Scary Korean Horror Stories and Legends

I’m assuming you’re here because you wanna be scared silly by scary Korean horror stories… Well… Me too, twinsies!

The first one to get chills has to pay for the popcorn at the next movie. Deal? Deal.

As someone who does believe in ghosts and has had supernatural experiences, nothing gives me chills like a spooky tale. I love scary Korean horror stories and legends, so it’s my pleasure to retell some of the BEST stories I’ve encountered.

Some tales come from expats in Korea while other chilling tales are what my Korean middle school students have told me.

Grab yourself a snack or a drink (preferably a sweet pumpkin latte 단호박 라떼), light your pumpkin spice candle, get on your cozy pajamas, bring your best fuzzy blanket, and settle in to read these scary Korean stories in English. Be careful, chills ahead.

Table of Contents

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1. Scary Korean Ghost Stories

One thing Asian horror movies are excellent at is building suspense. They freak me out and I have nightmares for weeks after. I have a post on some of the best Japanese Horror Films that will keep you up at night.

I also have a post on Scary Korean Horror Films To Watch This Spooky Season that will have you checking for the monster under your bed. Basic, but if you’re into the zombie genre, Train to Busan starring Gong Yoo is one of the best Korean horror movies to date!

2. Beware the Darkest Day of the Year

Traditional beliefs of Korea indicate on the darkest day of the year, ghosts and demons come out to play. This is usually during the winter solstice also called Dongji 동지.

It usually happens in December, but it doesn’t make this day less scary. Get your spoons ready because according to Koreans, eating a dark porridge called patjuk 팥죽 keeps the demons and ghosts away.

This dish consists of piping hot red beans and sticky rice balls. During this time, families also perform ancestral rites. Eating this porridge is a great way to scare off Grim Reapers and everything that goes bump in the night.

The dark color of the porridge makes it look like blood.

3. Mr. Cuckoo

This urban legend is about a mentally unwell man. He was so disturbed, he was sent to one of the most horrific mental asylums. (Maybe Gonjiam?)

While there, his stay was nothing short of a nightmare. He was horrifically beaten by a patient who was a young woman.

His torture at her hands was so severe, he not only despised her but all women in general. One day, Mr. Cuckoo managed to escape.

Soon after, reports from around the country started flooding in about a man attacking high school girls with an ax. Despite numerous reports and deaths, police could never find the serial killer.

Legend has it, that his vengeful ghost lurks in alleyways. Whenever a woman would walk by he would jump out and scream, “Cuckoo! Cuckoo! Cuckoo!”

If you want to survive, repeat his catchphrase back to him and run for your life. If he gets close enough to ask you the question, “Do you know Mr. Cuckoo?”

Answer yes and never look back.

4. The Daegu Fortune Teller

This is one of the scariest tales I have been told to date. The legend about the Daegu fortune teller is a true story from a Korea expat. He has given me express permission to post the story as long as the names are changed.

Word on the street is that fortune teller #3 in Daegu is scarily accurate. Whatever the fortune teller says, comes true.

One day, Mike’s wife Jihyun went to see this fortune teller with her good friend, Minji. When they approached, the fortune teller grew white in the face. She said, “Jihyun, I will read your fortune, but I will not do it for your friend. She has no future.”

Angry and thinking that the fortune teller just wanted to go home, both women left. The next day, Minji died in a car accident.

5. The Girl in the Bookshelf

During the Halloween season, as an English project, my students had to pick a well-known story on supernatural beings and tell it in English or they had to make one up. Now… Let me tell you these kids understood the assignment because this next story gave me a bunch of chills.

One night, a boy was studying for his final exams in the library. While studying, he noticed a strange girl staring at him through the bookshelf. She was smiling and had her chin propped up on her elbows.

Thinking that she was just strange, the boy went back to studying. A couple of hours later, the same girl was still staring at him through another bookshelf.

Again, he ignored it because he had an important test to study for. As it grew later, the library patrons started to clear out.

The boy was alone and the library was about to close when he heard strange tapping noises. Looking around, he saw the girl one more time.

This time, she was at the foot of the table he was studying at, still smiling eerily. After taking a closer look, he noticed the tapping sounds coming from her elbows as she quickly raced to where he sat… with only half a body.

Needless to say… This was the best horror story with supernatural elements I heard all year.

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6. The Eunuch at the Secret Garden

This story comes from my good friend, Heather who has permitted me to share the story. The day started off like any other.

Most expats spend the first few months of their time abroad going to all the tourist sites (myself included). While enjoying their new host country and walking around Changdeokgung Palace, Heather began feeling a strange energy permeating through the grounds.

They decided on a tour of the Secret Garden. Honestly, if you’re visiting during fall (which is one of my favorite times of year) this Garden has some of the best fall foliage in South Korea.

Heather then told me the energy she felt became more apparent. You see, there’s a difference between ghosts and hauntings.

There are residual hauntings and leftover energies. A mysterious figure seemed aware of their presence.

Towards the “Gate of Eternal Youth”, there is a gazebo and a small pond filled with lotuses. That’s when she saw a man dressed in deep evergreen robes with a black hat and black belt over his chest.

The man realized she could see him perfectly and they locked eyes. He bowed and she also bowed back as a sign of respect.

