每日英語跟讀 Ep.K611: Aging Backwards: South Koreans Embrace International Age System, Experience Youthful Transformation
In a significant legal change, every person in South Korea has experienced a sudden reduction in age by at least one year. This adjustment comes as the country adopts the internationally recognized age counting system, replacing one of its two traditional methods. Previously, individuals were considered one year old at birth, accounting for the time spent in the womb. The implementation of the new law took effect on Wednesday, resulting in South Koreans instantly becoming a year or two younger.
在一項重大的法律變革中，每個韓國人都突然減少了至少一歲的年齡。這項調整是由於該國採用了國際認可的年齡計算系統所引起的，取代了現行兩種傳統年齡算法的其中一種。在此之前，人們出生時被計算為一歲，算入了在母親體內的時間。新法律的實施從周三開始生效，導致韓國人立即變年輕了一到兩歲。
The conventional "Korean age" system, where individuals aged up by one year every January 1st regardless of their actual birth date, has now been replaced. Under the previous system, someone born on New Year's Eve would turn two years old on New Year's Day. In contrast, the alternative method, known as "counting age," treated individuals as zero at birth but incremented their age by one every January 1st. For example, a person born on New Year's Eve would turn one on New Year's Day. While the "counting age" method is still utilized in many legal contexts, such as determining the legal drinking age, the recent legal change could result in South Koreans having their ages reduced on official documents.
過去傳統的"韓國年齡"系統，不論實際出生日期如何，每年的1月1日人們都增長一歲的年齡，現已被取代。在以前的制度下，12/31日出生的人在新年的第一天就計為兩歲。相對的，將要改用的另一種稱為"虛歲"的方法，將人出生時視為零歲，但每年的1月1日年齡增長一歲。例如，12/31日出生的人在新年的第一天就滿一歲。雖然"虛歲"方法在許多法律情境中仍在使用，例如確定法定飲酒年齡，但最近的法律變化可能導致韓國人在官方文件上的年紀減少。
Minister of government legislation, Lee Wan-kyu, stated during a briefing that the new age calculation method is expected to alleviate legal disputes, complaints, and social confusion related to age calculations. Since the 1960s, South Korea has used the international norm of starting from zero at birth and incrementing age by one on each birthday for medical and legal documentation. However, many South Koreans continued to use the traditional method in daily life. A government survey conducted in September of the previous year indicated that 86% of respondents intended to adopt the international age system in their everyday lives once the new law was implemented.
韓國法制處處長李完揆在一次簡報中表示，新的年齡計算方法有望減少與年齡計算相關的法律紛爭、投訴和社會混亂。自1960年代以來，韓國一直使用國際慣例，即從出生時的零歲開始，每逢生日年齡增加一歲，用於醫療和法律文件。然而，許多韓國人在日常生活中繼續使用傳統計法。去年9月進行的一項政府調查顯示，86%的受訪者打算在新法律實施後在日常生活中改用國際年齡系統。
The shift to the internationally recognized age system has been met with enthusiasm among South Koreans. Choi Hyun-ji, a 27-year-old office worker in Seoul, expressed excitement about the adjustment: "I was about to turn 30 next year [under the traditional Korean age system], but now I have some more time earned, and I love it." Many citizens share this sentiment, enjoying the feeling of becoming younger overnight. With the implementation of the new law, South Koreans have embraced the opportunity to recalibrate their ages and adopt the age system recognized worldwide.
韓國人對轉向國際認可的年齡系統表示熱情。一名首爾的27歲上班族崔賢智（音譯）對這項調整表示興奮：“根據傳統的韓國年齡算法，我明年將年滿30歲，但現在多了一些時間，我喜歡這種感覺。”許多市民都有同樣的感受，享受一夜之間變年輕的感覺。隨著新法的實施，韓國人已經接受了重新校準年齡並採用全球認可的年齡系統的機會。
Reference article: https://news.sky.com/story/south-koreans-instantly-become-younger-under-new-age-counting-system-12910916