Daeboreum
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| Daeboreum | |
|---|---|
| Hangul: |
대보름
|
| Hanja: |
大보름
|
| Revised Romanization: | Daeboreum |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Taeborŭm |
Daeboreum (대보름), meaning "Great Full Moon", is a Korean holiday that celebrates the first full moon of the new year according to the lunar calendar. This holiday is accompanied by many traditions.
[edit] Traditions
One familiar custom is to crack nuts with one's teeth. It is believed that this practice will help keep one's teeth healthy for the year.
In the countryside, people climb mountains, braving cold weather, trying to catch the first rise of the moon. It is said that the first person to see the moon rise will have good luck all year.
Historically, people played the traditional game named geuybulnori the night before daeboreum. They burned the dry grass on ridges between rice fields while children whirled around cans full of holes, through which charcoal fire blazed. These cans fertilized the fields and got rid of harmful worms that destroyed the new crops.
[edit] Food
For breakfast on Daeboreum, Ogokbab (오곡밥 / 五穀밥), a five-"grain" rice consisting of rice, millet, Indian millet, beans, and red beans is served. This is eaten with various dried herbs. (The Korean concept of "grain" is broad enough to include beans.) One of the special foods of Daeboreum is Yakshik (약식 / 藥食). This treat is made of glutinous rice, chestnuts, pinenuts, honey, sauce, and sesame oil.
On this day, Koreans traditionally do not give any food to dogs since it is believed that dogs that eat on this day will contract gad flies and vomit a great deal during the coming summer.