He opened his mouth to try and say something, but she was too far away to hear anything he might have said. This spirit knew the world had been changing.

How much time had passed since their meeting? No one knew.

The eunuch waved her off to rejoin her tour group as he watched them. If you’re ever taking a tour, pay close attention. You might be able to see him too.

7. Don’t Go To The Fourth Floor

So you know how in America the 13th floor of any building is usually a jinx and you shouldn’t go there? Well, in a Korean apartment building, you’ll get discounts for living on the fourth floor or it will be marked with an “F” to designate the floor.

Here we’re gonna tap into my rare insider knowledge from living in Korean society because the number four in many Asian cultures (including Japan and China) is closest to the Chinese character for death.

And yes, even in modern times many people still believe if you write someone’s name is red ink (or a red pen) or move to the fourth floor of an apartment complex you will die. If you’re interested, I also have a blog post on Korean Superstitions.

8. The Woman At Jayuro

Next on our list of scary stories is one that made me NEVER want to drive at night and just wait until the next morning.

There is a highway strip located between Paju and Goyang and is slightly north of Seoul. Jayuro Road is particularly notorious for having many accidents as it is foggy, has poor visibility, and not many street lights.

Due to the nature of the road, it has been known to have many accidents although some people believe that not all of these accidents are caused by the road itself…

Many claimed to see a woman standing in the road wearing black sunglasses. Curious onlookers have approached her only to be scared out of their minds.

The closer they got, the more they realized she wasn’t wearing sunglasses. When the woman looks at them full-on, they find two gaping black holes in her head where her eyes should be.

Understandably, no one has stuck around to find out the history behind this mysterious woman. I would be peeing my pants right then and there.

Holy water anyone?

9. The Fortune Teller & The Demons

This next story is one of the most chilling and scary Korean folk tales.

A long time ago, there lived an old fortune teller who was blind. What he could not see with his physical eyes, he could see with his sixth sense.

While going around Hanyang (the old capital in the Seoul vicinity), he felt a dark presence around a nobleman’s house. When he inquired if everything was all right, a guard said, “The nobleman’s young daughter has died.”

The fortune teller knew she was not dead and could still save her. He then demanded to go into the nobleman’s house.

The nobleman was convinced this fortune teller could save his daughter and brought his daughter’s body into a room. The old man quickly sealed every entrance into the room and began chanting.

While he chanted, unearthly sounds could be heard coming from the room. There were sounds of groaning and screeching as the fortune teller drove the demons inhabiting the nobleman’s daughter.

The sounds struck fear into the hearts of everyone in the household and made their hair stand on end. Still, he worked diligently, never giving up.

A curious servant, skeptical of the fortune teller, poked a hole through the paper door to see inside. In that instance, the demons inhabiting the room escaped.

The young girl opened her eyes and when the family tried to repay the fortune teller, he refused their gifts citing, “Because the demons have escaped, they will seek vengeance upon me.”

And revenge did come in the form of the king who believed him to be a con artist making fools of the ignorant and poor people. The king set a rat in front of the fortune teller and when he asked the fortune teller how many rats were in front of him, the fortune teller replied three.

Thinking the old man had failed the test, the king sentenced him to death. However, when the rat was dissected, there were two perfectly formed fetuses inside.

Before the king could right his wrong, the wind was roaring and the message was not delivered. As the old fortune teller was beheaded, a series of demonic laughs filled the kingdom and the wind fell silent.

10. Aka Manto aka The Red Cape

I first heard this Japanese urban legend while I was living in Okinawa and it seems to have also made its way into Korean culture. NGL, I always crack up when my students share urban legends about why they don’t want to stay late after school.

According to both my Korean and Japanese students, Aka Manto are evil spirits that appear in a red cape. These ghosts appear to people using toilets in public or school bathrooms.

Accounts of the legend vary, but the spirit will ask the bathroom occupants if they want red paper or blue paper. Either option will get you killed, but the best thing to do is to ignore the spirit, outsmart it, or run away.

Fun fact, but in Squid Game, this Korean urban legend was referenced. In the TV shows, players go for a round of the Korean children’s game ddakji for cash. The game maker offers them the choice of a red or a blue paper tile, but this choice does not affect the outcome.

11. Want More Scary Korean Horror Stories and Legends?

Bonus: The Dark Side of Seoul

If you’re in Seoul around September or October, then you definitely want to go on the Dark Side of Seoul Tour. This tour will take you along Seoul’s most haunted alleyways and crannies.

You’ll get insider information on places locals specifically avoid due to ghost stories, tragedies, or urban legends. This is a great way to go ghost hunting and really enjoy spooky season here in South Korea.

I hope you all enjoyed these scary Korean horror stories. Which one was your favorite? I personally got chills from The Girl in the Bookshelf and Mr. Cuckoo.

I’d also like to mention that you should definitely check out this scary Korean comic in English (it’s a true story to boot) about a woman who killed herself by jumping from a building. My retelling of it on the blog wouldn’t do it justice.

Got a scary story or know an urban legend from Korea? Leave me your creepiest and scariest true stories in the comments down below.

I’d love to read them. If you’d like your story featured, send an email at ginabearsblog@gmail.com.

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