December 18, 2025
SEOUL – Online sales of the traditional Chinese attire hanfu, inaccurately described as the Korean traditional clothing garment hanbok, has sparked a furor in Korea as some internet users have been making ungrounded claims that hanbok originated in China.
The issue was raised publicly on Tuesday by Seo Kyung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women’s University, who said multiple listings at the global e-commerce platform Amazon showed images of hanfu while labeling the products as “hanbok” alongside the Chinese term “hanfu.”
Seo shared screenshots of the listings on social media, which some users said indicated that the sellers are Chinese.
This has touched off criticism among Koreans, who have complained about Chinese internet users claiming that the traditional Korean garment derives from hanfu. Such assertions have resurfaced amid growing global interest in Korean culture, including traditional clothing, driven in part by the popularity of K-pop-related content and animation.
Earlier this year, China’s major portal site Baidu described hanbok as a “Joseonjok costume,” referring to ethnic Koreans in China, prompting criticism from South Korea that the entry distorted historical and cultural facts.
Seo criticized the Amazon listings as misleading, arguing that using the hanbok label to sell Chinese traditional clothing amounts to cultural misrepresentation.
He said the practice appears to exploit global awareness of Korean culture by attaching the hanbok keyword to unrelated products.
The professor said he plans to formally request that Amazon correct the listings, adding that he would continue efforts to ensure hanbok is accurately represented worldwide.
He also pointed to international recognition of hanbok’s identity, noting that the Oxford English Dictionary officially defines hanbok as Korea’s traditional dress.
Amazon has not publicly responded to the issue as of Tuesday.