Korean birthday traditions — 미역국 (miyeokguk), 돌잔치 and how to say happy birthday

Picture a birthday in Korea, from morning to night. The scene is made up, but the customs in it are real.

Morning: a bowl of dark green soup

A young woman wakes up on her birthday. Her mom has already put a bowl of dark green soup on the table. It is 미역국 [미역꾹] (miyeokguk), a seaweed soup. Many people eat it on a birthday.

Why soup? The story starts with mothers, not birthdays.

The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, from the Academy of Korean Studies, describes an old custom. After a woman gives birth, the first meal she gets is white rice and 미역국. This first meal is called 첫국밥 (cheotgukbap). It is made without beef, with only soy sauce and sesame oil.

Why seaweed? The same encyclopedia says 미역 (miyeok, "seaweed") has a lot of iodine. It explains that this helps the mother make breast milk.

The encyclopedia also says 미역국 became a normal birthday food. So on your birthday, you eat the same soup your mother ate after you were born. It is often described as a way to thank your mother.

The encyclopedia also mentions a few old customs about the seaweed for a new mother. People chose wide, long pieces. They paid the full price and did not ask for a discount. They did not break or fold it. They tied it with straw rope instead. People believed that breaking the seaweed could make the birth difficult. These are old beliefs. Not every family follows them today.

Midday: messages from friends

Her phone starts to buzz. A close friend writes 생일 축하해! (saengil chukhahae). That is the casual way to say happy birthday, for friends and younger people. A coworker, or someone she just met, would say 생일 축하해요! (saengil chukhahaeyo).

Then a friend calls. "오늘 내 생일이야!" she says, which means "Today is my birthday!" The friend answers, "진짜? 생일 축하해! 미역국 먹었어?" That means, "Really? Happy birthday! Did you eat seaweed soup?" The question about soup can be a friendly way to ask, "Did someone take care of you today?"

Afternoon: a gift for the manager

Meanwhile, it is her manager's birthday too. She hands him a small gift with two hands and says 생신 축하드립니다. (saengsin chukhadeurimnida).

Here is the important part. 생신 (saengsin) is the polite word for 생일 (saengil, "birthday"). The Standard Korean Language Dictionary defines it as the word that raises 생일 to show respect.

You use 생신 for the other person's birthday, when that person is older or senior. You never use it for your own birthday. Saying "my 생신" would sound like you are raising yourself. For a teacher, a boss or an older person, 생신 축하드립니다 is the safe choice.

Evening: cake, and a baby's party

At dinner there is cake, of course. A cousin brings photos from a baby's first birthday party. That party is a 돌잔치 (doljanchi).

돌 (dol) is a baby's first birthday. The encyclopedia says that when Koreans say only 돌, they mean the first one. 잔치 (janchi) means "party." So 돌잔치 is the first birthday party.

Korea.net explains why it mattered so much. In the past, many babies did not live to their first birthday, because of hunger and disease. So when a baby reached one year, the family held a big celebration.

In the photos, the baby wears traditional clothes. There is a table full of rice cakes, fruit and other food. This is the 돌상 (dolsang).

The most fun part is 돌잡이 (doljabi). Family members put several objects in front of the baby. The baby grabs one. People say it shows the baby's future. The encyclopedia lists traditional meanings. Rice or money means the child will be rich. Thread or noodles mean a long life. Books, a brush or ink mean a good student who gets a high position. A bow and arrow means a military career.

Today, many families add new objects. Korea.net mentions things like a computer mouse, a microphone or a golf club.

돌잡이 is a game, not a real prediction. The encyclopedia even notes that babies often do not pick what the parents hope for.

Good to know

• Soup before exams. 미역 is slippery. In Korean, people sometimes describe failing a test as 미끄러지다 (mikkeureojida, "to slip"). So there is a superstition that eating 미역국 before a big exam is bad luck.
• The college entrance exam. You may hear about this around Korea's college entrance exam, the 수능 (Suneung). It is often said that some students avoid 미역국 in their lunch box on that day. It is only a superstition, of course.
• A funny contrast. The same soup is a birthday favorite but is often avoided before exams.
• Who gets which phrase. 생일 축하해 is for friends. 생신 축하드립니다 is for older people.

In one line: Koreans eat 미역국 on birthdays to remember birth, celebrate a baby's first year with 돌잔치, and say 생신 for older people.