Sarangchae

Sarangchae
A study in a hanok in the National Folk Museum of Korea. Likely a sarangbang.
Korean name
Hangul	사랑채
Hanja	舍廊채
Revised Romanization	Sarangchae
McCune–Reischauer	Sarangch'ae
sarangbang
Hangul	사랑방
Hanja	舍廊房
Revised Romanization	sarangbang
McCune–Reischauer	sarangbang

A sarangchae (Korean: 사랑채) is a section of a Korean traditional house (hanok) that is generally reserved for men and guests. It can be composed of a number of rooms and elements, including notably the sarangbang (사랑방). In smaller homes, the sarangchae may just consist of a single sarangbang, in which case they are one and the same.

The anchae and anbang are the female-oriented counterparts. They are more private sections of the house exclusive to women (and prohibited to especially male guests), from which they cook, store precious items away from guests, and manage the household.^[1]

These gendered spaces first emerged around the Joseon period, following a Confucian ideal of strict separation of genders. They became widespread during that period, even in the countryside.^[1] However, they are now uncommon.