South Korea marks National Foundation Day on Saturday with a central ceremony at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Jongno, where about 1,200 dignitaries, students and civic delegates will gather for the 4,358th observance of Gaecheonjeol.
Program and theme
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety set this year's theme as "Broadly Beneficial, Irreplaceable Republic of Korea," linking the Hongik Ingan founding ideal to contemporary competitiveness. The agenda runs from the opening declaration and national pledge through a founding-era video, congratulatory remarks, a celebratory performance, communal singing of the Gaecheonjeol song and the traditional three cheers of "manse."
The performance segment blends UNESCO-listed talchum mask dance, contemporary dance and percussion under the title "Opening Heaven and Breaking Walls," followed by a cross-generational choir performing the animated theme "Wake Up" with musical actors and pop collaborators.
Beyond the main hall
Local governments and overseas missions are hosting parallel rites and cultural programs, with the ministry projecting roughly 29,000 participants nationwide and abroad. Attendees at the Seoul event receive commemorative keycaps featuring the taegukgi and mugunghwa motifs as part of a broader October campaign encouraging proper flag display around Armed Forces Day, Gaecheonjeol and Hangul Day.
Security and traffic
Jongno police plan road controls around the Sejong Center and Gwanghwamun during the morning program, and subway exits near the venue typically crowd with school groups bused in for their first national ceremony. Diplomatic corps members invited from embassies in Seoul will watch from designated seating as the government stresses outward-facing hospitality during a holiday that remains domestically focused on mythic founding narratives.
For many families, the day also includes visits to Dangun shrines such as the one in Sajik Park, where incense and quiet prayer continue traditions older than the republic itself.
Broadcasters will air the ceremony live on KBS and EBS feeds, giving classrooms a synchronized civics lesson even when families skip downtown traffic.
Broadcasters will air the ceremony live on KBS and EBS feeds, giving classrooms a synchronized civics lesson even when families skip downtown traffic.
Opposition lawmakers were invited under standard protocol, though partisan speeches are limited to the printed congratulatory messages rather than floor debates, keeping the event ceremonial rather than legislative.
Editors note that official releases, not market chatter, govern the figures cited above.
Trading desks reopen Tuesday with U.S. futures and oil as the first inputs after the break.