저작물명

Korea's Changing Funeral Culture

저작(권)자

저작자 미상 (저작물 2267374 건)

출처

이용조건

공표년도

창작년도

2011-06-21

분류(장르)

영상
UCI 로고

UCI 코드 도움말

요약정보

Funerals are one of the most important aspects of Korean culture. They are highly elaborated and essential in the everyday life of Koreans.
While burial was considered to be the norm‚ the Korean funeral culture is shifting towards cremation.
[Interview : Kim Suk-ja‚ Visitor ] "I want my children to cremate me when I die."
[Interview : Kang Ji-san‚ Visitor] "I think it is best to send the dead back to nature."
Let's take a closer look at how Korean funeral culture is changing!
We met the family of a recently deceased person‚ whose remains were transformed into gems.
[Interview : Kim Yeong-ran‚ Visitor] "Dad‚ I'll come again and clean up your vault."
[Interview : Kim Yeong-ran‚ Visitor] "After cremation‚ the ashes are kept inside an urn‚ but transforming the ashes into
jewels lets me feel them‚ and the way they reflect light is nice."
This recent trend of transforming the remains into gems and housing them in appropriate containers is becoming more popular.
[Interview : Jeong Hyeon-taek‚ CEO
Cremation jewelry company] "The ashes can crystallize like gems in 10 minutes. The deceased then can be interred in any place under the cleanest conditions possible. Also‚ using our services
is cheaper than conventional interring."
Human remains are mostly calcium-based‚ and hence break down easily. Heating them in a special manner can stop the process of deterioration.
[Interview : Kim Han-uk‚ Director
Cremation jewelry company] "The ashes are mixed with natural minerals‚ and the mixture is heated at a temperature of 1000° C".
The transformed remains can be conserved in ideal places of the family's choice. Moreover‚ it can be a solution for the rising problem of shrinking spaces for the deceased.
The gems can also be placed on pendants or brooches at the family's request..
Korea's funeral culture is transforming at a rapid rate as seen so far. Nowadays‚ there is a growing preference for cremation over burial.
[Interview : Mun Jong-in‚ Deputy head of operations
Yeonhwa Funeral Parlor] "We perform about 10‚000 cremations every year. It is a notable increase compared to the past‚ when we used to perform about 8‚000 cremations yearly."
In the past‚ cremation was reserved for those who couldn't afford a proper burial‚ or for the rare case of wanting to forget the deceased. Some considered cremating parents to be unfilial. However‚ cremation is steadily getting a positive image.
[Interview : Kim Yeong-ran‚ Visitor] "The best places for burial are taken by conventional tombs. At this rate‚ there will be little land for our descendants to live on."
[Interview : Kang Ju-san‚ Visitor] "Tombs are hard for descendants to visit every year‚ so cremation is the best idea."
Only 20% of funerals involved cremation in the 90s‚ but that number has increased to 70% today.
Since long ago‚ Koreans practiced burying the deceased‚ and cremation came into practice during the Unified Silla Dynasty. Burials were practiced again during the Goryeo and Joseon Dynasties.
However‚ the growing number of graveyards is beginning to pose a problem. Currently‚ graveyards cover 988 square kilometers‚ or 1.6 times the size of Seoul. and that area is growing by 840 hectares every year. As the concept of burials changes‚ more people are seeking cremation.
[Interview : Park Tae-ho‚ Deputy chief
Funeral Culture Organization] "Problems regarding graves began to arise as Korea transformed from an agrarian society to an industrialized one‚ and more people began to live in nuclear families. This leads to the growing popularity of cremation."
Also‚ with the legalization of natural burials in 2008‚ more people began to bury their beloved ones' remains in natural spaces.
[Interview : Nam Ji-won‚ Director
N

저작물 파일 유형

저작물 속성

1 차 저작물

공동저작자

1유형

수집연계 URL

https://www.kf.or.kr

분류(장르)

영상

원문제공

원문URL