Select a Section:     Return to Cultural Spotlight
Animals
Turtle: Longevity, Fortune-telling Ability
While the dragon was considered the ruler of all animals, the turtle ruled over the insects. Because turtles live longer than other animals, they symbolize longevity. People believed that turtles had the power to predict the future. Fortune tellers used the shape of a turtle's shell to forecast the future. Turtle images often form the base of steles or monuments to famous people, especially Buddhism monks.

sel0205 Mangwoo19 Mangwoo18

Tiger: Commanding Dignity and Sternness, Courage and Fierceness
People looked at tigers with two different perspectives. They were seen as brave, dignified, cruel, and greedy on one hand, yet also respected as a symbol of good luck and protection from disease. Tigers in dreams represented a sign to take a public position. The embroidered breast patches on the court attire of military officials included tigers and leopards, both symbols of valor and courage.

Jiri181 Sunc454

Deer: Friendship, Longevity
People considered the deer as a holy animal due to its beautiful appearance and mild temper. They always travel in herds and whenever they move to a different location, they raise their heads to search for an stragglers that do not follow. When an image of a deer was painted with pine trees, maples, rocks, or herbs, it usually meant longevity.

sel0202a Monkey: High Position in Government
Monkeys are called i-hu in Chinese. Because hu has the same pronunciation as emperor, the meaning of a monkey extends to promotion to a high ranking position in the government.

Kyonbok036 Cat: Expelling Evil Spirits, Longevity
Cats can see well at night. People believed that if a cat was around, evil spirits could not play bad tricks on people. When a picture of a cat included a butterfly, it symbolized longevity.
Bat: Good Luck
Eunhyon125 The Chinese ideogram for bat is pronounced the same as the ideogram for good fortune (pok in Korean). This led to bat images being embroidered on pillow ends and incorporated into furniture designs and fittings as a symbol of good fortune. As bats were supposed to live 1000 years, their image was also used as a symbol of longevity. A design of 5 bats, called Obok (5 blessings), represents the five fortunes: longevity, wealth, health, love of virtue, and natural death.

Kyonbok046 Eunhyon124 Sel0511 Kyonbok078


Birds

- Different birds represent a wide range of values and symbolisms.

Toksu244 Red-crested White Crane: Spiritual, Longevity
Although a fairly common bird, people considered white cranes as holy and spiritual. An old document (sanghak kyonggi) described cranes as follows: "Feathers are snow white but it could not be tainted with even mud. Males and females meet in 160 years, and as soon as they look into each other's eyes, they create a baby. They just drink for 1600 years but not eat. It is a king of birds and a wizard-like unworldly man rides on it."
Toksu223 Many Asians believed that those who lived lives of lofty solitude became cranes when they died. A common phrase stated, "As a red-crested white crane lives thousands of years, a pine tree does 10 thousand of years". So cranes were often painted with pine trees to symbolized longevity. Along with clouds, cranes can be found in many places: architecture, clothing, stationary, and a variety of other finely crafted objects.

Kyonbok128 Kyonbok088 Kyonbok091

Toksu237 Toksu226 Toksu227

Rooster: Intelligence (mun), Patience (in), Trust (shin), Science of War (mu), Bravery (yong)
People believed roosters knew time well and considered them a symbol of hopeful beginnings and good omens. It was said that when the chicken made sound, all evil spirits disappeared. The characteristic of intelligence was attributed to the rooster's crest. When it eats, it shares its food with others, showing patience. A rooster stays awake all night and cries at a certain time every morning, giving an impression of trust. Its sharp toenail represents the science of war, and its continuing to fight until death was compared with bravery.
Kyonbok061 Kyonbok060

Peacock: 9 Virtues, Authority
jiri264 An old Chinese book (yeokgyeong), ascribed 9 virtues to peacocks. They have a tidy face, clear voice, careful walk, appropriate behavior according to place and time, moderation in eating and drinking, knowing how to be content, existing together, not being obscene, and always returning. People loved these virtues so they would paint peacocks on buildings and other items. Peacocks were also used on the embroidered hangings of high-ranking officials in the past, symbolizing authority.

White Heron: Graciousness, Transcending the Mundane World, Passing the Exam
Poets loved white herons for their gracious posture. Their attitude seemed to transcend the mundane world. In the past, when painted with a lotus pip, the image signified that the person would pass the all-important civil service examination.

