How To Play Yut Nori: Korea’s Traditional New Year’s Game
Last Updated on April 30, 2026
If you live in Korea and stay through a traditional Korean holiday, chances are high that you will come across the traditional Korean game known as yut nori (윷놀이). Even if you’re not celebrating with a family, you can find the game played at schools, yut nori sets can be found at folk museums, and you can even find sets in local toy stores.
Yut nori is a fun Korean game and if you’re looking for something fun to do this Lunar New Year with your kids, this is a great game that you can also prepare yourself at home.
Yut nori is a fun traditional Korean game that weaves together history, strategy, and cultural significance. Ready to find out more?
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Cultural context and history
Yut Nori, deeply rooted in Korea’s Three Kingdoms Period (57 BCE – 668 CE), holds a fascinating history and while you’ve probably come here to learn how to play, there’s a lot more you can learn about yut nori than you might realize.
Though its exact origins are uncertain, there are historical records from Korea, China, and Japan that mention yut nori. Chae Ho-shin, a Korean historian, has also claimed the game descents from the Korean Kingdom Gojoseon in 2333BC. Petroglyphs from the Joseon era and mentions in the eighth-century collection of songs, Manyo syu, showcase its enduring presence.
The next time you visit an art museum in Seoul or folk museum, be sure to look closely at the historic Korean paintings and you’ll probably be able to see at least one with people playing yut nori.
Traditionally the most popular during Seollal, or Lunar New Year, and Jeongwol Daeboreum celebrations, beyond entertainment, the game is also said to predict the future. The historical record, the Yeolyangsesigi, warns of dire consequences for crops if played beyond the fifteenth day. This intriguing connection suggests Yut Nori wasn’t just a game; it was deeply intertwined with Lunar New Year rituals.
Symbolic Origins
Yut nori reflects the heavens, the earth, and the rhythms of nature. The yut sticks, flat on one side, rounded on the other, symbolize yin and yang. The counterclockwise movement of pieces on the board mirrors the counterclockwise rotation of the Big Dipper stars.
The game’s leftward direction signifies a departure from everyday life, aligning with East Asian astronomy and the sanctity of the ritual. Its appearance on tombstones reflects celestial aspirations, wishes directed toward the heavens.
The five key moves (do, gae, geol, yut, mo) are associated with five animals, pig (도), dog (개), sheep (걸), cow (윷), horse (모), which, according to historian Ilyeon’s interpretation, represent the five tribes of the Gojoseon era.
Yut Nori Set
The board is called the mal-pan (말판), traditionally made from stitched cloth. Modern versions are rectangular; historical variations used a circular board. The board has four straight paths and two diagonal shortcuts, totaling 29 stations.
Yut sticks replace traditional dice and come in two types: jang-jak yut (장작 윷), larger sticks made from firewood, and bam yut (밤 윷), smaller sticks shaken in a bowl. Tokens (mal) serve as game pieces and can be made from almost anything: coins, buttons, beads, or paper.
Buy Yut Nori Online
Traditional Yut Nori Board Game: There’s a great option on Amazon that features a board with the more traditional circular shape with a beautiful Korean dancheong design on the pieces.
Make It Yourself
The great thing about yut nori is that even if you’ve just suddenly wondered what to do to celebrate Seollal with kids, the Lunar New Years, you can recreate this pretty quickly yourself.
- The board: Draw the mal-pan based on the image above, four straight paths with two diagonal shortcuts forming a grid with 29 stations.
- The mal (tokens): Make two sets of four matching pieces. Pennies for one team and nickels for the other work well, or just cut paper squares. They need to be stackable when pieces land on the same space.
- The yut sticks: Traditional sticks have one flat side and one curved side. Popsicle sticks work well, draw or color one side of each so you can distinguish flat from rounded. This is a good step to hand off to kids.
How To Play
What you need: Board, 4 yut sticks, 2 sets of 4 mal (tokens). 2 players or 2 teams.
Objective: Move all four of your mal around the board and off the end before the other team does.
