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Princesses of the sea, Haenyeo
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[This article is written by a JDC Junior Journalist. The JDC Junior Journalist program is an educational project sponsored by Jeju Free International City Development Corporation (JDC). JDC Junior Journalist articles are only briefly edited by mentors before publishing.]

The Haenyeo are women who dive under the sea for fish, and shellfish. Haenyeos exist on Jeju-do.The Haenyeo culture started in Jeju-do. A long time ago, they were treated as a low class, but now they are important cultural asset of Jeju. The Haenyeo culture has to preserve ‘til the next generation. Haenyeo can hold their breath for about 2 to 3 minutes. According to the research about Haenyeo, it says “Haenyeos don’t have any technique, but they have sence of responsivilities that they’re mothers of the families.”

Unfortunately, the Haenyeo are disappearing rapidly. Their average age is over 60, they are preparing to retire, and the young people don’t want to become Haenyeo. Lee Hanyeong, a chairman of Jeju Haenyeo Institute said, “Haenyeoes in Jeju are disappearing really quickly, so we are trying to preserve the Haenyeo’s culture. Because Haenyeo’s culture is our unique culture on Jeju.”

He continued to explain the plight of the Haenyeo, “Our generation must protect the Haenyeo’s culture from disappearing, but now most young people aren’t interested in the work of a Haenyeo. So our Institute is trying inform the public about the importance of the Hanyeo and spreading the culture. I think this problem is for all of us to settle. The Haenyeo are the mothers of the sea.”

If people wants to be a Haenyeo, they have to stay in the town in the Jeju for 6 months and change their home address to that town. So it is easy to become a Haenyeo if one lives in Jeju. But people from Soeul are more interested in the Haenyeo than Jeju people, and travelers from abroad are more interested in Haenyeo than Koreans.

Wanda, a mentor in the JDC Junior Journalist, graduated from the Haenyeo school. She said, “I knew about the Haenyeo when I was in the USA, I was searching about Jeju and I found out about the Haenyeo. I lived in a town near the beach in the USA, so I love to swim. And I thought Haenyeo will be perfect for me. I want to go to a Haenyeo school. And I learned many skills to be a Haenyeo, but I learned through out the school that we are the same people. Eventhough we have different skin color, names, and countries, we came here for the same reasons.”

Haenyeo culture is unique to Jeju, but that cultural heritage is disappearing because people aren’t expressing a continued concern for the Haenyeo. It is important for people to preserve the Haenyeo’s culture and keep the memory of these princess’ of the sea alive in the public’s conciousness.

 

¨Ï Jeju Weekly 2009 (http://www.jejuweekly.com)
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