Have you ever heard of Korea’s ‘Daeseol,’ or ‘Big Snow’? Korea’s Daeseol usually marks the beginning of the 21st of the 24 solar terms (based on lunar year). It usually follows ‘Soseol’ (소설, 小雪), or the ‘First Snow,’ to then precede ‘Dongji’ (동지, 冬至) or the winter solstice.
The day of Daeseol is traditionally considered the time of the season’s largest snowfall reaching throughout the Korean peninsula. Although this may have been the case within some of Northern China’s regions, where the traditional East Asian calendar system originated, the amount of snow is not necessarily the greatest at this time on the Korean peninsula.
Occurring sometime in the 11th lunar month, Daeseol usually falls on December seventh or eighth on the Gregorian calendar and corresponds to the time when the sun is at an ecliptic longitude of 255 degrees. The 11th lunar month, also the time of the winter solstice, usually marks the transition point toward mid-winter and is the beginning of the off-season in farming communities.
With their granaries filled with the fruits of their hard work, households don’t need to worry about a lack of food and can afford to attend to other businesses, such as preparing for the Lunar New Year (Seollal: 설날) celebrations.
In popular belief, if a significant snowstorm occurs on Daeseol day, it is a harbinger of a warm winter. However, generally, across the Korean peninsula, it seldom snows on this date, and if it does, the amount is insignificant.
Reference: Encyclopedia of Korean Culture: National Folk Museum of Korea
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