The day of Soseol (소설, 小雪), literally "Little Snow," is on Tuesday, Nov. 22, this year and marks the beginning of the 20th of the year's 24 solar terms. It also marks just under one month until the winter solstice, Dec. 21.

As the name Soseol implies, the first snows of winter are supposed to be seen on or around this time of year, with the average temperature, traditionally, falling below 5 degrees Celsius. Mind you, 2016 is likely to have been the warmest year on record, and it marks one more year of record-breaking heat, so we aren't sure if any snow is going to fall around Nov. 22 this year.

Soseol generally falls on Nov. 22 or 23 on the Gregorian calendar, when the sun is positioned at an ecliptic longitude of 240 degrees. By the lunar calendar, Soseol occurs sometime during the tenth lunar month.




The days still have some warm sunlight after Soseol, reflected in the day's other name, Sochun (소춘, 小春), literally "Little Spring."

The solar term beginning with Soseol is generally characterized by wide temperature variances throughout the day, as attested to by the old saying, “The light pants become quilted pants a fortnight later.”

In traditional society, Soseol was not a seasonal holiday and was perceived simply as a day that signals the beginning of winter preparations. These preparations included stocking up on kimchi and preparing fields for the upcoming frosts.

In popular belief, a chilly Soseol day suggested great barley yields. This belief gave rise to the proverb, “What would people not give to have a cold Soseol?”

Blustery weather with sudden drops in temperature led sailors to be reluctant to sail during this period. A cold spell around Soseol is known as a sondol chuwi (손돌 추위), and cool winds around this time are called sondol baram (손돌 바람), both in reference to a legendary sailor who died around this time of year.

So get out your sweaters and get out your scarves. Autumn is still with us until the first day of winter, Dec. 21, and it's going to get chilly here on the Korean Peninsula.

By Gregory C. Eaves
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photo: National Folk Museum of Korea
gceaves@korea.kr