강릉 단오제

The tradition & historical record

Gangneung Danoje (Korean: 강릉 단오제; Hanja: 江陵端午祭), called by locals Danogut (단오굿), is a yearly celebration of the Korean holiday Dano, in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, South Korea. The festival is traditionally held for 47 days: in the lunisolar Korean calendar, between the 20th day of the 3rd month to the 7th day of the 5th month. Its purpose is to appease the local gods, and in turn to receive their blessings. The festival's origins are unclear; it is at least 400 years old, and possibly has its origins in rituals over 1000 years old. The tradition was repressed in the 1910–1945 Japanese colonial period and nearly disappeared amidst cultural assimilation efforts. Beginning in the 1950s, efforts were made to research and recreate the festival in its original form. It is now the biggest event in Gangneung. Since 1967, it has been a National Intangible Cultural Heritage of South Korea, and since 2005 it has been on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. ¹

While the holiday Dano is celebrated elsewhere in Korea and even in China (Dragon Boat Festival), Gangneung Danoje is distinguished by its unique practices and long historical continuity. The festival has a mix of various different traditions, particularly Korean Confucianism, Korean shamanism, and Korean Buddhism. A number of local deities are the focus of the festival. One god is the mountain god, who was once the human and historical figure Kim Yu-sin. Legend has it that, as a young boy, Kim was given a sword of mystic power by a hermit in a cave near Gangneung. He then went on to become a general of Silla, and led the successful unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. There is also the head guardian spirit of the city, who was another human and historical figure: the Buddhist monk Pŏmil. This monk is said to have protected people from pirates using supernatural powers. ¹

The following is a description of the events of the festival, with dates given in the Korean calendar. ¹

On the 20th day of 3rd month, the ceremony Shinjugŭnyang (신주근양; 神酒謹釀) occurs. It focuses on the ceremonial brewing of alcohol. Representatives of the city of Gangneung, led by a city government official, gather at Chilsadang (칠사당; 七事堂), a Joseon-era government building. There, they offer rice liquor to the gods and spirits. After a Confucian ritual is performed, they then begin ritually brewing alcohol. The local government and people in the community donate rice for this process. In 2023, 6,527 households donated a record 16,800 kg (37,000 lb) of rice. Then a shamanic purification ritual is performed. For several weeks, access to the brewing alcohol is restricted, as it is believed that people or animals could damage its purity. ¹

In the morning of the 5th day of the 4th month, the festival's leaders travel up to a shrine to the mountain god (산신당; 山神堂) on the mountain Daeguallyong (대관령; 大關嶺). There, they participate in a series of Confucian rituals, and then there is shamanic dance and music. ¹

In the afternoon of the same day, people pay homage to the head local guardian god (국사성황; 國師城隍; Kuksa sŏnghwang) whose shrine is below that of the mountain god's. After a series of rituals, the head shaman goes up to a tree on the mountain, and brings from it a sacred branch (신목; 神木). More rituals are performed, to appease and welcome the god. From this day onwards, shamans perform daily rituals at the shrine to appease the god. ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Gangneung Danoje”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

Gangneung Danoje is South Korean Dano festival of Gangneung, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²

The source record links this tradition to 9 external registers, which can be verified through the citation. ²