10 Korean Superstitions You Still See in K-Dramas
Have you ever watched a K-Drama and wondered why a character suddenly panicked over something that seemed completely harmless?
Maybe someone wrote a name in red ink.
A student refused to eat seaweed soup before an exam.
Or a character became uncomfortable when the elevator stopped on the fourth floor.
These moments can seem random to international viewers. But many come from Korean superstitions that have been passed down for generations.
Most Koreans today don’t organize their lives around these beliefs. Still, the expressions, jokes, habits, and cultural associations remain familiar enough to appear in everyday conversation—and in K-Dramas.
Here are 10 Korean superstitions that can help you understand those scenes a little better.
Quick Takeaway: Korean superstitions often mix traditional beliefs with surprisingly practical origins. Understanding them can reveal an extra layer of meaning behind scenes in K-Dramas.
1. Don’t Write Someone’s Name in Red
Writing someone’s name in red ink is one of Korea’s best-known taboos.
Traditionally, red writing became associated with death and the names of deceased people. Because of that association, writing the name of a living person in red can feel ominous.
Today, most Koreans aren’t expecting something supernatural to happen because of a red pen.
But deliberately writing someone’s name in red may still look strange or even disrespectful.
So if a K-Drama character suddenly objects to a red-ink name, there may be more behind the reaction than stationery preference.
2. The Number 4 Can Be Unlucky
Walk into an older Korean building and you might notice something unusual in the elevator.
Instead of:
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5
you may sometimes see:
1 – 2 – 3 – F – 5
Why?
The Sino-Korean pronunciation of four, sa (사), sounds like another Sino-Korean word meaning death (死).
Because of that similarity, the number four became associated with bad luck.
The idea is comparable to the superstition surrounding the number 13 in some Western countries.
Not every Korean building avoids the number today, but the association remains widely recognizable.
Want to know why Korean elevators sometimes use F instead of 4? Discover why the number 4 is considered unlucky in Korea and how the superstition still appears today.
3. Don’t Cut Your Nails at Night
This sounds like simple advice.
But the traditional explanation is considerably stranger.
An old Korean folktale warns that if you cut your fingernails at night and leave the clippings behind, a rat might eat them and transform into you.
The creature could then enter your home and steal your identity.
This bizarre story is especially interesting today because it inspired the folklore behind Netflix’s Mousetrap.
Related: The Korean Folklore Behind Netflix’s Mousetrap
There may also have been a practical reason for the warning. Before electric lighting, cutting nails after dark was simply more difficult and potentially unsafe.
Sometimes a supernatural warning is much easier to remember than practical advice.
4. Giving Shoes to Your Partner Could Make Them Leave
Thinking about buying your boyfriend or girlfriend a nice pair of shoes?
According to an old Korean superstition, you might want to reconsider.
Giving shoes to a romantic partner supposedly gives them the ability to walk—or run—away from the relationship.
Some couples jokingly respond by having the recipient give a tiny amount of money back.
That way, technically, the shoes weren’t a gift.
Most people treat this playfully today, but it remains a recognizable Korean relationship superstition.
5. Dreaming About a Pig Can Mean Money Is Coming
A pig appearing in your dream might sound unpleasant.
In Korea, it can be excellent news.
Pigs have traditionally been associated with wealth, prosperity, and good fortune.
Even the Korean word for pig, dwaeji (돼지), has cultural associations with abundance.
A particularly vivid pig dream may therefore be interpreted as a sign that financial luck is coming.
And what might someone do after having a lucky dream?
Buy a lottery ticket.
6. Eat Yeot Before an Important Exam
Korean students face intense pressure around major exams.
Naturally, exam season has its own superstitions.
One of the most famous involves yeot (엿), a traditional sticky Korean sweet.
Because yeot is sticky, eating it—or giving it to a student—is associated with the hope that the student will “stick” to the exam and pass.
This is also connected to the Korean expression for successfully getting into a school.
That’s why yeot can appear as a good-luck gift around important entrance exams.
7. But Avoid Seaweed Soup Before an Exam
Normally, miyeok-guk (미역국)—Korean seaweed soup—has a very positive meaning.
Koreans traditionally eat it on birthdays.
