Jeju island is the largest island of South Korea, and has a relatively warm climate due to its geographical characteristics. These features have fostered development of various fermented foods distinct to Jeju island. Therefore, the functional activity of the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from the Jeju region"s traditional fermented foods, including Kimchi and Jeotgal was characterized in this study. Fifteen strains were isolated from 6 types of fermented food. These strains include Enterococcus spp., Lactoplantibacillus spp., and Weisella spp. Several experiments were carried out to assess functional characteristics including acid resistance, bile resistance, hemolysis, DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity, and cholesterol-lowering activity. Three isolated strains (J-4, J-6 and J-10) exhibited high acid resistance, while the other 3 isolates (J-1, J-4 and J-6) showed high bile salt resistance. The strains displayed varied DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity: 71.14-86.42% among the first 3 strains, and 50.11-75.11% among the remaining 3 strains. Cholesterol-lowering activities were in the range 15.74-82.90% for all isolated strains. In conclusion, these studies suggest that isolated LAB strains from Jeju island traditional fermented foods possess the potential for broader application in the food industry.