Gangneung is a municipal city in Gangwon Province,on the east coast of South Korea. It has a population of 213,658. Gangneung is the economic centre of the Yeongdong region of Gangwon Province. It has many tourist attractions,such as Jeongdongjin,a very popular area for watching the sunrise,and Gyeongpo Beach. The city hosted all the ice events for the 2018 Winter Olympics and the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics.
Gangwon State is a Special Self-Governing Province of South Korea and the least densely populated subdivision of the country. Gangwon is one of the two provinces with special self-governing status,the other being Jeju-do. On the east bound by the East Sea,it borders Gyeonggi Province to its west,North Gyeongsang Province and North Chungcheong Province to its south,and the Military Demarcation Line to the north,separating it from North Korea's Kangwŏn Province. Before the division of Korea in 1945 Gangwon and Kangwŏn Provinces formed a single province.
The traditional culture of Korea is the shared cultural and historical heritage of Korea before the division of Korea in 1945.
Pyeongchang is a county in the province of Gangwon-do,South Korea,located in the Taebaek Mountains region. It is home to several Buddhist temples,including Woljeongsa. It is about 180 km (110 mi) east southeast of Seoul,the capital of South Korea,and connected by expressways and high-speed passenger railways. Pyeongchang's slogan,"Happy 700 Pyeongchang",is taken from its average elevation of approximately 700 metres (2,300 ft).
Stories and practices that are considered part of Korean folklore go back several thousand years. These tales derive from a variety of origins,including Shamanism,Confucianism,Buddhism,and more recently Christianity.
Dano (Korean: 단오),also called Surit-nal (수릿날),is a Korean traditional holiday that falls on the 5th day of the fifth month of the lunar Korean calendar. It is an official holiday in North Korea and one of the major traditional holidays in South Korea. South Korea has retained several festivals related to the holiday,one of which is Gangneung Dano Festival (강릉단오제) designated by UNESCO as a "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity".
Pungmul is a Korean folk music tradition that includes drumming,dancing,and singing. Most performances are outside,with dozens of players all in constant motion. Pungmul is rooted in the dure farming culture. It was originally played as part of farm work,on rural holidays,at other village community-building events,and to accompany shamanistic rituals,mask dance dramas,and other types of performance. During the late 1960s and 1970s it expanded in meaning and was actively used in political protest during the pro-democracy movement,although today it is most often seen as a performing art. Based on 1980s research,this kind of music was extensively studied in Chindo Island.
The Hahoe Folk Village (Korean: 안동하회마을) is a traditional village from the Joseon Dynasty,located in Andong,Gyeongsangbuk-do,South Korea. The 'Ha' is short for river and 'hoe' means to 'turn around,return,come back.
Kagura is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase kami no kura,indicating the presence of gods in the practice.
The International Junior Art Festival is a youth festival which is held annually at Gyeongpo Beach in Gangneung,South Korea,for four days at the beginning of August. With 300 participants from seven nations and 500 visitors every night,it is considered the biggest international youth festival in South Korea.
Ganggangsullae is an ancient Korean dance that was first used to bring about a bountiful harvest and has developed into a cultural symbol for Korea. It incorporates singing,dancing,and playing and is exclusively performed by women. The dance is mostly performed in the southwestern coastal province of Jeollanam-do. It is often associated with the Chuseok holiday and Daeboreum. They dance all night and continue to play folk games in circles. The performance starts with a late Ganggangsullae and changes to a 'Jajeun-Ganggangsullae',which are characterized by the most beautiful and feminine charms of late Ganggangsullae,and 'Jung-Ganggangsullae" only in the Haenam and Jindo provinces.
Yangju byeolsandae nori (Korean: 양주별산대놀이) is Korea's traditional mask drama,registered as an Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea. It is performed primarily in April (chopail),May (danoh),July (Basin) and August (Thanksgiving) and also sometimes in a ceremony which prays for rain. The name originates from the place where mask-playing started,Yangju province in Korea. It was the first mask play to be designated as an "Important Intangible Cultural Property".
Eunsan byeolsinje is Korea's traditional shamanism ceremony which is selected as the ninth Important Intangible Cultural Property of Korea next to Ganggang sullae. It is performed mainly in eunsanri eunsanmyeon Chungcheongnam-do Buyeo Korea by a shaman.
Yeongsan soemeoridaegi (Korean: 영산쇠머리대기) is a traditional game in Korea which is selected as the 25th Important Intangible Cultural Property next to Andong's Chajeon Nori. It is originally played in Yeongsan-myeon,Changnyeong-gun,Gyeongsangnam-do,Korea. It is also called Mokwujun,wood cow fighting or cow wood fighting in the province.
Hahoe byeolsingut talnori or "Hahoe special ritual drama to the gods" is a Korean masked dance-drama performed every three,five,or ten years at the request of the village deity in Hahoe,Andong,North Gyeongsang Province. The village is a UNESCO World Heritage Site,the dance-drama an Important Intangible Cultural Property,and a collection of thirteen (13) masks are a National Treasure. The ritual shares some of the major themes of Korean masked drama and Korean shamanism,namely satire and the ridicule of apostate Buddhist priests and the nobility.
Juldarigi is a traditional Korean sport similar to tug of war. It has a ritual and divinatory significance to many agricultural communities in the country,and is performed at festivals and community gatherings. The sport uses two huge rice-straw ropes,connected by a central peg,which are pulled by teams representing the East and West sides of the village. A number of religious and traditional rituals are performed before and after the actual competition.
Benzhuism is the indigenous religion of the Bai people,an ethnic group of Yunnan,China. It consists in the worship of the ngel zex,the Bai word for "patrons" or "lords",rendered as benzhu (本主) in Chinese,that are local gods and deified ancestors of the Bai people. It is very similar to common Chinese religion.
Mu (Korean: 무) is the Korean term for a shaman in Korean shamanism. Korean shamans hold rituals called gut for the welfare of the individuals and the society.
The Inter-City Intangible Cultural Cooperation Network (ICCN) is the only international organization of local governments and cultural organizations that aim to safeguard the world’s Intangible Cultural Heritage. The ICCN has been working to explore creative and effective policies for the safeguarding of local Intangible Cultural Heritage and its inseparable relation to sustainable local development. Furthermore,we aim to make cultural peace based on mutual understanding formed through intercultural dialogue.
