By Sunny Um WIRED Korea

A baby who is born at 11:59 p.m. on the last day of the year becomes a two-year-old a minute after. This happens when Koreans count his age.

The international age gets counted from the day someone is born, and the so-called Korean age from the year of birth.

This centuries-old tradition was prevalent in the cultural sphere of countries in East Asia whose languages or social norms were influenced by the Chinese culture historically.

But this tradition now remains only in South Korea, which explains why this age is called the Korean age rather than the East Asian age. Even North Korea abandoned the traditional way of counting ages.

There are many theories on the origin of this tradition. Some say the time a baby spends in its mother’s womb was taken into consideration. Another theory suggests that the tradition is rooted in the Chinese culture, which did not have a concept of number zero long ago.

Han Min, a professor of cultural psychology at Woosong University, finds the origin in the Chinese language.

He explains, in the English language, the emphasis is on the years that a person actually lived. When one says he is 17 years old, it means he has lived 17 full years. On the other hand, the Chinese language highlights how many calendar years that person has experienced. If one is 17 “sui (years of age)”, it means he has lived through 17 calendar years.

The use of the Korean age causes inconvenience in daily life. Those who are born in December are older by up to two years when the age is counted in the Korean way than those whose age is counted in the international way. People also need to explain what the Korean age is when they introduce themselves to non-Koreans.

Nevertheless, Han says Koreans continue using the Korean age because of the country’s unique seniority-based culture. Koreans use honorific titles to call those born earlier, instead of calling them by their names.

“The relationship between Koreans are often defined by age to a substantial extent,” Han says. “When people see strangers, they first ask what their names are and how old they are. If they’re around their age, they are called sisters or brothers. When the age gap is more than 20 years, younger people address the older ones as aunts or uncles.”

“Seniority gives people a social advantage in South Korea,” Han says.

There are people who ask for change in the age system. A public petition posted on the Blue House website, endorsed by seven, called for a governmental campaign to promote the use of the international age.

“Article 158 of the civil law states the age count starts on the date of birth,” the petitioner said. “People don’t abide by this article, because what is called ageism prevails in South Korea. Also, the government needs to do more campaigns [in favor of the international age].”

Last year, Representative Hwang Ju-hong of the Party for Democracy and Peace, authored and submitted a bill to the National Assembly to encourage Koreans to adopt the international age in their everyday life to do away with inconvenience derived from using the Korean age.

However, the bill is fated to be killed because solving the problem is not seen that “urgent” in the Korean society, reported the Yonhap News Agency.