“Ma Dong-seok is his own genre.” Korean moviegoers often say this in reference to the Korean-American movie star, also known as Don Lee, in recognition of his unique screen presence and charisma. A recent survey by online research firm PMI on Koreans aged 20-60 asked what word comes to mind when hearing his name. The answers were in the order of: “muscular/huge,” “tough/strong,” “Mavely (a comb...

* From waking up a dozing student to tidying up graves, online advertisements with unusual but real job descriptions offer a peek into the Korean society. The Korea Herald looks at some of these unusual ads. The following is the third installment. –- Ed. A job ad that still exists on the hyperlocal community app Karrot Market is from a person searching for someone to do his or her homework assig...

Presidential secretary Yoon Jae-soon has come under fire for poems he published in the past, including segments that seemingly romanticize sexual harassment. Yoon, secretary for administrative affairs for President Yoon Suk-yeol, published a poem 20 years ago titled “Inside a Subway Car” that said the subway was a place “where freedom of mischievous boys was guaranteed” and where “(boys) could p...

* From waking up a dozing student to tidying up graves, online advertisements with unusual but real job descriptions offer a peek into the Korean society. The Korea Herald looks at some of these unusual ads. The following is the second installment. – Ed. Korea’s two biggest -- and longest -- holidays are Seollal and Chuseok, around which the hyperlocal community app Karrot Market is bustling wit...

Less children The issue of not having children is not confined to youngsters refusing to get tied down. Statistics Korea’s December report showed that 8.8 percent of married women in the country as of 2020 do not have children, up from the 4.4 percent recorded in 2010. Of married women with no kids, 43.3 percent agreed with the statement “Marriage with no children is all right.” Reasons for not...

From waking up a dozing student to tidying up graves, online advertisements with unusual but real job descriptions offer a peek into the Korean society. The Korea Herald looks at some of these unusual ads. The following is the first installment. -- Ed. Last week, a self-proclaimed mother posted an ad on a hyperlocal online marketplace, looking to hire a helper for her high school son. Job descri...

The history of Korean people spans across thousands of years, but the Republic of Korea, aka, South Korea, is relatively young, with its history punctuated by military dictatorships and struggles to establish a truly democratic system. The presidential system itself has undergone multiple changes along the way, and several of the nation’s leaders have had less-than-fortunate endings. Here are f...

Famed poet Kim Ji-ha, who died on Sunday at the age of 81, left behind a legacy of decades-long battles against the military dictatorship, followed by disputes later in life. Kim died at 4 p.m. at his home in Wonju, Gangwon Province, after suffering from an unspecified illness for the past year, the Toji Cultural Foundation said on behalf of the bereaved family. He passed away “peacefully, afte...

Renowned poet Kim Ji-ha, a dissident figure who spoke out against the military dictatorship of the 1960s and ‘70s, died Sunday at the age of 81. Kim had been suffering from an unspecified illness for the past year before he passed away at his home in Wonju, Gangwon Province, according to the Toji Cultural Foundation. The foundation, which supports Korean writers and scholars, was named after the...

For instance, those who took their chances and visited the country’s largest theme park, Everland, on May 5 of 2015, turned out to be the winners of the game, as others shunned the venue expecting an enormous Children’s Day crowd. Everland counted around 30,000 visitors on what could have been the busiest day of the year, which was less than twice its average number of daily visitors. The follo...

A woman and man suspected of causing the 2019 drowning death of the woman’s husband were indicted for murder by state prosecutors on Wednesday, as the investigators set themselves up for a court fight to prove her criminal intent. The Incheon District Prosecutors’ Office indicted 31-year-old Lee Eun-hae and her accomplice, 30-year-old Cho Hyun-soo ,on charges of murder, attempted murder, and vio...

The bereaved family of an 18-year-old football player who took his own life recently claimed that the victim had been target of monthslong bullying by teammates and coaches. A person claiming to be a parent of Jeong Woo-rim -- formerly a member of the Gimpo Football Club of South Korea’s second division K League 2 -- posted an online petition on the Cheong Wa Dae homepage on Monday about how the...

The government policy to lift the outdoor face mask mandate was to officially in Monday, with some raising concern about the new measure’s potential effects on spreading of COVID-19 infections. Starting Monday, masks are only mandated indoors and during outdoor activities of events that carry a high risk of infection, such as gatherings of 50 or more people, concerts and sports games. All forms ...

A murder case is gripping South Korea with a curious blend of fatal attraction, gaslighting and insurance fraud, but law enforcement authorities face a tough fight to prove the crime. It is the story of a man named Yoon Sang-yeop, who drowned in the summer of 2019 during a trip to a valley with his wife Lee Eun-hae and her friends, just four hours before his life insurance expired. How it came ...

Woori Bank came under scrutiny for an internal control failure Thursday, after an employee confessed to embezzlement of 50 billion won ($39.4 million). The employee is currently in police custody and investigators are looking to probe the lender’s headquarters to verify the suspect’s statement and seize evidence. The Financial Supervisory Service, the nation’s financial watchdog, said it will l...