Korea is rich with unique holidays and traditions, from Lunar New Year (설날) to Thanksgiving (추석) and modern celebrations like Children’s Day and Pepero Day. If you’re living in Korea, visiting during a holiday season, or just interested in Korean culture, knowing these Korean holiday-related words and expressions will help you connect more deeply.

In this post, you’ll learn: ✔️ Names of Korean national holidays
✔️ Vocabulary for traditional celebrations
✔️ Common expressions and phrases used during holidays
✔️ Bonus terms for gift-giving, greetings, and events

Let’s celebrate Korean culture and language together! 🥳

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📅 National & Traditional Korean Holidays

Korean	Pronunciation	English
설날	Seol-nal	Lunar New Year
추석	Chu-seok	Korean Thanksgiving
삼일절	Sam-il-jeol	Independence Movement Day (March 1st)
어린이날	Eo-re-ni-nal	Children’s Day (May 5th)
석가탄신일	Seok-ga-tan-sin-il	Buddha’s Birthday
현충일	Hyeon-chung-il	Memorial Day
광복절	Gwang-bok-jeol	Liberation Day
개천절	Gae-cheon-jeol	National Foundation Day
한글날	Han-geul-nal	Hangul Day
크리스마스	Keu-ri-seu-ma-seu	Christmas
부처님 오신 날	Bu-cheo-nim o-sin nal	Buddha’s Coming Day
대체공휴일	Dae-che-gong-hyu-il	Substitute Public Holiday

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🎎 Vocabulary for Holiday Celebrations

Korean	Pronunciation	English
명절	Myeong-jeol	Traditional holiday
연휴	Yeon-hyu	Consecutive holidays / long weekend
제사	Je-sa	Ancestral rites
차례	Cha-rye	Traditional memorial service
한복	Han-bok	Traditional Korean clothes
세배	Se-bae	New Year’s bow to elders
덕담	Deok-dam	Words of blessing / well-wishing
송편	Song-pyeon	Half-moon rice cakes (eaten on Chuseok)
떡국	Tteok-guk	Rice cake soup (eaten on Seollal)
윷놀이	Yut-no-ri	Traditional Korean board game
전통놀이	Jeon-tong-no-ri	Traditional games
성묘	Seong-myo	Visit to ancestral graves
고향	Go-hyang	Hometown
귀성	Gwi-seong	Homecoming
귀경	Gwi-gyeong	Return to city after holiday

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🎁 Gift-Giving & Holiday Activities

Korean	Pronunciation	English
선물	Seon-mul	Gift
세뱃돈	Se-baet-don	New Year’s money (given to kids)
과일 바구니	Gwa-il ba-gu-ni	Fruit basket
건강 보조 식품	Geon-gang bo-jo sik-pum	Health supplements
명절 음식	Myeong-jeol eum-sik	Holiday food
나들이	Na-deul-i	Outing, excursion
가족 모임	Ga-jok mo-im	Family gathering
교통 체증	Gyo-tong che-jeung	Traffic jam
예약하다	Ye-yak-ha-da	To book/reserve (tickets, trains, etc.)
휴무	Hyu-mu	Closed (for holidays)

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🗣️ Common Holiday Greetings & Expressions in Korean

Korean	Pronunciation	English
새해 복 많이 받으세요.	Sae-hae bok ma-ni ba-deu-se-yo.	Happy New Year! (Receive a lot of blessings)
즐거운 명절 보내세요.	Jeul-geo-un myeong-jeol bo-nae-se-yo.	Have a joyful holiday.
건강하세요.	Geon-gang-ha-se-yo.	Please stay healthy.
가족과 행복한 시간 보내세요.	Ga-jok-gwa haeng-bok-han si-gan bo-nae-se-yo.	Spend a happy time with your family.
안전하게 다녀오세요.	An-jeon-ha-ge da-nyeo-o-se-yo.	Travel safely.
맛있는 음식 많이 드세요.	Mas-it-neun eum-sik ma-ni deu-se-yo.	Eat lots of delicious food.
고향에 잘 다녀오세요.	Go-hyang-e jal da-nyeo-o-se-yo.	Have a good trip to your hometown.

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🧠 Practice Time!

Comment your answers below! 👇
1️⃣ What’s the Korean word for Thanksgiving?
2️⃣ How do you say “New Year’s bow” in Korean?
3️⃣ What does “세뱃돈” mean?

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🔥 Want to Learn More Korean?

Expand your Korean vocabulary with these helpful lessons:

🪖 Military Vocabulary & Useful Expressions 🇰🇷
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🦷 Dental Vocabulary & Useful Expressions

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