[Korean Culture & Language] National Rule

Hello, this is Uptempo!

There are rules or standards of behavior shared by members of a social group. Even though those rules aren’t written down or outspoken, most people know and follow them. For example, it’s a social norm to not look at other photos when someone hands you their phone to show you a picture.

‘국룰’ directly translates to ‘national rule’. However, it actually refers to ‘unspoken/unwritten rules,’ ‘interesting facts,’ ‘social norms' or ‘trends’ that everyone follows. It is used in a casual statement to highlight that something is a ‘must’.

At the beginning of the video below, they say that there are ‘한국인의 버스 국룰 (unspoken rules regarding buses in Korea)’. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3epc3QYrVUw

The meme below is titled: 한국인들 버스기사님 배려방법이래 ㅋㅋㅋ (I heard that this is how Koreans express their considerations for bus drivers lol). It reads, ‘자기가 타지 않는 버스가 정류장으로 오면 자기가 안탄다는 걸 온 몸으로 표현한대 ㅋㅋㅋ 핸드폰만 보거나, 노선도 보거나, 뒤로 물러나거나 ㅋㅋㅋ (When a bus that they aren’t intending to take approaches, they make a gesture with their whole body to signify that they will not board, allowing the drivers to realize that they are not required to stop at that bus stop. They may stare at their phones, act as if they are paying attention to the bus schedules and routes, or take a step backward’.

Ex)

스팸엔 흰쌀밥이 국룰이지! (It’s a norm to eat spam with white rice!/You must eat white rice with spam!)

Ex) 

자매 국룰: 쇼핑하다가 예뻐서 사려다가 언니가 안 예쁘다고 하면 갑자기 사기 싫어짐 (An interesting fact about sisters: Let’s say I went shopping with my sister and came across something I liked. But if my older sister says it is ugly, I’d lose my interest in it.)