Mandarin Duck: Fidelity
Because mandarin ducks never acquire a new partner even after a mate dies, it symbolized fidelity of couples, affection, or a happy marriage bond. Newly married couple use pillows and a comforter with embroidered mandarin ducks because of this belief.

Eunhyon095 Seomun5

Wild Goose: Loyalty, Best Luck
Wild geese are seasonal birds. Usually meaning seasonal change, they were believed to deliver good news. In traditional wedding ceremonies, wild geese were used because they are very loyal to each other even after one mate dies (similar to the mandarin duck). Wild geese are sometimes painted with reeds, symbolizing peace; flying wild geese meant the best luck.

Eunhyon093 kirogi

nkjuy015 Duck: Happiness, Reproduction
Ducks traditionally symbolized happiness and reproduction. Duck were often used for decorations in female spaces or handicrafts.

Pheasant: Nobility
Pheasants were often compared to peacocks in their gorgeous appearance and noble characteristics. Chinese officials had pheasants embroidered on their uniforms. During the Chosun Dynasty, royal family members copied the style.

Korean Magpie: Good News
Koreans believed that magpies delivered good news and invited good people. The most famous painting related to a magpie is the one with striped tiger (ggach'i wha horangi minhwa): the magpie is happily chirping to a tiger. The magpie represented good news and the tiger symbolized good luck, since its pronunciation in Chinese sounds similar to good luck (bok).


Insects

Butterfly: Free Love, Happiness
During the spring, the butterfly was an object of envy among young men and women. Butterflies were free and carefree to look for their mates, unlike the arranged marriages in Confucian society. To people they symbolized free love and happiness.

kjuy020 Eunhyon095

Cicada:Noble Mindedness
As cicadas lived in a tree, eating and drinking fresh air and dew, they were treated as a being with noble mindedness. They transformed themselves into many different shapes, something that was viewed as immortality and revival.

Carp:Self-made Man, Reproduction
A gate called Deungyong-mun was where a person who passed the civil service exam had the honor of facing the king. The legend of the gate very closely related to a carp: "Every spring, carps were swimming against the strong stream around the place named yongmun, and the one which was successful to go up against it turned into a dragon." Based on this context, people compared the scholar (who passed the exam and made something of himself against all difficulties) to a carp that was transformed into a dragon. Additionally, when a carp gives birth, it lays thousands of eggs, so people associate it with reproduction.


Imaginary Animals

- In addition to real animals, imaginary beasts also play an important role in Korean symbolism.

Four Guardians
According to an old book (I-ah) 4 monstrous animals guarded the four directions of the world. A dragon called Cheong-nyong guarded the East , a tiger called Baek-ho for the West, a bird called Ju-jak to the South, and a turtle called Hyeon-mu for the North.
Toksu237
Baek-ho
Sel0908
Cheong-nyong
Kyonbok016
Hyeon-mu

Phoenix:Elegance, Prosperous Future
This imaginary bird has a snake's neck, a swallow's chin, and a fish's tail. It did not eating living things and built its nest only in a certain type of tree. All the birds worshiped and flew after it. Its looks was described and pictured with such an elegance and dignity, it was often compared to empress. It also symbolized a prosperous future.

Eunhyon047 Jiri053 Jiri078

Dragon: Holy Power, Expelling Evils, Good Luck, King
According to legend, a dragon was born from the mating between a phoenix and a crane, having incredible power and capability. It has snake's head, deer's antlers, ghost's eyes, cow's ears, snake's neck, big clam's belly, carp's scale, hawk's claw, and tiger's sole of the foot. Dragon has been believed to control natural phenomenon of floods and draughts, repelling evil spirits and giving good lucks on our lives. In palace, it was compared to a king, being used in things for a king.

Jiri180 jiri268 jiri039

chiri138 Kyonbok011 kyju237

Haet'ae:Protection from Fire
This mythological creature ate fire. As such, it symbolizes protection from fire. Haet'ae images and statues can be found adorning wooden buildings and other places that are susceptible to fire.

Kyonbok014 Kyonbok015 Kyonbok038

Scenes of Korea You can see more pictures in the Scenes of Korea section.
Asian ideas Gift Tree

Return to Cultural Spotlight