A TikTok by influencer Leticia Oliveira went viral after she brought up the reflection that “the age we make on our birthday is the age we complete, not the age we are going to start”. Currently, the video has passed 3.3 million views.
For example, when I turned 22, it doesn’t mean that from that day on I’m 22. In fact, on my birthday I completed 22 years of life. That is, from then on I begin to live my 23 years
@letoliveiraoficial So understanding? I’m shocked #fyp
This counting method is internationally known, but there are countries that use a different method. One of them is South Korea, which has three: the “international”, which is the one we also use in Brazil, the “Korean” and the “calendar”.
In Korean age, a person is born at one year old. The months of gestation are counted, 9 months, and rounded up to one year. One detail is that they don’t gain a year of life on the day they were born, but every January 1st. The birthday is just for celebration.
As an example with a real case: singer V, from the K-Pop group BTS, was born on December 30, 1995. This means that, according to Korean age, he was 1 year old on that day. Already on January 1, 1996, he turned 2 years old, even with two days to live.
South Koreans can also use the “calendar age”, which mixes the international and Korean method. In this mode, babies are born zero years old on the day they are born, but get older every January 1st.
In Korean age, V is 29 years old. In the international age, he is 27. In the “calendar” age, the singer is 26 years old.
In December 2022, South Korea’s parliament passed a law that will standardize the “international age” starting in June of this year. Thus, official documents must all contain this counting method.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m Robert Neff, a professional writer and editor. I specialize in the entertainment section, providing up-to-date coverage on the latest developments in film, television and music. My work has been featured on World Stock Market and other prominent publications.
