6 ms·

Women of the sea: Korea’s oldest free divers

115 points by adrian_mrd 5y ago

Borrible 5y ago
Tough old mermaids. They inherit the job from their mothers. They used to dive while pregnant, often through the whole pregnancy. For generations. And up to a ripe old age They may have inherited more physical characteristics.Could come in handy with rising sea levels It is a bit sad that the profession is dying. And with it probably the physical characteristics.
- emodendroket 5y ago
  Frankly it seems like a needlessly dangerous practice to continue.
  - Borrible 5y ago
    Yes, but those surviving maybe special.
  - noah_buddy 5y ago
    Many practices are 'needlessly dangerous' but I think that the phrase itself is just a reflection of priority as many things are needless at this point generally. It sounds like you're a generally calculating and (physically) risk averse person, which is no issue. That said, I'm sure you could understand why some people get a thrill from skydiving or weightlifting or any other activity that's dangerous on its face.
    - emodendroket 5y ago
      But this isn't a hobby like extreme sports. It's a job, and one which can now be replaced. If people want to do free diving for fun, that's fine, but I'm not seeing much reason they should go out of their way to preserve it as an industry.
- traeregan 5y ago
  > It is a bit sad that the profession is dying. And with it probably the physical characteristics. Freediver here. As humans, and more importantly mammals, we’re all surprisingly adaptable from a physiological perspective. Check this out: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_reflex https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_reflex
  - Borrible 5y ago
    https://source.wustl.edu/2021/07/moon-to-engineer-microbes-to-control-heat-production/ https://source.wustl.edu/2021/07/moon-to-engineer-microbes-t...
feels0ng 5y ago
I saw a TV program covering this professions and had a couple of few young ladies who jumped into this profession, but that was pretty much it. They were desperately recruiting. Their earnings are pretty good, but still there are potential dangers. My grand father escaped from Jeju when he was in early 20s. I wish he was still alive, so I could ask about the history. I have relatives, but always interesting to read these articles about people living in the area.
eatonphil 5y ago
Random tip for New Yorkers here: there's a great restaurant in Park Slope Brooklyn named after them, Haenyeo, on 5th Ave and Carroll Street.
- tyre 5y ago
  One of the best restaurants in the area. Actually, one of the best restaurants I’ve been to in NYC.
getoj 5y ago
Unfortunately no mention of the equivalent Japanese tradition of ama[1], identically named in Chinese characters (海女) though much older - the first records of female ama are from the Heian period, whereas haenyeo as female divers appear to be a more recent phenomenon. I am sure there are a number of interesting comparisons to be made and probably some historical connection between the two. However, these kinds of cultural similarities between Japan and Korea are rarely discussed, probably due to the nationalist animosity between the two countries. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving)
- jinwoo68 5y ago
  Haenyeo is more recent? Wikipedia doesn't seem to agree. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says it started earlier than Ama.
  - resoluteteeth 5y ago
    > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says it started earlier than Ama. Your link doesn't appear to actually say that? > The first mention of female divers in literature does not come until the 17th century, when a monograph of Jeju geography describes them as jamnyeo (literally "diving women").[2]: 101
    - jinwoo68 5y ago
      What I meant was that https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says "Jeju's diving tradition dates back to 434 AD" while https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) says "Records of female pearl divers, or ama, date back as early as AD 927". I think both date them using written records and I think they both started earlier than those records. So probably they started at around the same time? I really don't know. I just wanted to point out that the OP's argument doesn't seem valid.
    - lifthrasiir 5y ago
rdtwo 5y ago
Seems like it’s not needed now that scuba gear I is Cheap reliable and readily available. Why risk it.
- rp1 5y ago
  I have some extended family who alive along a rugged expanse of the pacific. The after there is amazing wild. There is all types of sea life living in the rocky outcrops and kelp forest. My family there free dives to get abalone with a dull metal knife. Watching them do it is crazy. You begin to worry after they’ve been down a long time. There is no economic incentive for them. They just like to do it.
- NikolaeVarius 5y ago
  1) Scuba Gear is expensive 2) Scuba Gear requires maintenance 3) Scuba Gear requires a compressor which is more expense and maintenance. 4) You can free dive all day and not have to a damn about decompression times (exceptions occur for very aggressive repeated deep drives, which is not happening here). This is untrue for Scuba 5) Clearly there is a cultural component to this.
  - anamax 5y ago
    Decompression time is a function of depth, time, and N2 concentration. (Yes, O2 matters for because of O2 toxicity, but that's not a decompression issue.) Scuba can let you breathe different mixtures than the standard atmosphere but need not increase decompression time.
toufka 5y ago
Patagonia made a little short (13m) about Jeju. Definitely worth watching: https://youtu.be/r4jLplyxXqI https://youtu.be/r4jLplyxXqI
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
hashamali 5y ago
Unrelated to the article itself, but the design of this page on mobile is a beautiful experience.
- andreofthecape 5y ago
  Fully agree, I came back searching for this submission again just to say that. Looks beautiful on both mobile and desktop without all the normal ads and links screaming for your attention. Love the full background photos and videos
Borrible 5y ago
As an aside, how long till they adapt that Lisa See novel to film? https://www.lisasee.com/books-new/the-island-of-sea-women/ https://www.lisasee.com/books-new/the-island-of-sea-women/ I mean, beautiful nature shots, tough women, exotic theme, heart wrenching story of friendship between women. Not to forget, Korean film enjoys growing popularity. You could even exploit a lot of ecological topics. What could possibly go wrong?

