Case Study — Jeju, Korea
Jeju — Traditions of Settlement
済州島 · Chilmeoridang Yeongdeung-gut
Yeongdeunggut is said to have been inseparable from the lives of those who work at sea — one integrated way of life. What did the island's geography protect, and what did it change? This research does not assume the answer; it asks in the field.
But as livelihoods at sea dwindle, does the gut survive only as form? What makes an ordinary day feel like 'I belong here' — that may be exactly why 'art' is placed before 'tradition.'
Chilmeoridang Yeongdeunggut received national designation in 1980 and UNESCO inscription in 2009. How did the community's modes of transmission change before and after — this is the primary question of this research.
Voices from the Field
Provisional quotations — interview analysis is in progress; updated once transcripts are finalized.
“Once it was designated, there was no choice but for everything to revolve around that alone.”
“Yeongdeunggut shines only when there are plenty of ordinary household rituals. Because the people who practice shamanic ritual must survive.”
“It isn’t sustained out of abundance — we find ways because we are trying to sustain it.”
Fieldwork Record
4/1 오전 9시 — Attended Yeongdeung Farewell Ritual (Chilmeoridang, Sarabong)
Visited the Jeju Museum
Field records: 14 videos, 20 photos
Detailed records are available on the Fieldwork page.
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
Jeju Chilmeoridang Yeongdeunggut (2009)
Open Questions
- How did Yeongdeunggut continue after the Jeju 4·3?
- Is transmission also taking place outside formal institutions?
- How did the community's organic transmission practices change before and after the 2009 inscription?
This record continues through your support
The price of a coffee becomes an hour of interpretation or a page of transcription in the next fieldwork. How funds are used is disclosed concretely.
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