A History of The Korean Lexicon

34 International Journal of Teaching, Education and Language Learning ISSN: 2373-7921 (print)
August 2015, Volume 2, Number 3, pp. 34-66 2373-793X (online)
A History of the Korean Lexicon
Olivier Bailbl*
Abstract
For almost two thousand years, the Chinese Language Empire permitted the enlargement of the
Korean lexicography and spread to Korea a large quantity of new words which were lacking in
their language. Later, during the nineteenth century, the Japanese of the Meiji Period produced a
large number of new terms which were then borrowed by both Korea and China. Another phase
of borrowing began when the United States get involved during the Korean War, which is the
starting point of the English Language Empire period on the Korean peninsula.
Key words: Chinese loan words, Language Empires, Korean Lexicon, Chinese Characters.
Acknowledgements: This research was supported by the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies
Research Fund.
*
Assistant Professor, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul, South Korea. Email: olivier.bailble@hotmail.fr
35 International Journal of Teaching, Education and Language Learning (IJTELL)
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
Chinese Language Empire: Circa 2nd B.C. to 19th century
1.1 The rise of the Chinese characters:
In the history of the development of the Korean nation, there was a time when Korea had
contacts with other nations and other languages such as Manchu, Mongols and Chinese (Robbeets,
2005). These nations and their languages also greatly influenced the Korean peninsula, providing
different perspectives and impacting their way of thinking and, of course, their language. Despite
increased trade with China, the hostility of Wi Mn and its alliance with the Xingn (nomadic
people, ferocious enemies of the Middle Kingdom) made the Emperor Hn W D (Hn dynasty)
to raise an attack on the Korean peninsula. China established four garrisons for almost four
centuries from 108 B.C. to 314 in order to control this area (which is the current situation of Korea
nowadays except for the southern provinces). The city was administered by a governor, officials,
and Chinese merchants. These events provide the context and background about the environment
and Chinese administrative structure under which Korean culture began to develop (Fabre, 2000).
It was during this period that the Korean people started to become familiar with the use of
Chinese writing (Sohn, 2006). Kokury (; 37 BC668 AD) slowly began to conquer the
garrisons and eventually absorbed them into its own territory. Forlorn and depressed after one
of his wives left him, Yuri (the second king of Kokury) composed the poem, Yellow Bird Song
() using Chinese characters, thus illustrating the familiarity and comfort of Korean
intellectuals with using the language. The absence of Korean writing during this time and the
overall use of Chinese characters in everyday life also underscore the popularity of written
Bailbl, O. 36
Chinese. During the Three Kingdoms of Korea1, the use of Chinese ideograms represents the
end of an era, one where it was impossible to communicate except by a spoken language. In the
5th century, Chinese characters came to be used officially as a written language (Y, Y, & Yn,
1996).
In North Korea, it is believed by some scholars (Ryu, 1994) that the Korean people had
their own written alphabet before the use of Chinese characters. Legend records that Sinji, who,
in the North Korean hagiography, generally represents the image of a man who is powerful, a
ruler, or a great sovereign, had gone hunting one day, found traces of a deer, and received
inspiration to the point of making an alphabet. In DPRK, it is said that these sixteen letters of
the alphabet Sinjn represent somehow an ancestor of Hangl (the Korean alphabet). Legend
notwithstanding, what came into existence was said to be a sixteen letter alphabet (Sinjn) which
thus formed a Korean means of writing, separate and distinct, from Chinese characters. However,
over time there has been much difficulty in finding the exact use of Sinjn and its components:
namely its system, its alphabetical order, the phonetic value of each word and what standards were
used. Outside of the legend, little or no reference has been made to its existence in literary works
from South Korea. Another North Korean Linguist, Kim Yng-Hwang (1997), also mentioned
about this writing system.
From the 5th century, Chinese characters became increasingly used in Korea especially
because of the influence of Buddhism. The 5th century is also a period of mutation among
Korean syntax. The most famous example of this is probably a Silla stele called Imsin sgi sk
(), The Imsin Vow Stone. On this stone, the order of the Chinese characters is
1
The Three Kingdoms of Korea refer to the ancient Korean kingdoms of Kokury, Baekje and Silla, which dominated
the Korean peninsula and parts of Manchuria.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
completely different from that of Classical Chinese (Ramsey & Lee, 2011). The order is almost
purely Korean. It is precisely during this period of time that we see the rise of three different
writing systems: Hyanchal, Idu and Kukyl.
First period: circa 6th century
Hyanchal System writing: Local Letters (Hyangch'al)
Hyangchal is an archaic writing system of Korea and was used to transcribe the Korean
language with the help of Chinese Characters. Under the Hyangchal system, Chinese characters
were used either for their sounds or for their meaning. Those local letters were more intended
to represent poetry or traditional Korean songs (Park, 2013). Today, twenty-five such poems
still remain: the first one is from 579 (Riotto, 1996). From the sixth century, we can say not
only that Chinese writing has gained a foothold in the Korean language, but that it is also the time
when the loan words from the Chinese lexicon really make their appearance. During Unified
Silla (668 CE 935 CE), a new type of writing system appeared.
