Korean Chuseok

Korean Chuseok (추석), also called Hangawi (한가위, "great middle of autumn"), is the Korean harvest thanksgiving festival, observed on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month — the same date as the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, 2026-09-25 — but distinctly Korean in identity, ritual, and food. The festival's defining dish is songpyeon (송편), small half-moon-shaped rice cakes filled with sweetened sesame, chestnut, sweet bean, or jujube paste, then steamed over pine needles that infuse them with a delicate forest aroma. The half-moon shape — contrasted with the round mooncakes of Chinese Mid-Autumn — symbolizes growth and aspiration toward the full moon, representing a "future bigger than the present." Families gather to shape songpyeon together; tradition holds that those who make beautiful songpyeon will have beautiful children. Charye (차례) ancestral memorial rites are performed with harvest offerings — newly-harvested rice, fruits, fish, and meat are presented to ancestors at the family altar. Galbi (grilled short ribs), jeon (savory pancakes — particularly hobakjeon zucchini and saengseonjeon fish), japchae (sweet potato noodles with vegetables), and baekseju (medicinal rice wine) crowd the holiday table. Families travel cross-country to ancestral hometowns (귀성).