KOREAN

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LANGUAGE FACTS

Major Speaking Countries (MSCs): South Korea, North Korea

Native Speakers: 63 million people

State in MSCs: 

South Korea 

• Official language

North Korea

• Official language

Written Forms:

Idu alphabet systems

Korean in Hong Kong: about 5000 native speakers

 

 

USAGE

"I speak 60% Korean and 40% English in Hong Kong."

• He speaks Korean whenever he meets his Korean friends in the University. Only Korean, but no English.

• He is grateful that he can speak his own language that frequently as there are quite a lot of Koreans studying in the same univeristy with him.

• He mostly speaks English during lectures and with his non-Korean friends.

• His language use in Hong Kong interesting reflects the ratio of his Korean and non-Korean friends.

 

"I can also speak fleunt Mandarin as I studied 6 years of secondary school in Guangzhou"

• English and Mandarin are his second and third languages, but he seldom speaks Mandarin now as English can be used all the time.

 

ATTITUDE

"I like Korean. It is easy to speak, easy to learn, easy to write."

• He thinks Korean and English are quite similar in terms of formation of characters. He states that once you know how to pronounce that word, you know how to write it by phonics even you have never come across the actual written form.

 

"There are always locals asking me how to say certain phrases or slangs in Korean."

• He thinks people in Hong Kong generally welcome and are interested in Korean. Hong Kong people are open-minded and easily exposed to different forms of Korean culture.

• He believes the popularity of Korean language in Hong Kong could be susceptible to the prevalent Korean popular culture, including the Korean pop songs and TV dramas. He thinks that some people learn Korean in order to imitate their Korean idols.

 

"I will teach my children English first, then Korean."

• He stresses the importance of first language, stating that English, as the most powerful language in the world, should be introduced to his children first.

• He thinks his children can always learn and use Korean later in their lives in Korea.

 

 

 

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