Jeonju Hanok Village

Jeonju is an ancient city with a thousand-year-old history. Jeonju Hanok Village is a must visit place in Jeonju. While the rest of the city has been industrialised, the village retains its historical charms and traditions. There are over 800 traditional Korean hanok houses in the village.

Jeonju is a modern industrialized city with a wonderfully rich history that is as alive today as it was over 1000 years ago. The Jeonju Hanok Village in the heart of this city is a destination any visitor to Korea’s south-western region wanting a full cultural feel must see.

A walk around Jeonju Hanok Village is a journey back in time, to a Korean culture steeped in tradition and folklore, and a chance to experience early Hanok living and with over 800 of these houses in the village; there is plenty on view.

One of the most striking features of a Hanok is, of course, its curved roof, different to many other Asian architectural styles with the roof edges slightly raised to the sky. And for a very good reason -- the length of the eaves varies from one region to another depending on the sun’s trajectory. These varying eve lengths will screen the hot summer sun or allow welcome winter sunlight. Very smart.

These wood and paper constructed Hanok houses are as fascinating externally as they are internally. Once the home of choice throughout Korea, their popularity as a domestic dwelling is fading in favour of more western style designs and materials. Thankfully, the old ways are being carefully preserved in this village.

Traditionally men and women were separated in a Hanok house, the Seobi room is where the men met and had a chat, the ladies met in the Gyusu room, deep in the house, away from prying eyes and ears.

Another trait of Hanok is that all the houses are heated using an ondol system, a unique sub-flooring heating system. Since early Koreans enjoyed sitting, eating, and sleeping on the floor, it needs to remain heated during winter. A furnace burning rice paddy straw would be lit outside with the heat and smoke vented under the raised floor of the building to a flue at the opposite end of the room. Ingenious.

Hanok are also cool in summer, able to be opened up and cooling breezes allowed to blow through and drop the temperature. They are made using only natural materials, such as earth, stone, and wood. They can thus remain eco-friendly and recyclable. No non-disposable wastes come from hanok.

Within the Jeonju Hanok Village you can also visit a number of artisan houses displaying a range of traditional Korean craftwork for sale.

Christian Missionaries began their conversion of Korean locals in the late 18th Century. A number found themselves a little less than welcome and ended up as martyrs. This Byzantine Romanesque Catholic Church was erected in 1914 to honour those deaths. Interestingly 30 per cent of Koreans are Christian.

Jeonju was a walled fortress and this gate; the Pungnammum with its stately architecture is the only surviving relic of those times.

Jeonju’s Hanok Village would definitely be a welcome addition to anyone’s South Korean itinerary – drop by and explore a fascinating slice of this country’s history.

For more information, visit english.visitkorea.or.kr