๐ Korean Holidays 2026: Complete Calendar Guide
If you are learning Korean or planning to visit Korea, it is helpful to know about Korean public holidays.
In Korea, public holidays are called ๊ณตํด์ผ (gonghyuil). Many offices, banks, and schools are closed on these days.
Some Korean holidays follow the solar calendar, while others follow the lunar calendar.
๐ฐ๐ท Korean Public Holidays in 2026
| Date | Holiday | Korean | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1 | New Year’s Day | ์ ์ | First day of the year |
| Feb 16โ18 | Seollal (Lunar New Year) | ์ค๋ | One of the biggest Korean holidays |
| Mar 1 | Independence Movement Day | ์ผ์ผ์ | Commemorates the 1919 independence movement |
| May 5 | Children’s Day | ์ด๋ฆฐ์ด๋ | Celebration for children |
| May 24 | Buddha’s Birthday | ๋ถ์ฒ๋ ์ค์ ๋ | Important Buddhist holiday |
| Jun 6 | Memorial Day | ํ์ถฉ์ผ | Honors fallen soldiers |
| Aug 15 | Liberation Day | ๊ด๋ณต์ | Celebrates independence from Japan |
| Sep 24โ26 | Chuseok | ์ถ์ | Korean Thanksgiving holiday |
| Oct 3 | National Foundation Day | ๊ฐ์ฒ์ | Celebrates the founding of Korea |
| Oct 9 | Hangul Day | ํ๊ธ๋ | Celebrates the Korean alphabet |
| Dec 25 | Christmas | ํฌ๋ฆฌ์ค๋ง์ค | National holiday in Korea |
๐ The Biggest Korean Holidays
Seollal (์ค๋ )
Seollal is the Korean Lunar New Year. Families gather together, perform ancestral rituals, and eat traditional food such as ๋ก๊ตญ (tteokguk).
Chuseok (์ถ์)
Chuseok is often called the Korean Thanksgiving. Families celebrate the harvest season and eat traditional foods like ์กํธ (songpyeon).
๐ Korean Vocabulary About Holidays
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ๊ณตํด์ผ | Public holiday |
| ๋ช ์ | Traditional holiday |
| ์ธ๋ฐฐ | New Year bow |
| ์ฐจ๋ก | Ancestral ritual |
| ์ฑ๋ฌ | Visiting ancestorsโ graves |
๐ก Tip for Korean Learners
Korean holidays are strongly connected to family traditions and culture.
Learning about these holidays will help you understand Korean society and language better.