K-Connectors 3rd Cohort, Team KOREA:F5 Hosts ‘Sakhalin Day’ Event

at Incheon Namdong Sakhalin Center

On October 25, Team KOREA:F5 of the 3rd cohort of the K-Connectors held the “Sakhalin Day” event at the Incheon Namdong Sakhalin Center, with approximately 60 participants from the Sakhalin Korean community. The event was organized to promote and exchange cultural empathy between Korea and Sakhalin Koreans, and to share the enduring value of Korean culture across generations.

The program featured a diverse lineup, including an opening ceremony, hands-on Korean traditional cultural activities, traditional games, an awareness-raising corner, and a closing ceremony. During the cultural activities, participants were engaged in making Hahoe mask ornaments, spinning tops, traditional Korean sweets (yugwa), tea-time snacks, and Hanbok shrink keychains, giving them a firsthand experience of Korean traditions and aesthetics. In the traditional games corner, participants also experienced Korean culture through tuho (arrow-throwing) games.

Notably, the awareness-raising corner featured a screening of a 1990s performance by a popular Korean singer who visited Sakhalin. Participants watched the footage together, sharing a sense of cultural resonance across generations. This moment showcased the lasting impact of Korean music and arts on the Sakhalin Korean community, highlighting the potential for ongoing cultural connection.

 The event’s closing segment featured a personal interview with Ms. Yang Chun-ja (born 1930), a Sakhalin Korean elder. A commemorative panel titled “A Word for Sakhalin Day,” featuring reflections from participants, was created and donated to the Sakhalin Center, serving as a symbolic outcome of the event.

The “Sakhalin Day” event, organized in collaboration with the Incheon Namdong Sakhalin Center, marked a large-scale Korean Studies initiative aimed at making Korean history and culture more approachable and engaging for Sakhalin Koreans. It also provided a platform for intergenerational communication and sought to strengthen positive perceptions of Korea within the Sakhalin Korean community.

Based on photographs and records collected during the event, Team KOREA:F5 plans to continue promoting Korean Studies and cultural exchange through future K-Connectors programs. The team also aims to reinforce its role as a cultural bridge connecting Sakhalin Koreans with Korean society and to expand international engagement with Korean Studies.

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