Abstract
This study compares shamans' costumes of Korea with those of Siberia and Central Asia. It also investigates the meaning of shamanism and shamans,the relationship of Korean shamanism to shamanism, and the genealogy of Korean shamanism. For collecting and analyzing data of the research, literature reviews, field studies, and the investigation of historical relics are mostly used. The following are the major findings of the research: Through the comparison of shamans' costumes of Korea with those of Siberia and Central Asia, this research finds out some similarities and differences in the costumes. Both Korean shamans and Siberian and Central Asian shamans wore shaman's costumes and used utensils like bells or mirrors when they perform a religious service. On their costumes, they both used an element which stands for birds. However, they were different in terms of the materials or styles of the costumes, of the function of the costumes, and of the decorating with ornaments. The differences in the materials or styles of the costumes, different functions of the costumes, and using ornaments or not can be viewed as a general phenomenon, which is resulted from different environments. The soul's departing the body or the possession or a mixed method can be considered as mere variations due to regional or cultural differences. In conclusion, based on the comparison of the costumes of shamans of Korea with those of Siberia and Central Asia, the shamans of Korea and Siberia and Central Asia share the same origin. And the genealogy of Korean shamans can be said to be originated from the northern shamanism.
