A group of women around 70 years old laugh and sing on a beach in Jeju, an island off South Korea, preparing to spend the day diving for shellfish. Moments later, they’ll plunge into frigid waters as ...

A group of women on South Korea's largest island, Jeju, follow a unique tradition to put food on the table: They freedive to depths of nearly 33 feet (10 meters) without using any special equipment.

Imprints of evolution can be seen among the Haenyeo of South Korea. After generations of foraging for food on the seabed, these all-women divers have fostered several genetic adaptations that allow ...

A small island off the Korean coast is home to a genetically distinct population of humans. Haenyeo — literally "sea women" — are Korean cultural divers who have developed adaptations allowing them to ...

First, the team assessed physiological traits related to diving in women from three populations: Haenyeo in Jeju, non-Haenyeo in Jeju, and non-Haenyeo from mainland South Korea. The researchers ...

Generations of Haenyeo have dived to harvest food in freezing waters—and their DNA reflects it. By Lauren Leffer Published May 2, 2025 11:00 AM EDT Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 ...

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. An island 50 miles ...

The Haenyeo, or "women of the sea," are a group of all-women extreme divers who work off the coast of Korea. They have spent their entire lives free-diving as much as 60 feet under the surface in the ...

50 miles off the southern tip of the Korean Peninsula is Jeju Island: home to a unique sea culture and a celebrated community of women, the Haenyeo. Haenyeo literally translates to 'sea women'— ...

The Haenyeo women who dive deep into the East China Sea to harvest sea urchins and shellfish spend the most time underwater of any humans ever studied — one to five hours a day, researchers report ...

From high-altitude climbers to divers who can fish without scuba gear, scientists are finding new ways that human bodies may be genetically adapting to environmental extremes. Many women who grow up ...