(Illustration by Hyemin Lee/Stripes Korea)

In Korea, you might be a year or two older than you think. Koreans use a unique age-counting system where everyone is one year old at birth and gains a year every New Year’s Day, not on their birthday. So, a baby born on Dec. 31 would turn two the next day. Though the international age system became the legal standard in 2023, many people still use their Korean age in daily life. Knowing this can help avoid confusion when talking about age in Korea.

Nai (Age) (Image by Stripes Korea)