Tourists wearing traditional Korean costumes pose for a photo in the snow at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul on Feb. 17, 2020. == sync, corrected by elderman == @elder_man
The dispute between China and South Korea over the origin of Korean traditional costumes has recently spread to Tenafly, New Jersey, in the United States. On Monday (5), the city agreed to designate October 21 every year as “Hanbok Day”.
The Seoul Economic Daily reported that Tenafly recognized the day after a petition by the Asian American Youth Council, a local Asian group, in the midst of a dispute between China and South Korea. “The city’s mayor, Mark Zinna, will hold a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the day.
The Chinese Communist Party is trying to engage in “cultural imperialism,” and since last year, Korean media have been reporting on the Communist Party’s appropriation of Korean culture.
Recently, a Chinese actor posted a photo on the social media platform Weibo of the set of the Chinese TV series “Shangri-La,” in which the actors wore costumes very similar to Korean costumes, sparking an outcry from Korean netizens.
Many young Chinese people are now very fond of hanbok. The flowing robes of Hanbok are worn differently from Korean costumes, but influential people on Chinese social media prefer to wear a type of Hanbok that resembles Korean costumes. Some Chinese netizens claim the garment is Chinese, sparking controversy in South Korea.
On March 23, the much-anticipated $28 million zombie-based Korean historical drama “The Exorcist of Joseon” was taken off the air after its second episode because it was accused of “distorting” history by showing Korean culture through a “Chinese-style” aesthetic.
Korean entertainment shows are popular abroad, with a lot of Chinese capital behind many of the biggest productions. However, the recent backlash from South Korea has been fierce.
According to the Pew Research Center, a U.S. think tank, the percentage of South Koreans with negative feelings about China has hit a record high, jumping from 31 percent in 2002 to 75 percent in 2020, while the percentage with positive feelings has dived from 66 percent to 24 percent over the same period. Apparently, the outbreak of the Chinese communist virus (COVID-19) and Beijing’s so-called “war wolf diplomacy” played a key role.
Korean netizens are engaged in a fierce back-and-forth battle over the origins of traditional Korean clothing and kimchi. With anti-Chinese sentiment growing in South Korea, this controversy may not go away quickly.
“The Asian American Youth Council says they aim to petition other U.S. cities to enact an unofficial Hanbok Day to emphasize that hanbok is a traditional Korean costume, not a Chinese one.
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