Controversy Over 'Hanbok Equals Hanfu' Sales on Domestic Shopping Malls Ahead of Chuseok

Search screen for 'hanbok' on a popular online shopping mall. Professor Seo Kyungduk

When searching for 'Hanbok' on many domestic online shopping malls, a variety of products are found that are introduced together with 'Hanfu'.

Professor Seo Kyungduk of Sungshin Women's University pointed out on October 2, "Many internet users have reported this issue ahead of Chuseok," adding, "Selling items as 'Chinese-style Hanbok' is truly absurd."

Professor Seo stated, "Of course, it is possible to sell Chinese-style clothing," but emphasized, "However, 'Hanbok' and 'Hanfu' are clearly different types of traditional attire and must be distinctly separated when sold." He further explained, "Most large online shopping malls only provide the platform," but stressed, "Even so, they should have paid close attention and conducted regular monitoring to prevent such incidents from occurring."

Search screen for 'Hanbok' on a famous online shopping mall. Professor Seo Kyungduk

Professor Seo particularly noted, "These situations in Korea provide yet another excuse for China," and added, "In recent years, Chinese internet users have been making unfounded claims that 'Hanbok' originated from 'Hanfu.'"

On Baidu Encyclopedia, the largest portal site in China, Hanbok is introduced as 'Joseonjok attire,' and in the past, there was major controversy when Xiaomi's smartphone wallpaper store described Hanbok as 'Chinese culture.'

Professor Seo emphasized, "While it is important to widely promote our Hanbok to the world, it is equally crucial to correct errors related to Hanbok that occur domestically." He also urged, "I hope the domestic online shopping malls where these issues were found will promptly separate Hanbok and Hanfu in their product listings."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.