115 points by adrian_mrd 5y ago

Tough old mermaids. They inherit the job from their mothers. They used to dive while pregnant, often through the whole pregnancy. For generations. And up to a ripe old age They may have inherited more physical characteristics.Could come in handy with rising sea levels It is a bit sad that the profession is dying. And with it probably the physical characteristics.

emodendroket 5y ago
Frankly it seems like a needlessly dangerous practice to continue.
- Borrible 5y ago
  Yes, but those surviving maybe special.
- noah_buddy 5y ago
  Many practices are 'needlessly dangerous' but I think that the phrase itself is just a reflection of priority as many things are needless at this point generally. It sounds like you're a generally calculating and (physically) risk averse person, which is no issue. That said, I'm sure you could understand why some people get a thrill from skydiving or weightlifting or any other activity that's dangerous on its face.
  - emodendroket 5y ago
    But this isn't a hobby like extreme sports. It's a job, and one which can now be replaced. If people want to do free diving for fun, that's fine, but I'm not seeing much reason they should go out of their way to preserve it as an industry.
traeregan 5y ago
> It is a bit sad that the profession is dying. And with it probably the physical characteristics. Freediver here. As humans, and more importantly mammals, we’re all surprisingly adaptable from a physiological perspective. Check this out: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_reflex https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diving_reflex
- Borrible 5y ago
  https://source.wustl.edu/2021/07/moon-to-engineer-microbes-to-control-heat-production/ https://source.wustl.edu/2021/07/moon-to-engineer-microbes-t...

feels0ng 5y ago

I saw a TV program covering this professions and had a couple of few young ladies who jumped into this profession, but that was pretty much it. They were desperately recruiting. Their earnings are pretty good, but still there are potential dangers. My grand father escaped from Jeju when he was in early 20s. I wish he was still alive, so I could ask about the history. I have relatives, but always interesting to read these articles about people living in the area.

eatonphil 5y ago

Random tip for New Yorkers here: there's a great restaurant in Park Slope Brooklyn named after them, Haenyeo, on 5th Ave and Carroll Street.

tyre 5y ago
One of the best restaurants in the area. Actually, one of the best restaurants I’ve been to in NYC.

getoj 5y ago

Unfortunately no mention of the equivalent Japanese tradition of ama[1], identically named in Chinese characters (海女) though much older - the first records of female ama are from the Heian period, whereas haenyeo as female divers appear to be a more recent phenomenon. I am sure there are a number of interesting comparisons to be made and probably some historical connection between the two. However, these kinds of cultural similarities between Japan and Korea are rarely discussed, probably due to the nationalist animosity between the two countries. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving)

jinwoo68 5y ago
Haenyeo is more recent? Wikipedia doesn't seem to agree. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says it started earlier than Ama.
- resoluteteeth 5y ago
  > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says it started earlier than Ama. Your link doesn't appear to actually say that? > The first mention of female divers in literature does not come until the 17th century, when a monograph of Jeju geography describes them as jamnyeo (literally "diving women").[2]: 101
  - jinwoo68 5y ago
    What I meant was that https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haenyeo says "Jeju's diving tradition dates back to 434 AD" while https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ama_(diving) says "Records of female pearl divers, or ama, date back as early as AD 927". I think both date them using written records and I think they both started earlier than those records. So probably they started at around the same time? I really don't know. I just wanted to point out that the OP's argument doesn't seem valid.
  - lifthrasiir 5y ago

rdtwo 5y ago

Seems like it’s not needed now that scuba gear I is Cheap reliable and readily available. Why risk it.

rp1 5y ago
I have some extended family who alive along a rugged expanse of the pacific. The after there is amazing wild. There is all types of sea life living in the rocky outcrops and kelp forest. My family there free dives to get abalone with a dull metal knife. Watching them do it is crazy. You begin to worry after they’ve been down a long time. There is no economic incentive for them. They just like to do it.
NikolaeVarius 5y ago
1) Scuba Gear is expensive 2) Scuba Gear requires maintenance 3) Scuba Gear requires a compressor which is more expense and maintenance. 4) You can free dive all day and not have to a damn about decompression times (exceptions occur for very aggressive repeated deep drives, which is not happening here). This is untrue for Scuba 5) Clearly there is a cultural component to this.
- anamax 5y ago
  Decompression time is a function of depth, time, and N2 concentration. (Yes, O2 matters for because of O2 toxicity, but that's not a decompression issue.) Scuba can let you breathe different mixtures than the standard atmosphere but need not increase decompression time.

toufka 5y ago

Patagonia made a little short (13m) about Jeju. Definitely worth watching: https://youtu.be/r4jLplyxXqI https://youtu.be/r4jLplyxXqI

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

hashamali 5y ago

Unrelated to the article itself, but the design of this page on mobile is a beautiful experience.

andreofthecape 5y ago
Fully agree, I came back searching for this submission again just to say that. Looks beautiful on both mobile and desktop without all the normal ads and links screaming for your attention. Love the full background photos and videos

Borrible 5y ago

As an aside, how long till they adapt that Lisa See novel to film? https://www.lisasee.com/books-new/the-island-of-sea-women/ https://www.lisasee.com/books-new/the-island-of-sea-women/ I mean, beautiful nature shots, tough women, exotic theme, heart wrenching story of friendship between women. Not to forget, Korean film enjoys growing popularity. You could even exploit a lot of ecological topics. What could possibly go wrong?