During the 1960s, when Korea was a poor unknown country, some Korean nurses and miners went to Germany. Suk Sook-ja, who returned to Korea after working as a nurse in Germany for 30 years, is one of the pioneers who created something out of nothing in Germany. Let’s listen to her story of life in Germany as well as in the German Village in Korea.
A Korean-German Nurse Who Was Called a Korean Angel
The Korean movie Ode to my Father (Gukjesijang) depicts a story about a miner and a nurse, a couple who returned from Germany. Decades ago, many young Koreans were dispatched to Germany to work as miners and nurses. Suk Sook-ja was one of them. “When I was 20, I thought a lot about my future. When I saw a news article recruiting nurses to be sent to Germany, I immediately applied for the job. I was somewhat afraid of working in a foreign country, but I thought I needed to challenge my bravery.”
Born in Dogye in Samcheok, Gangwon-do, Suk moved to Seoul and attended a nurse training course for two years to obtain a nursing license. In 1973, she left for Germany and settled in a small city called Leiclingen with five other Korean nurses. She had high expectations about her job, but due to her language barrier, she was assigned to physically demanding work such as taking care of terminally ill patients or washing dead bodies. At every difficult moment, Suk tried to look on the bright side. As time passed, she became fluent in German, and she was given the nickname “Korean angel” since she never lost her smile even during difficult times. “At the time, a grade 8 Korean civil servant earned 15,000 won per month, but we earned 150,000 to 200,000 won a month in Germany. We sent the money back to Korea, saving 30,000 to 40,000 won as spending money in Germany. I want younger generations in Korea to recognize that dedication by Korean-German nurses and miners contributed to Korea’s economic growth.”
Settling Down in Korea’s German Village, the Second Hometown
Suk originally planned to work in Germany for three years, but she spent 30 years in the foreign country. She and her German husband had planned to move to Korea when the husband turned 65. Around that time in 2001, the Namhae government created the German Village and invited German Koreans to come. When Suk first arrived in Korea, as the first resident of the village in December 2002, the German Village was nothing more than wildland covered with stones. Suk thus led a project to create her second hometown. She ran German language classes for three years starting in 2006; and held the village Oktoberfest in 2010. The first festival was a great success with more than 10,000 visitors, exceeding her expectation that 3,000 would visit. Now the festival has grown globally and is visited by more than 100,000 tourists a year. “I am satisfied with the choices I made throughout my life such as working in Germany in my 20s; moving to Namhae at the age of 60; and doing my own work even now. Nobody in this village was born and bred in Namhae, but it has become our second hometown for the rest of our lives.” Suk leads a busy life in the German village. She is head of the Korean Oktoberfest committee, she is a tour guide at the Namhae German Exhibition Hall, and she is a member of the community’s agricultural cooperative selling German sausages and beers on weekends at a snack bar next to the exhibition hall. Thanks to her spirit of challenge and passion, we can visit a small Germany in Namehae.
What was the historical background of dispatching nurses and miners to Germany?
In the 1960s, Korea was the world’s second poorest country. Korea’s per capita income was only 76 dollars, less than half of the money people in Thailand (220 dollars) and the Philippines (170 dollars) received. Korea lacked foreign currencies, whereas Germany needed more manpower following the country’s economic growth of “the Miracle on the Rhine”. In this regard, the Korean government decided to dispatch Korean nurses and coal miners to Germany. The government sent 7,936 miners to Germany from 1963 to 1977; and 11,057 nurses from the 1960s to 1976. The average salary of Korean-German nurses was 10 times the salary of Korea’s eight-grade civil servants (15,000 won per month). The nurses sent most of the money they earned back to Korea. The amount of money they sent to Korea from 1965 to 1975 totaled 101.53 million dollars, about 10% of the total export volume of Korea at the time. Considering Korea’s economic situations back then, I can proudly say Korean-German nurses and miners definitely laid the groundwork for Korea’s economic development.”
I assume it wasn’t easy to move back to Korea after spending so many years in Germany. Please explain how you got settled into the German Village and what are your future plans?
In 1999, the Namhae government toured major German cities and held presentations. After hearing the presentation, I decided to move to Namhae, hoping to create a new community there. I purchased a plot in the village and built a traditional German-style house using imported German materials.
The Namhae government provided the infrastructure. There were only five houses in the beginning, but now we have 43 houses with 60 residents. They are introducing German culture based on their several decades of experience in Germany; beginning with a German language camp, and then Oktoberfest, which was a great success. In 2014, the village built the Namhae German Exhibition Hall, which plays a pivotal role within the community. In addition, the village created an agricultural cooperative and runs a snack bar, selling German sausages and beers. The problem is that, since most of the village occupants are old, the village will not have any German Koreans in the future. In this regard, we created a memorial cemetery so that the village’s unique identity can remain even after we all die.
What do you think is the value and merit of the German Village as a cultural tourism content?
