The Real Korea Behind the Scene
How do real haenyeo (Korean female divers) actually work?
① The Scene
Ae-sun's mother's generation of women dive into the sea off Jeju Island to gather abalone, conch, and seaweed.
② Ordinary to Koreans, but…
On Jeju, this was an ordinary livelihood for generations — a daughter picking up diving from her mother was simply how things were.
③ Here's the Real Culture
Haenyeo are women who free-dive without oxygen tanks to harvest abalone, conch, seaweed and other seafood by hand. A single dive typically lasts around a minute, and the distinctive whistling sound they make exhaling as they surface — releasing the breath they held underwater — is called sumbisori. Traditionally, divers were even ranked into senior, mid-level, and junior groups within their own community based on skill. In 2016, Jeju's haenyeo culture was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, recognizing its value internationally.
④ Is It Still True Today?
Yes — real haenyeo are still diving today, but their numbers keep shrinking as the community ages. What was once tens of thousands of divers on Jeju has fallen to a few thousand, most of them in their 60s to 80s. Jeju has responded by running haenyeo training schools to try to keep the tradition alive.
