What is a paebaek ceremony?
Korean · also called pyebaek, Korean wedding ceremony, chestnut and jujube
Paebaek is the Korean ceremony in which the couple, dressed in hanbok, formally greets the groom's parents - and now usually both families - with deep bows and tea. It ends with the parents throwing chestnuts and jujubes into a cloth the couple holds stretched between them, and the number they catch is said to predict how many children they will have.
What happens
The couple wears hanbok and performs a deep formal bow, the keunjeol, to each set of parents in turn, then serves them tea or wine. The parents offer advice and blessings, and give money in return - traditionally tucked into the bride's skirt or handed over directly.
Then the chestnuts and jujubes: dates for daughters, chestnuts for sons, thrown by the parents while the couple catches what they can in a stretched cloth. It is played for laughs, and it is the photograph everyone wants.
How it fits a modern wedding
Paebaek was historically held at the groom's family home after the wedding and involved only his relatives. Most couples now hold it at the wedding venue between the ceremony and reception, and include both families, which is a reasonable and widely accepted adaptation.
It requires a changed outfit, a dedicated room and a proper setup - a low table, screens, cushions - which most couples rent as a package from a specialist supplier.
Planning it properly
A tradition only goes well if the people running your day know it is coming. These are the things to say out loud, and who to say them to.
- Book the hanbok and the setup together
- Specialist suppliers rent the table, screens, cushions and the food display as one package, often with someone to dress the bride.
- Schedule the outfit change realistically
- Hanbok takes time to put on properly, usually with help. Twenty minutes is optimistic.
- Give it a private room between ceremony and reception
- It is a family event, not a guest event, and it needs its own space and slot in the timeline.
- Warn your photographer about the throw
- The chestnut-and-jujube catch is fast, funny and unrepeatable. It should be the shot they are set up for.
Common questions
What happens at a paebaek ceremony?
The couple, in hanbok, performs deep formal bows to their parents and serves them tea or wine. Parents offer blessings and money, then throw chestnuts and jujubes for the couple to catch in a stretched cloth.
What do the chestnuts and dates mean at a Korean wedding?
Jujubes (dates) traditionally represent daughters and chestnuts represent sons, and the number the couple catches is playfully said to predict how many children they will have.
When is paebaek held?
Traditionally at the groom's family home after the wedding. Most couples now hold it at the venue between the ceremony and the reception, with both families present.
The vendors who make this work
Paebaek depends on people who have done it before. Every review on Lazo comes from a couple who actually got married with that vendor, and rankings can't be bought.
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