I believe the German Village is a valuable cultural tourism content since the village was formed by Korean-German nurses and coal miners. One might think that their lives, full of ups and down, were nothing more than their own private lives; but it is clear that they are part of the German-Korean history and they laid the groundwork for Korea’s economic development. They were also pioneers who flew all the way from Korea to Germany, over 30 hour flight, in the 1970s when living in a foreign country was unthinkable; and the German-Korean nurses were the career women of their time. Nothing was easy for them, including coming back to Namhae, Korea to transform the area into a beautiful healing spot. In this regard, I believe the German Village residents truly are pioneers who created many things from nothing. Such living history is a crucial cultural tourism content. The Korean Oktoberfest enhanced the value of the German Village as a tourism content, and the village has also become a must-visit tourist spot in Namhae thanks to the Namhae German Exhibition Hall.
PROGRAMS
Guided Tour of Namhae German Exhibition Hall
Opened in 2014, the Namhae German Exhibition Hall traces the lives of Korean-German nurses and miners. The exhibition hall displays living items that village residents actually used in Germany as well as records showing how they stayed firm throughout difficult times in Germany. Join a guided tour of the museum with a former Korean-German nurse as a guide.
89-7 Dogil-ro Samdong-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-860-3540
09:00~18:00
German Village Tour
Sitting on a hill overlooking the blue sea, the German Village is decorated with exotic German-style houses with red roofs and white walls. If you want to learn more about the village’s past and present, join a guided tour provided by the village’s tourist information center available three times a day (10:30, 13: 30, 15:00). Don’t forget to try some German sausages and beer at the German-style snack bar called Deutscher Imbiss.
Oktoberfest in the German Village
Inspired by Munich’s Oktoberfest (one of the world’s top global festivals), the German Village holds a Korean Oktoberfest early October each year. First held in 2010, the annual festival became a symbolic event of the German Village where tourists can enjoy unique experiences. Enjoy traditional German beer and sausages along with exotic German culture with many people gathered in the plaza.
RECOMMENDED TOURIST ATTRACTIONS
Boriam Temple
Located on a peak on the south of Geumsan Mountain decorated with oddly shaped rocks, Boriam Temple is said to have been built by Monk Wonhyo in 683. In 1660, the temple was chosen as a royal temple by Yi Seong-gye who believed he was able to establish the Joseon Kingdom after praying at the temple for 100 days. The temple is one of the three major prayer sites. It also is one of three major holy sites where one can pray and get blessings from Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy). The Bogwangjeon Hall and a Guanyin statue facing the sea can be seen within the temple.
665 Boriam-ro Sangju-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-862-6115
boriam.or.kr
Daraengi Village
Daraengi Village in Namhae is famous for its terraced rice paddies consisting of 108 ascending platforms on a steep hill (over 45°). The rice paddies show the strong will of the Korean ancestors who toiled and moiled to farm on the barren land. The picturesque beauty of the terraced rice paddies boasts great harmony with the houses, mountains and sea. In 2001, the village was chosen by the Ministry of Environment as the best village where nature is well preserved; and the village was designated as National Scenic Site No. 15.
21 Nammyeon-ro 679beon-gil Nam-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-862-3427
PROGRAMS
Guided Tour of Namhae German Exhibition Hall
Opened in 2014, the Namhae German Exhibition Hall traces the lives of Korean-German nurses and miners. The exhibition hall displays living items that village residents actually used in Germany as well as records showing how they stayed firm throughout difficult times in Germany. Join a guided tour of the museum with a former Korean-German nurse as a guide.
89-7 Dogil-ro Samdong-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-860-3540
09:00~18:00
German Village Tour
Sitting on a hill overlooking the blue sea, the German Village is decorated with exotic German-style houses with red roofs and white walls. If you want to learn more about the village’s past and present, join a guided tour provided by the village’s tourist information center available three times a day (10:30, 13: 30, 15:00). Don’t forget to try some German sausages and beer at the German-style snack bar called Deutscher Imbiss.
Oktoberfest in the German Village
Inspired by Munich’s Oktoberfest (one of the world’s top global festivals), the German Village holds a Korean Oktoberfest early October each year. First held in 2010, the annual festival became a symbolic event of the German Village where tourists can enjoy unique experiences. Enjoy traditional German beer and sausages along with exotic German culture with many people gathered in the plaza.
RECOMMENDED TOURIST ATTRACTIONS
Boriam Temple
Located on a peak on the south of Geumsan Mountain decorated with oddly shaped rocks, Boriam Temple is said to have been built by Monk Wonhyo in 683. In 1660, the temple was chosen as a royal temple by Yi Seong-gye who believed he was able to establish the Joseon Kingdom after praying at the temple for 100 days. The temple is one of the three major prayer sites. It also is one of three major holy sites where one can pray and get blessings from Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy). The Bogwangjeon Hall and a Guanyin statue facing the sea can be seen within the temple.
665 Boriam-ro Sangju-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-862-6115
boriam.or.kr
Daraengi Village
Daraengi Village in Namhae is famous for its terraced rice paddies consisting of 108 ascending platforms on a steep hill (over 45°). The rice paddies show the strong will of the Korean ancestors who toiled and moiled to farm on the barren land. The picturesque beauty of the terraced rice paddies boasts great harmony with the houses, mountains and sea. In 2001, the village was chosen by the Ministry of Environment as the best village where nature is well preserved; and the village was designated as National Scenic Site No. 15.
21 Nammyeon-ro 679beon-gil Nam-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
055-862-3427
INFORMATION
Namhae German Exhibition Hall in the German Village
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- Dogil-ro Samdong-myeon, Namhae-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do2
