Pyongyang, May 25 (KCNA) -- From old times, Koreans have liked to wear white clothes, regarding the white color as a symbol of purity. So, they were called the white-clad nation.
In this regard, Kong Myong Song, director of the Folklore Institute under the Academy of Social Sciences of the DPRK, told KCNA:
The Korean nation's custom of wearing white clothes was established in ancient times and has been carried forward continuously. The figures of persons wearing white clothes can be seen on tomb murals dating back to Koguryo Kingdom (B.C. 277-A.D. 668).
Such custom was getting more popular in the period of Koryo Kingdom (918-1392), through the periods of Three Kingdoms (early 3rd century B.C.-middle 7th century A.D.) and Palhae (698-926). A foreigner, who visited the Koryo Kingdom in the early 12th century, wrote about the custom of wearing white clothes.
This custom was inherited in the period of the Feudal Joson Dynasty (1392-1910), too. Many foreigners called the Korean nation a white-clad nation, describing a gathering of Koreans dressed in white as a cotton field.
During Japan's colonial rule over Korea, the Korean people had steadily kept this custom even under its vicious policy of obliterating the nation.
Still now, Korean women like to wear white clothes, particularly white jacket, one of the national costumes.
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