Sampo Generation (Hangul: 삼포세대; Hanja: 三抛世代; RR: samposedae, "Three giving-up generation") is a new term in South Korea referring to a generation that gives up courtship, marriage, and childbirth. Many of the young generation have given up those three things because of social pressures and economical problems such as rocketing prices, tuition, housing prices, and so on in South Korea. There is also the opo sedae, or “five giving-up generation,” which takes the same three and adds employment and home ownership. The chilpo sedae (“seven giving-up generation”) further includes interpersonal relationships and hope. This group is similar to the 'Satori Generation' in Japan.
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The origin of the word
This term was used by the special reports team of Kyunghyang Shinmun when they published "talking about the welfare state (ko:복지국가를 말한다)". They defined this group as the rising generation who had unstable jobs, high student loan payments, precarious preparation for employment, etc., and who postponed love, marriage, and childbirth without any prospective plan. This word and its definition started rapidly to spread through various media and the internet.The burden of starting a family in South Korea reached the limit because the family has been taking over welfare duties that South Korea's government isn't willing to provide or accept responsibility for. Eventually Sampo generation showed that the structure of the traditional family unit was disintegrating at an alarming rate.
New economics of marriage
Regarding this term, Korean marriage trends are changing. According to marriage consultancy Duo, over 34 percent of 1,446 women surveyed prioritized financial capability and job in choosing a future husband, followed by 30 percent putting greatest importance on personality and 9 percent on looks. In modern society, singledom has arguably become a greater problem than unemployment, not because people have failed to meet the right one, but because they lack the economic power to marry and start their own families.