Eorininal

Eorininal , or day of the children (in Hangeul 어린이날) is one of the Korean traditional festivals.

It is celebrated today:

- the May 5th in South Korea, where it is one of the national festivals since 1975,

- on June 1st in North Korea, in order to coincide with the Day international of the children, instituted on the initiative of the Council of the international League of the democratic women, joined together with Moscow in November 1949.

The festival of the children was initially fixed at May 1st, dates to which an author of books for children, Bang Jeong-hwan, wrote, in 1923, a " Open letter with the adultes" , in which he proclaims that " the children are the future of our nation" and that children who grow in the respect of the others will be, in their turn, respectful of others.

In Korea, the day of the children is celebrated with as much ostentation than Christmas in Europe and America: the children receive gifts and their parents take them along in walk in the parks and the zoos.

References and notes

Robert Nave, " Children' S Day in South Korea" , on the site Ohmynews/Korea, May 4th, 2007

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