The St Andrew’s Society of Seoul

The dates 25 January and 30 November are special and celebrated by the people of Scotland and the Scottish Diaspora world-wide. 25 January is the birth date of Scotland’s National poet Robert Burns (commonly called Rabbie) who through his poetry and songs chronicled life in Scotland in the mid 1700’s. He is loved by all Scots for his humour and love of life.

St Andrew was the brother of Simon Peter and one of the first disciples of Jesus Christ. He became the Patron Saint of Scotland around the middle of the 10th century. 30 November is Scotland’s national day.

Many cities throughout the world have a St Andrew’s Society and Seoul is no different. The St Andrew’s Society of Seoul was founded in 1976. Its main function is to serve as a focal point for all things Scottish. The Society holds three events per year:

The Burns Supper - Held at the Grand Hyatt on a Saturday night around the end of January. Plenty of poetry, song, humorous speeches and banter. Lots of whisky, but no dancing! 

The Muckleshunter - a traditional Ceilidh (pronounced Kay - Lee) - features good food and plenty of dancing. The Muckleshunter is very informal and a time to let your hair down. The Society also holds dance practices on the four Wednesday evenings preceding the event. Names must be given in advance to gain entry to the Embassy. Please see the information in our upcoming events page.

The St Andrew’s Ball - held at The Grand Hyatt in Seoul, usually on the last Saturday in November. Many wear tartan, with men in traditional kilts and ladies in their finest dress. As well as good Scottish fare, there will be plenty of whisky and Scottish dancing all night. Unique to Seoul is a breakfast around 0330 am. This tradition harks back to the days when Seoul had a curfew and the St Andrew’s Ball was truly an all night affair. This event is preceded by 8 weeks of dance practice at the British Embassy - even if you can't attend the Ball, it's a great opportunity to get together with friends and learn some Scottish steps!

Message from the Chieftain, Sally McEachen

Since the Burns' Supper on 1st February 2020, the St Andrew's Society has not been able to hold any of its annual events because of the Covid 19 pandemic. We hope to be able to restart some time in 2022 and make up for lost time!

We hope that as many of you as possible will join us to celebrate life in Scotland once we are able to freely meet up again without restrictions. We have monitored the situation carefully since the beginning and will continue to do so. In the meantime, please stay safe and watch this space!

For more information and updates  regarding our events,

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