “hanbok” or traditional Korean attire. The members appeared on stage clad in traditional “jeogori” (upper garments) and “chima” (skirts), which are usually worn on special occasions, but with a modern stylistic twist and flashy colors.But while the modified hanbok worn by K-pop stars on stage flaunt bolder cuts and patterns suitable for eye-catching performances, other versions more appropriate for everyday wear have started to gain popularity.A series of hanbok-inspired office wear are on display as part of a project launched by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Hanbok Advancement Cent

Jun 2, 2021By Park Han-sol

One-person households account for 30.3% of total in 2020

gettyimagesbankThe portion of single-member households in South Korea surpassed 30 percent of the total last year, a government survey showed Sunday, amid an increase in diverse forms of families. One-person families accounted for 30.4 percent of the total in 2020, according to a survey conducted on 11,000 households by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family every five years.The percentage was 21.3 percent in 2015 and 15.8 percent in 2010.At the same time, the proportion of households composed of parents and unmarried children fell to 31.7 percent in the 2020 research from 44.2 percent in 2015 and 48.4 percent in 2010.The average number of members in a family reached 2.3, down sharply from 2.8 tallied five years ago. In 2010, a family consisted of 2.9 members on average.Among the one-person households, the study demonstrated that 53 percent of them were women, while 61.1 percent were those aged 50 or older.About 40 percent were unmarried, while 30 percent said they were widows.Slightly more than 32 percent of the respondents said they support people's choice to not marry, while 2

May 30, 2021

One-person households account for 30.3% of total in 2020

Husband and wife share mixed emotions about scenic farm they built from scratch

Wife Kim Gui-yim (left) and husband Jung Tae-jin (right) smile under a “maesil” or plum tree in their orchard in Asan City, South Chungcheong Province, on May 25. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulOlder couple's orchard becomes one of Korea's best plum blossom attractions, but plunging price of fruit casts dark clouds over farm.By Kang Hyun-kyungASAN, South Chungcheong Province ― Using her teeth, Kim Gui-yim, 68, bites into a fresh green plum that she picked from a tree in her orchard.Grimacing at its sour, pungent taste, she places in her palm the seed from inside the fruit, which had broken into pieces, as a way to teach the reporter about the right timing for picking the fruit.“It's not good enough to harvest yet. As you can see here, the seed is not hard enough,” she said. “When the seed becomes as hard as a rock, so that it becomes unbreakable with our teeth, then it's time to harvest. This is how we, as farmers, figure out when to pick the fruit.”She and her husband, Jung Tae-jin, are set to harvest their first batch this year of plums, call

May 30, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung

Husband and wife share mixed emotions about scenic farm they built from scratch

Korea's childbirths at fresh record low in March

gettyimagesbankThe number of babies born in South Korea fell to a fresh record low in March, data showed Wednesday, underscoring the country's gloomy demographic situation with the chronically low birth rate.A total of 24,054 babies were born in March, down 0.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.It marked the lowest for any March since 1981, when the statistics agency began compiling related data.In the first quarter, the number of childbirths reached a record low of 70,519, down 4.3 percent from the previous year.South Korea is struggling with a sustained fall in childbirths as many young people delay marriage or give up on getting married or having babies amid a prolonged economic slowdown.The country's total fertility rate ― the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime ― hit a new record low of 0.84 last year. It marked the third straight year that the rate was below 1 percent.In the first quarter, the total fertility rate reached 0.88, the lowest level since 2009, when the agency started compiling related data.In March,

May 26, 2021

Korea's childbirths at fresh record low in March

Korea celebrates Cultural Diversity Week

Guest curators including authors Kim Cho-yeop, Chung Se-rang and film director Leekil Bo-ra will introduce films with inclusive representation on the streaming platform Watcha in celebration of Cultural Diversity Week 2021. Courtesy of WatchaBy Park Han-solAn official poster for Cultural Diversity Week 2021 / Courtesy of Ministry of Culture, Sports and TourismCultural Diversity Week, a nationwide annual festival held since 2015 to celebrate May 21, or the UN-designated World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, kicked off Friday and will run until May 27.Hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in collaboration with the Arts Council Korea, the event aims to introduce the value of diversity and inclusiveness through a series of cultural content-based online lectures and a special exhibition.From May 24 to 27, 11 speakers including film critics, poets and sign language interpreters, will host virtual lectures on Naver TV. The sessions will focus on how the idea of inclusiveness is discussed or incorporated in digital media, films, publications and langu

May 21, 2021By Park Han-sol

Korea celebrates Cultural Diversity Week

Some YouTubers cash in on hate speech

YouTube is flooded with hate speech. Since it became a popular platform for political “news” shows, YouTube has become a battleground between self-proclaimed right-wing and left-wing commentators on politics. gettyimagesbankSelf-proclaimed political commentators on YouTube cross line to attract more subscribers amid political news boomBy Kang Hyun-kyungComedian-turned-YouTuber Kang Seong-beom, 47, offered an apology for his discriminatory remarks about both Chinese nationals and the residents of the southeastern city of Daegu.“In my latest video, I made some inappropriate comments about Chinese nationals and Daegu residents,” he said in a statement uploaded Thursday about the May 19 video. “I deleted the controversial part. My apologies to Daegu residents, Chinese people in Korea, Mr. Lee Jun-seok and his parents and subscribers to my channel who could have felt offended by my careless comments. I know what I said cannot be justified under any circumstances. It was my fault and I am sorry for that.”His apology came a day after he made scathing comm

May 21, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung

Sayuri's decision to be single mother draws attention as Korea seeks to embrace diverse forms of family

Sayuri and her son, Zen / Korea Times fileSayuri, a Japanese TV personality who lives in Seoul, starts her day before 4 a.m. when her five month-old baby wakes up. She has to skip her own breakfast as she is occupied feeding and comforting her child.An unmarried woman who chose to be a single mother, Sayuri gave birth to her son, Zen, through artificial insemination. Her day and night struggle has been broadcast on KBS every Sunday since early May on the popular child-rearing reality show "The Return of Superman."Though her day-to-day routine with the baby seems no different from those of other members of "Superman," her appearance on the show has garnered attention for being the first open depiction of the life of a single mother on the program that launched in 2013. "I think I have to love him much more than other moms do," she said during the show. "I hope he doesn't feel lonely or want something more, even without his father."Last November, the Japanese actress and writer, who started her entertainment career in Korea with the popular "Global Talk Show" in 2007, revealed on her s

May 21, 2021

Sayuri's decision to be single mother draws attention as Korea seeks to embrace diverse forms of family

How fortune tellers became go-to people for business tycoons

Gettyimagesbank Seeking counseling from soothsayers is not a Korea-specific phenomenonBy Kang Hyun-kyungJoung Jin-gu, 69, the founder of a startup called Dream Air that produces respiratory equipment and face masks, has a go-to person he turns to for advice whenever he faces key decisions. The man Joung relies on for counseling is a geomancer who tells his clients about their fortunes and future, based on four pillars ― the hour, day, month and year of one's birth. For the past several decades, Joung has been reaching out to the geomancer for advice whenever he has to hire people to fill key positions in his company or come up with ideas about new business ventures in which he had no prior experience.“You never know which people are trustworthy. Resumes or job interviews rarely tell you who they really are,” he told The Korea Times.He recalled a bitter lesson he learned after hiring a mid-career worker, who later wreaked havoc on his previous garment business.“He wa

May 14, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung

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