South Korea standardizes their age system

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-63903771

[South Koreans are set to become one or even two years younger - at least on official paperwork.

On Thursday, the South Korean parliament passed a law to scrap Korea's two traditional methods of counting age.

From June 2023, the so-called "Korean Age" system will no longer be permitted on official documents.

Only the standardised, internationally recognised method will remain.


The government is fulfilling a campaign promise to reduce confusion by adopting the same system used in the rest of the world.

Currently, the most widely used calculation method in Korea is the so-called "Korean age system", in which a person is one year old at birth and then gains a year on the first day of each new year.

In a separate method - the "counting age" - a person's age is calculated from zero at birth and a year is added on 1 January. This method exists primarily to calculate the legal age to drink alcohol and smoke.

But South Korea also uses the globally recognised system in which age is calculated by an individual's birthday and the first birthday is celebrated 365 days after birth.

This means that, for example, as of 8 December 2022, a person born on December 31 2002 is 19 under the international system, 20 under the counting system and 21 under the Korean system.

[CumbrianLefty]

Isn't this also a traditional way of counting age in neighbouring countries including China?

Has never made sense to me, but what do I know.

[Lord Halifax]

Isn't this also a traditional way of counting age in neighbouring countries including China?

Has never made sense to me, but what do I know.

maybe they think the essence of a human is created at conception so you are roughly 9 months old at birth, in which case rounding it to a year is practical.

[Reaganfan Democrat]

Isn't this also a traditional way of counting age in neighbouring countries including China?

Has never made sense to me, but what do I know.

maybe they think the essence of a human is created at conception so you are roughly 9 months old at birth, in which case rounding it to a year is practical.

Lol, there is no such thing as "life begins at conception" in East Asian society. It is simply a different way of counting. (i.e. when you are born, it is your first lunar calendar year)

[Tintrlvr]

Isn't this also a traditional way of counting age in neighbouring countries including China?

Has never made sense to me, but what do I know.

Yes, but South Korea is the only country that still uses the counting system or some variant officially. The PRC, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Japan, Mongolia and Vietnam, which all used the counting system in the past, have all switched to the international system. (Not sure about North Korea, actually.)

[Del Tachi]

Another victim of globalization. 

[Reaganfan Democrat]

The real question is do North Koreans use the Juche calendar or lunar calendar for age reckoning.

[Meclazine for Israel]

That is just nuts as is most of the Korean Peninsula.

Hell March

https://youtu.be/096hnKDw5tc

I once spoke to the guy who filmed that video and he said it was mental to behold. Hopefully North Korea calms down and one can go to a unified Korea in the not too distant future.