Before an important exam, however, things get complicated.
Seaweed is slippery.
And in Korean, “to slip” can also metaphorically suggest failing an exam.
So eating slippery seaweed soup before a major test has traditionally been considered bad luck by some people.
The food itself isn’t unlucky.
The symbolism depends on the situation.
That’s one of the fascinating things about Korean superstition.
8. Moving Day Can Have a “Ghost-Free” Date
Choosing a moving date in Korea hasn’t always been only about checking when the moving company is available.
Traditionally, some people preferred to move on certain days known as son eomneun nal (손 없는 날).
The expression literally refers to a day without son—harmful wandering spirits believed to move between directions on particular dates.
Moving on a day when those spirits were absent was considered safer and more fortunate.
Even today, these dates can still be familiar in the context of moving and traditional calendars, although belief varies widely.
9. Sleeping With a Fan On Could Be Dangerous
This one is different from ancient folklore.
For years, a uniquely Korean urban legend warned that sleeping in a closed room with an electric fan running could cause death.
Internationally, this became famous as “fan death.”
There is no scientific basis for the idea that an ordinary electric fan somehow causes death simply by operating while someone sleeps.
Still, the belief became remarkably well known in South Korea during the twentieth century.
Today, younger Koreans are more likely to recognize it as an old urban legend—or joke about it—than seriously fear sleeping beside a fan.
It is a good example of how Korean “superstitions” aren’t necessarily ancient.
New ones can appear too.
10. A Dream Before Birth May Reveal Something About the Baby
One of Korea’s most distinctive dream traditions is the taemong (태몽), often translated as a conception dream or birth dream.
A pregnant woman—or sometimes another family member—may have an unusually vivid symbolic dream connected to the future baby.
Common symbols can include animals, fruit, jewels, dragons, or other striking objects.
Families may interpret the dream as suggesting something about the child’s personality, fortune, or future.
Even Koreans who aren’t particularly superstitious may know the story of their own taemong because parents or grandparents remembered it.
That’s what makes taemong especially interesting.
It sits somewhere between superstition, family tradition, and personal storytelling.
Do Koreans Really Believe These Superstitions?
Some do.
Some don’t.
And many people fall somewhere in between.
A Korean person might say they don’t believe in superstitions and still avoid writing someone’s name in red because “it just feels wrong.”
Someone might laugh about the shoe superstition while still asking their partner for a symbolic coin.
And a student who claims not to be superstitious might decide that the morning of an important exam isn’t the best time to test that belief with seaweed soup.
That’s how cultural traditions often survive.
People don’t necessarily have to believe them literally.
They only need to recognize what they mean.
Why These Details Matter When Watching K-Dramas
K-Dramas rarely stop the story to explain every cultural reference to international viewers.
A Korean audience may immediately understand why:
- a red name feels ominous,
- a student wants sticky yeot before an exam,
- someone celebrates a pig dream,
- or a character refuses to give their partner shoes.
International viewers may simply see a strange reaction.
Understanding the cultural context adds another layer to the scene.
And sometimes, as Mousetrap demonstrates, what looks like a small Korean superstition can become the premise for an entire thriller.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most famous Korean superstition?
Avoiding writing a living person’s name in red is one of the most widely recognized Korean taboos. The number four is another particularly familiar example.
Why is 4 considered unlucky in Korea?
The Sino-Korean pronunciation of four, sa, sounds like a Sino-Korean word meaning death. This association made four an unlucky number in traditional culture.
What brings good luck in Korea?
Traditional symbols of good fortune include pig dreams, certain auspicious dates, and foods such as sticky yeot in specific situations like important exams.
Do young Koreans still believe in superstitions?
Belief varies considerably. Many younger Koreans treat old superstitions humorously or symbolically, but they may still recognize and occasionally follow them as cultural habits.
Final Thought
Korean superstitions aren’t just a collection of strange rules.
They reveal how language, history, family traditions, practical advice, and old folklore became intertwined with everyday life.
That’s why knowing them can make watching a K-Drama surprisingly different.
The next time a character refuses a pair of shoes, celebrates a pig dream, avoids the number four, or panics over fingernail clippings, you’ll know:
there may be a much older Korean story hiding behind the scene.