The game unfolds on a board adorned with 29 spaces, where each team, armed with four pieces, maneuvers based on the outcomes of tossing four yut sticks. Victory is claimed by the team that skillfully advances all their pieces to the board’s end and removes them. The strategy involves moving pieces separately or together, showcasing a delicate blend of chance and skill.
- To play, you first throw the four sticks into the air and allow them to land in front of you.
- The sticks are heavy and can be loud when they drop so if you’re inside, lay a towel down on the floor to throw them onto.
- You can choose to move a mal that is already on the board, or you can choose to start a new mal.
- Count how many blank sides of the yut sticks are face up and that is the number of spaces to move your piece. If there are no blank sides, you get to move 5 spaces.
- If your piece ends up on a space that is already occupied by the other team, send their mal on that space back to the start.
- If your piece ends up on a space that is occupied by your own mal, they become a group and can travel together.
- In order to use the shortest routes or “cut through” the board, you need to land exactly on the larger circles and then you can move on the shortest path on the next move. This means there are four possible routes to get your mal to the end.
Yut Nori Move Outcomes
| Throw | Korean | Animal | Spaces Moved | Extra turn? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 flat side up | do (도) | Pig | 1 | No |
| 2 flat sides up | gae (개) | Dog | 2 | No |
| 3 flat sides up | geol (걸) | Sheep | 3 | No |
| 4 flat sides up | yut (윷) | Cow | 4 | Yes |
| 0 flat sides up | mo (모) | Horse | 5 | Yes |
- If you throw a yut or a mo, ie all sticks are either face up or all are face down, you get an extra turn. There is no limit to how many turns in a row a player can have as long as they continue to throw yut or mo.
- To get your mal safe and around the board, you need to have a roll that takes your piece beyond the start space.
Special Rules
- The Seoul Rule: Label one stick in the set with “Seoul (서울)” on the flat/blank side. If this stick is the only one facing down (do so that the letters Seoul can be read), a mal can be placed directly into the center circle, which in this case is called Seoul. If all the mals are already on the course, this counts as a do.
- The Busan Rule: Label one stick in the set with “Busan (부산)” on the flat/blank side. The Busan rule is similar. Rather than to the center, the mal travels directly to the far corner (mo). Again, this only applies if this is the only stick facing down, and not all mals are on the course already.
- The Back Rule: Label one stick in the set with one of the sticks with “back (후퇴)” on the flat/blank side. If this is the only stick facing down, one of the mals has to go back one step. Depending on the rules used, if none of the mals are on the course, then this is counted as either a do or a skipped turn.
FAQ
What is yut nori?
Yut nori (윷놀이) is a traditional Korean board game played primarily during Seollal (Lunar New Year) and Jeongwol Daeboreum. Two players or teams move four tokens around a board by throwing four wooden sticks, trying to advance all their pieces around the board and off the end first.
How many players does yut nori need?
Two players or two teams. Each side has four tokens (mal) to move around the board.
What are do, gae, geol, yut, and mo?
The five possible outcomes when throwing the yut sticks. Do (도/pig) = 1 flat side up, move 1 space. Gae (개/dog) = 2 flat sides up, move 2 spaces. Geol (걸/sheep) = 3 flat sides up, move 3 spaces. Yut (윷/cow) = 4 flat sides up, move 4 spaces and get an extra turn. Mo (모/horse) = 0 flat sides up, move 5 spaces and get an extra turn.
Can I make a yut nori set at home?
Yes, draw the board on paper, use pennies and nickels as two sets of tokens, and use popsicle sticks with one side colored in as the yut sticks. The whole set can be assembled in under 10 minutes.
When is yut nori played in Korea?
Primarily during Seollal (Lunar New Year, late January or early February) and Jeongwol Daeboreum (the first full moon of the lunar new year). It is also played at schools and can be found in folk museums year-round.
Yut nori is more than a game, it’s a ritual, a cosmological map, and a connection to thousands of years of Korean history. Understanding that makes the game considerably more interesting when you sit down to play it. Now make your set and get the mal moving.
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