Korean Language in Its Society

Korean is an East Asian language spoken by about 77 million people. It is the official and national language of both Koreas: North Korea and South Korea, with different standardized official forms used in each country.

Many people know hangeul, the Korean alphabet, was invented under the reign of King Sejong (1397-1450). But few might know the term hangeul was coined by Korean linguist Ju Si-gyeong in 1910s.

The Korean native script was designed so that even a commoner could learn to read and write easily, as the majority of Koreans were actually illiterate before the introduction of hangeul. But it was harsher to preserve the Korean native language from outward pressures than it was creating it from scratch. 

The Korean Language Society struggled to keep the Korean language alive during Japanese colonial rule, which attempted to eradicate the native language and culture. Now the institute will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its establishment on Aug. 31.

Kim Seung-gon, president of the Korean Language Society, said that the association has survived against all odds.

The association of two Koreans has supported about 35-40 overseas Koreans who teach Korean language to foreigners by inviting them to Korea for the training every year in an attempt to make the language global. 

''Learning Korean language is becoming more important in Asian countries as it is easy to learn and suitable for the digital era given the simplicity of the script,'' he said.

Since the creation of the institute in 1908, it has changed its name to the Joseon Language Research Institute in 1921, the Joseon Language Society in 1931 and finally the current Korean Language Society in 1949.