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Safflower: Korea's hanbang heritage ingredient 홍화

⏱ 1 min read
⚡ Quick answer: Safflower (홍화, honghwa) is a hanbang botanical Korea has used in traditional skincare for generations. K-beauty uses safflower flower extract and safflower seed oil as botanical antioxidants and emollients in nourishing and brightening formulas, positioned to help skin look radiant and feel conditioned. Positioning is cosmetic and antioxidant-focused.

Safflower (honghwa) is a herb documented in traditional Korean medicine and hanbang references including materia medica such as the Donguibogam, where its flowers were used in herbal preparations. It also served historically as a natural dye.

🗣️ Safflower — Hangul 홍화, romanized honghwa, say "HONG-hwah".

In modern K-beauty

K-beauty uses safflower flower extract and safflower seed oil as botanical antioxidants and emollients in nourishing and brightening formulas, positioned to help skin look radiant and feel conditioned. Positioning is cosmetic and antioxidant-focused.

Associated with the look of

dullnessdrynessaging

Korean brands that feature it

Sulwhasoo · The History of Whoo

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✍️ Written & reviewed by the KoreaPlus Editorial team — dermatologist-informed, cosmetic-science researched & source-cited. Last reviewed: 2026-08-23.

General educational information using cosmetic structure-function wording — not medical advice. Always patch-test new actives. © KoreaPlus.