Korea divides its seasons into 24 seasonal divisions depending on the location of the sun.
| Seasonal divisions | Date | Content | Major seasonal customs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ipchun | Feb 4 or 5 | Starting of spring | New Year’s dress, ancestral ritual, visit ancestors’ graves, New year’s bow, bokjori (rice strainer that brings blessing), exorcism, jwibullori (burning grass and weeds), fortune telling, neolttwigi (Korean jumping game), yutnori (Korean traditional board game), yeonnalligi (kite flying), eating five grain rice, dalburi (fortune telling), antaekgosa (shamanistic ritual to appease the household god), eating nuts, ear-quickening wine (served on the first full moon day of the lunar new year), selling heat, dragon egg harvesting, not giving food to dogs on the 115th day of lunar January, viewing the first moon, tug-of-war, seokjeon (ritual), bridge walking, stacking up rice straw |
| Usu | Feb 18 or 19 | Spring rain and sprouting | |
| Gyeongchip | Mar 5 or 6 | Frogs awakened from hibernation | yeongdeung Grandmother, unstacking rice straw, festival of servants, stir-frying corns, watching Pleiades |
| Chunbun | Mar 20 or 21 | Lengthening of daytime | |
| Cheongmyeong | Apr 4 or 5 | Preparation of spring farming | hansik memorial service, the third day of the third lunar month, making pan-fried sweet rice cake with flower petals, making sauces |
| Gogu | Apr 20 or 21 | Farming rain falls | |
| Ipha | May 5 or 6 | Beginning of summer | Buddha’s Birthday , floating lotus lanterns, jwibullori (burning grass and weeds) |
| Soman | May 21 or 22 | Beginning of farming | |
| Mangjong | Jun 5 or 6 | Beginning of sawing | sanmaegi dano, dano fans, mugwort tiger, cheonjung talisman, dano adornment, sweet flag, neolttwigi (Korean jumping game), ssireum (Korean wrestling), Dyeing finger nails with garden balsams |
| Haji | Jun 21 or 22 | Longest dayttime | |
| Soseo | Jul 7 or 8 | Beginning of summer heat | yudu Cheonsin (offering the first harvest of the season to gods), sambok, stream fishing |
| Daeseo | Jul 22 or 23 | Hottest day | |
| Ipchu | Aug 7 or 8 | Beginning of fall | chilseok gosa (ritual), baekjungnal (the Buddhist All Souls’ Day, mid July by the lunar calendar), baekjung nori, hoe washing, uranbunjae (Buddhist ceremony), duregilssam (farmer’ cooperative work) |
| Cheoseo | Aug 23 or 24 | Heat cools off; big day and night difference | |
| Baengno | Sep 7 or 8 | Dew starts to fall | cutting weeds, chuseok ritual, turtoise play, somegi nori, geunchin, Ganggang Sulrae (song and circle dance) |
| Chubun | Sep 23 or 24 | Nighttime getting longer | |
| Hallo | Oct 8 or 9 | Cold dew falls | Jungangjeol, Jungang ritual |
| Sanggang | Oct 23 or 24 | Appearance of frost | |
| Ipdong | Nov 7 or 8 | Beginning of winter | malnal, sije (ancestral ritual), seongju gosa |
| Soseol | Nov 22 or 23 | Ice starts to form | |
| Daeseol | Dec 7 or 8 | Heavy snow | dongji, dongji gosa , Dongji ritual |
| Dongji | Dec 21 or 22 | The longest night | |
| Sohan | Jan 5 or 6 | Coldest days | nabil, jeseok, New year’s eve greetings bidding the old year out, narye, Suse |
| Daehan | Jan 20 or 21 | Coldest days of winter |
Source: http://english.seoul.go.kr/life-information/culture/traditional-culture/1-overview-of-traditional-culture/