The Korean style Hanok house is not only the tradition of the past but also an effective architectural style in modern times. Hanok’s charm is twofold: scientific excellence and environmental friendliness. The scientific excellence is demonstrated by a heating system called the “ondol.” Ondol helps residents endure the cold of winter by heating the floors of the home. The word ‘ondol,’ now registered in the Oxford Dictionary, literally means “warming the stone.” When heat coming from the fire in the kitchen is connected to the other rooms, the layer of stone in the floor of the target room becomes heated. The warm air at floor level rises, keeping the temperature of the whole room comfortable.
As much of Korean daily life utilizes the floor surfaces, the ondol culture, the core of the family’s indoor temperature control, is always mentioned when discussing Korea. In the West, the cold floor is often avoided, while chairs and beds are preferred. However, the comfort of the ondol means that Korean people, rather than avoiding the floor, make full use of it. In fact, the reason that it is necessary to take off shoes before entering a house is to keep the floor as clean as possible. This is because the floor is used for both dining and sleeping; short folding tables are brought out when dining, and bedclothes are placed on the heated floor at night for sleeping.
The words ‘downside’ and ‘upside’ are both derived from ondol. The floor near the fireplace is heated and is the hottest area when the fire is burning hot. The Korean people are always aware of the need to show respect to the elderly and therefore this area, the downside, is usually reserved for elders of the family. Fires are less necessary during the summer and Korean homes kept cool by utilizing natures cooling system, the movement of air. The Hanok house has fewer walls and more doors. When the door is closed, it becomes a wall and when it is open, it brings in the breeze to keep air circulating throughout the living spaces. That is why the Hanok keeps cool in the heat of summer.
Ondol is also used for medicinal purposes. The Korean language has the phrase “sizzling the body,” which refers to a kind of fomentation effect that is created when somebody lies on the hot floor in the cold winter. Such fomenting is known as being effective for tired or sick people, pregnant women and the elderly. To this day, Koreans prefer to forment on a toasty ondol floor when they get a cold or other such illness.