Korea Same & DifferentName Date Hour

Save as Korea same and different

Similarities

Name of Country• Both Guard the DMZ• Schools are very intense

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TOP SIMILARITIES• 1. We Both Love Spicy Food• In both Koreas people have the same tongue for spicy food. And it seems that we both enjoy the same kinds of spicy food, too. The recipe for

Kimchee is basically the same in South and North. • While we’re on the subject of food, there are some other similarities I should tell you about. In both Koreas we eat Dduk (ricecake) and Yeot

(taffy) before taking exams for good luck. It is because in Korean, people say “attaching to exams” to mean “passing exams”. Because ricecakes and taffy are sticky material, it became a custom to eat them to pass your exams.

• 2. We Both Have The Same Holidays• Even though there are minor differences between our holidays, we both celebrate many of the same holidays. These include New Years Day

with Ddukguk (Rice Cake Soup), Thanksgiving Day with Songpyun (a kind of Dduk), Daeboreum (the Year’s First Full-Moon Day), Hansik (the 105th day after the winter solstice), Dongji(winter solstice), and Dano (the fifth day of the fifth month of the year according to the lunar calendar). We both visit the graves of our ancestors on Thanksgiving, and pay a visit to our Grandparents on New Years Day.

• 3. We Both Respect Our Parents and Older People• In both North and South Korea we have great respect for what older people say. And when it comes to family life, both sons and daughters

usually value serving their parents with devotion as a top priority. For example, in both Koreas we serve food to our parents first before we start eating ouselves. Also, when talking to our elders, we both use the ‘polite’ form of words and most of the societal norms are similar as well.

• 4. We Are Both ‘Short-Tempered’ People• We both love the idea of Bbali Bbali (빨리빨리! / Chop Chop!)’. I assume it’s because being Korean makes nearly everything a competition!

For some reason in both Koreas people also seem to wants finish work as soon as possible, rather than postponing it. It didn’t take long for me to recognize why people in South Korean restaurants were chasing the waiter all the time when I arrived = it’s down to the short tempered Korean spirit!

• 5. We Both Love Having Fun• We both love singing and dancing with family and friends and celebrating holidays together. I guess there are differences between ‘how’ we

enjoy ourselves from a cultural perspective, though. For example, South Koreans enjoy ‘Noraebang’(Karaoke) a lot, while in North, people play instruments and sing a song. But both enjoy singing, dancing, and having fun.

TOP DIFFERENCES• 1. South Koreans Use English a Lot More Than North Koreans• South Koreans use English often on public signs and in the general language. In North Korea people simply don’t use English

words in the way South Koreans do. You’d just never hear words like “news”, “makeup”, “shopping”, and “sunglasses” in the DPRK, all of which are quite common to hear in the South.

• 2. We Have Different Education and Military Systems• In North Korea we spend four years at the People’s School then six years in Middle school. But in South Korea students

spend three years each in Elementary Middle, and High school. The biggest difference though is military duty: In South Korea it is 21 months but it is almost 10 years in North Korea!

• Because of our long military service requirements, most North Korean men only start dating girls after military service is completed. While some of them do have girlfriends earlier, the fact it is so rare to have holidays in the military means it is hard for couples to sustain relationships at this time. In this way most North Korean men don’t start dating until their late 20s and as a result, the average age of marriage is often higher than it is in South Korea.

• 3. We Have Different Wedding Cultures• In South Korea the bride wears a gorgeous wedding dress, the wedding takes place in a nice place, and afterwards the

couple go on a honeymoon.• In North Korea, things are a lot simpler, with the wedding taking place at a local restaurant or the house of the bride or

groom. The couple usually wear traditional clothes and put simply, we don’t have the idea of a honeymoon in North Korea.• The most common wedding presents in North Korea include cash, rice cookers, mirrors, plates or any other items for the

household. But one thing similar between the two Koreas is that the groom is expected to buy the house and the bride to buy things to fill the house.

• 4. We Have Very Different Fashion Taste• In South Korea people can wear whatever they want. When I first arrived here and saw all the South Korean idol pop groups

I was so surprised: in North Korea people prefer to wear much more casual fashion styles than the ‘stand out’ styles that these pop idol groups wear.

• Usually, people in the DPRK wear things like a white top and black skirt, Kim Jong Il style suits, work clothes, gym clothes, or military clothes. In contrast to South Korea, the government bans things like skinny jeans, mini skirts, and even certain hairstyles for girls.

• 5. Internet Addiction• Of course, how could I skip out the internet? In South Korea, you can use the internet freely, but in the North only public or

education organizations can use the internet (and even then its highly controlled). When you think about all the PC Bangs (internet cafes) in South Korea, you realize how different the two cultures are in this way – of course North Koreans have no idea about search engines, Internet shopping, email, or Facebook.