''Jjimjilbang'' (; , ) are bathhouses in South Korea which gained popularity in the 1990s. They are separated by gender and typically have

hot tub A hot tub is a large tub full of water used for hydrotherapy, relaxation or pleasure. Some have powerful jets for massage purposes. Hot tubs are sometimes also known as "spas" or by the trade name Jacuzzi. Hot tubs may be located outdoors or ...

s, showers, Korean traditional kiln saunas, and

massage Massage is the rubbing or kneading of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pa ...

tables. ''Jjimjil'' is derived from the words meaning ''heating''. In other areas of the building or on other floors there are unisex areas, usually with a snack bar,

ondol (; , ; ) or ''gudeul'' (; ) in Korean traditional architecture is underfloor heating that uses direct heat transfer from wood smoke to heat the underside of a thick masonry floor. In modern usage, it refers to any type of underfloor heating, or ...

-heated floor for lounging and sleeping, wide-screen TVs, exercise rooms, ice rooms, heated salt rooms,

internet cafe The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

, karaoke bars, and sleeping quarters with bunk beds or sleeping mats. Many of the sleeping rooms have themes or elements to them. Usually ''jjimjilbang'' will have various rooms with temperatures to suit guests' preferred relaxing temperatures. Walls can be decorated with woods, minerals, crystals, stones, and metals to make the ambient mood and smell more natural. The elements used have traditional Korean medicinal purposes in the rooms. Many ''jjimjilbang'' are open at all hours and are a popular weekend getaway for South Korean families. Some ''jjimjilbang'' allow customers to sleep there overnight. South Korean men, particularly those who work away from their families or stayed out late drinking or working, sleep in ''jjimjilbang'' overnight. Theft, usually of smartphones, is occasionally a problem at some ''jimjilbang''.

Facilities

''Jjimjilbang'' usually operate 24 hours a day. In the entrance, there are the doors labelled “men” or “women” and shoes are to be stored using a given key. Once inside, the shoe locker key is exchanged with another locker key to store clothes and belongings. Afterwards bathers walk into the gender-segregated bathhouse area (children of both genders below seven years of age are free to intermingle) and take a shower. Then, one should wear the ''jjimjilbang'' clothes (usually a T-shirt and shorts, color-coordinated according to gender), which are received with the locker key. In the bathing areas, there are

kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or Chemical Changes, chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects m ...

saunas with themes including a jade, a salt, or mineral kiln: the dome-shaped inside the kilns are plastered with jade powder, salt and mineral respectively. Often there are several kilns with temperatures ranging from . The temperature of the kilns is displayed on a sign at the entrance.

Hygiene

Some ''jjimjilbang'' have had their sanitary condition questioned, both in terms of facilities, clothes, and of food offered at the venue. Concerns about the clothes increasing

atopy Atopy is the tendency to produce an exaggerated immunoglobulin E (IgE) immune response to otherwise harmless substances in the environment. Allergic diseases are clinical manifestations of such inappropriate, atopic responses. Atopy may have ...

symptoms in patients, or even of accidentally hosting parasites, have been voiced, although evidence was inconclusive. Currently, health control standards are set by the Public Health Control Act.

Korean sauna

''Hanjeungmak'' () is Korean traditional

sauna A sauna (, ) is a room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a sauna is used to meas ...

. Intensely hot and dry, it uses traditionally burning wood of

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

to heat a domelike

made of stone. Nowadays, ''hanjeungmak'' are incorporated into ''jjimjilbang'' rather than being independent facilities. ''Bulgama'' installed in ''jjimjilbang'' is a variety of ''hanjeungmak'', heated with higher temperature. Sometimes the dome-shaped walls of kiln rooms are plastered with

loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–si ...

, salt, minerals. The first mention of ''hanjeungmak'', initially referred to as ''hanjeungso'' (), is found in the Annals of Sejong in the 15th century. The record also states that the Korean kiln saunas were used for medicinal purposes. At that time, ''hanjeungmak'' were state-supported kiln saunas maintained by Buddhist monks. Since 1429, saunas have been built as separate facilities for men and women.

References

External links

{{commons category, Jjimjilbang

New York Times article
Seoul Zimzilbang Toronto
at Seoul Zimzilbang Toronto

in Vietnam at Temple Leaf Spa Land South Korean popular culture Public baths

Facilities

Hygiene

Korean sauna

See also

References

Further reading

External links