우크라이나와 한국의 전통혼례 비교연구

A Comparative Study on Ukrainian and Korean Wedding Rituals

This article aims to compare Ukrainian and Korean traditional wedding rituals , which were performed among commoners between the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century , While I deal with the diversity in marriage rites of two peoples , I also raise the following questions. Are there fundamental aspects of these rituals common to both cultures. or are they shared by some but lacking in others? These questions are examined through the structural study of wedding rituals. The main characteristic of wedding rituals of both peoples is to perform wedding ceremony in the brides side and bring the bride to the grooms house. Although the detail of ritual forms and contents is different. the basic wedding structure of both cultures shares many commonalities. Ukrainian and Korean weddings have the following basic unit: Matchmaking, Investigation , Engagement‘Preparation Rituals. Wedding ceremony , Wedding Feast in the bride house , Bringing the bride to the grooms house. Feast in the grooms house. Post-wedding ceremony , and Purifying or Incorporation rituals. This commonality may reflect the necessary process of culture. In spite of the similarity of the minimal structure , Ukrainian wedding rituals have different structural elements. which are not found in Korean wedding rituals For example , courtship. girls night , making korovai , church wedding service , and others are unique in Ukrainian weddings. What is the reason that makes Ukrainian rituals different from Korean rituals? This is because both peoples have different social. economic, and religious conditions. Compare to Ukraine , Korea has relatively stronger patriarchic tradition. which does not allow courtship. While Ukrainian society provides close friends of bride and groom more opportunity to play an important role in wedding, Korean society does not allow them to playas main actors. Religion is another factors that make Korean and Ukrainian wedding rituals different. While Orthodox and Catholic influence Ukrainian wedding rituals , Confucianism influences Korean wedding rituals. Despites of the difference. many commonalities are found in both wedding cultures. First of all. the ruling class of both cultures intervenes into the wedding rituals of commoners. While Ukrainian ruling class forced commoners to have church wedding service. Korean government established the ideal ritual model on the basis of Confucian ritual order and forced commoners to follow it. However. the commoners of both cultures did not abandon their old traditions and continued to preserve them. Second. Ukrainian and Korean wedding rituals contain many similar folkloric elements. Folk rites of separation. transition , and incorporation are found in both wedding cultures. For example. changing hairstyle , exchanging gifts. tying of the brides and grooms hands. cleaning hands. blessing with grains. having communal meal. and others are all common rituals in both cultures Moreover. both peoples use many similar items for wedding ceremony. such as green trees. bird-shape decorations. chickens and so on. which symbolize fertility , productivity and protection from the evil power. In this study. I compare only the minimal wedding structure of both peoples and found a lot of commonalities. If we examine the maximum wedding structure. we may find more commonalities and can explain the necessary process of culture and the commonality of human culture.