K-heritage industry set to reach 100 trillion won; joint inter-Korean push for taekwondo UNESCO listing

연합뉴스 / 2025-12-17 12:54:24

▲ A reenactment of the royal palace guards’ inspection ceremony, known as “Cheopjong,” is held in front of Heungnyemun Gate at Gyeongbok Palace in Jongno District, Seoul, on Oct. 30, 2025. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Yonhap) -- With global interest in K-culture continuing to grow, the government plans to expand industries related to national heritage—the roots of K-culture—into a 100 trillion won ($75 billion) market over the next five years.

Efforts will include pushing for the joint listing of taekwondo by South and North Korea as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity and reviewing ways to restore the “identity” of the former Seoul Station building, which has a 100-year history.

The Korea Heritage Service announced its key policy plans for 2026 on Wednesday, outlining these initiatives.

The market size of industries utilizing national heritage is estimated at about 9 trillion won this year, encompassing tourism at major heritage sites such as Gyeongbok Palace and Changdeok Palace, content like games and webtoons based on historical themes, and heritage-inspired goods.

The agency aims to foster related industries using artificial intelligence and advanced digital technologies to build a 100 trillion won market from 2026 to 2030.

An agency official said it will build big data related to national heritage, secure intellectual property and support related industries such as games, films and dramas.

The Korea Heritage Service also plans to actively promote Korean heritage globally. In July next year, Busan will host the UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting, a major international conference that decides on the inscription, preservation and protection of World Heritage sites.

It will mark the first time South Korea hosts the meeting since joining the World Heritage Convention in 1988.

▲ The 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee is underway at UNESCO headquarters in Paris on July 15, 2025 (local time). (Yonhap)

In addition to the main session scheduled for July 19–29, 2026, and pre-events from July 12–23, the agency plans to organize various cultural events and lead efforts to adopt a joint declaration.

Ahead of that, the agency will hold the “Korea on Stage, New York” event in New York in February next year to promote the value of Korean heritage.

It also plans to complete the second-phase inscription of “Korean Getbol (tidal flats)” and pursue UNESCO Memory of the World listings for the “Danwon High School April 16 Archives” and “Suunjapbang and Eumsikdimibang.”

The tradition of making hanji, described as “traditional knowledge, skills and cultural practices of hanji-making,” will also undergo evaluation next year for inscription as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

The agency expressed its intention to pursue the joint inter-Korean inscription of taekwondo as intangible cultural heritage. North Korea applied last year under the name “Traditional Martial Art Taekwondo of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” with evaluation and a final decision expected next year.

Designating “joint inter-Korean inscription of taekwondo” as a key task for globalizing K-heritage, the agency said it will open applications and select the next inscription candidate in January next year.

The agency also emphasized its core duties of heritage preservation and management. To respond to increasingly severe disasters amid the climate crisis, it plans to expedite legislation on national heritage disaster and safety management and refine response manuals.

It will actively identify overlooked or lesser-known heritage of the present era, including modern landscapes, orally transmitted traditions and temple toilets known as “haewuso.”

Separate committees previously operated by heritage type—cultural, intangible and natural—will be integrated into a single National Heritage Committee starting in May next year.

Management of the former Seoul Station building, which marks its 100th anniversary this year, will also be strengthened. The agency plans to restore and repair the building by 2028 so it can properly function as a railway heritage site.

Following the launch of excavation work at the Kültepe site in Türkiye this year, the agency is also reviewing cooperation plans to jointly investigate underwater heritage such as shipwrecks in Japan and Vietnam.

Korea Heritage Service head Heo Min said the agency will develop diverse policies so national heritage—the foundation of Korea’s cultural strength and the source of K-culture—can expand into the future and the world.

▲ Heo Min, head of the Korea Heritage Service, briefs the press on the agency’s key policy plans for 2026 at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Jongno District, Seoul, on Dec. 17, 2025. (Yonhap)