Second Period: around the 7th century
Idu writing system: Lecturer for public officer
Idu is an archaic writing system that represents the Korean language using Chinese
characters. The Idu script used the Chinese characters to indicate Korean verb endings and other
grammatical markers that were different in Korean from Chinese syntax (Nam, 2000). In a
broad sense, the Idu is a term that refers to all borrowings of Chinese characters; it is a use of
Chinese characters adapted to Korean grammar. This system had the advantage of being used
until the nineteenth century, even after the creation of the Korean alphabet (Lee, 1992). It is
Bailbl, O. 38
usually the monk Sl Chong who is presented as the inventor of this writing system, but some
scholars disagree on that (n, 2008). Between these two systems, another mode of writing
emerged in the late eighth century.
Third Period: Late 8th century
Kukyl writing system: Phrase Parting
Kukyl are actually modal particles, empty words from Korean (spoken) which are
inserted into the text written in Chinese characters (Kim, 2006) to make it more understandable
(King, 2010). Unlike the Idu and Hyangchal systems which preceded it, Kukyl used
specialized markings, together with a subset of Chinese characters, to represent Korean
morphological markers. Kukyl sought to render Chinese texts into Korean with a minimum of
distortion. Thus, in Kukyl, the original classical text was not modified, and the additional
markers were simply inserted between phrases. Kukyl first came into use in the early Kory
dynasty.
1.2 Full Chinese loan words (4th to 15th century):
Korean and Chinese linguist specialists of the Korean Language (such n, Lee, Cu) all
agree that the first phase of Chinese loan words in Korean started in the mid-fourth century during
the period of the Three Kingdoms. The Korean language was not yet fully materialized at that
time (Ham, 1979); there were mostly foreign words rather than borrowed ones, strictly speaking.
However, when the Chinese classics are introduced in Korea, the native Korean words are used
to explain the reading of Chinese characters.
Indeed, despite the presence of three writing systems to transcribe the Korean language,
most of the expressions in classical Chinese were too difficult to express, given the poverty of the
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Korean lexicon at that time. Therefore, Koreans frequently used the Chinese pronunciation of
the character of the time. This is the reason why most Chinese loans made during this period
have preserved the Chinese pronunciation (Lee, 2006).
With the unification of the Korean peninsula under Silla in 677, the use of Chinese
characters in Korea had gained even more popularity, especially as this unification was completed
with the military support of the Tang Dynasty. Large documents on Chinese civilization were
imported from China (Y, Y, & Yn, 1996). In the sixteenth year of the era of King Kyngdok,
in 757, the name king was substituted by two Chinese characters, and in his eighteenth year, all
official titles were also transformed into Sino-Korean words (Sohn, 1999).
The three writing systems mentioned above, as well as the growing influence of Chinese
culture (especially after the demise of the Mongol dynasty) made the Chinese scholar Cu Fng
Chn write in 1989 that, The Chinese elements have been truly soaked into the Korean language
and that is how the system of Sino-Korean vocabulary is gradually formed (1989; 26).
1.3 Two types of Chinese loan words (15th to 17th century):
Between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, Chinese loan words influenced every
aspect of Korean society and culture. Children of the ruling classes started learning characters
from the age of five years old, while most people were completely illiterate. Even after the
creation and promulgation of the Han'gl alphabet by King Sejong in 1446, the Korean ruling
class of the time continued to devote their entire lives to the study of Chinese classics (Ledyard,
1997). At that time, the Chinese loan words in Korean will have some important modifications.
Until that period (that is to say, to the sixteenth century), the Korean language had simply
borrowed the meaning and the pronunciation of the Chinese loan words. This is what is
generally called Chinese loan words standard types(Ch'ayong ). Those

Bailbl, O. 40
words kept the original Chinese pronunciation during the process of borrowing (Li, 1991). To
illustrate:
Chinese Loan Word English
kongsa () affair of state
saeng gye () subsistence
bunbyl () discernment
Source (Li, 1991).
But another category of borrowing appeared in the fifteenth century. Indeed, some
Chinese loans used only the meaning of words, while trying to preserve its original Korean context.
Linguists call these Korean Chinese loan words hancha (). Other terms, namely
ch'ayong ( ), thus, in turn, preserved the sounds of Chinese. In his impressive
book2, the linguist Li Dk-Ch'un of Ynbyn University clearly showed the complex relationship
between the Chinese and Korean languages. According to Li, we therefore have two forms of
Chinese loans words: The mdok hancha ( ), or Chinese loan words
that use Korean sounds and mch'a hancha ( ), or Chinese loan words
that use Chinese sounds. Indeed, during that period, the Chinese loan words are submitted
(pokchong ) increasingly in the fifteenth century to the structure of the Korean language
and especially to the Korean phonetic system.
The history of Chinese loan words in Korean extends over a very long period, which is why it is
very difficult to standardize Chinese loan words while keeping their original sound (Li, 1991).
2
History of Linguistic Relationships of Chinese Writing
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
Some words have been written and recorded because they were introduced before the system of
the Korean alphabet was created.
Table 1: Two types of Chinese loan words in Late Middle Korean:
Chinese loan words standards Chinese loan words modified
Chinese Sounds: Ch'ayong Korean Sounds: Hancha
mch'a hancha mdok hancha
In addition, considering the fact that the system of Sino-Korean words was not established
before the tenth century, there is a great chance for all previous loans to submit to the law of
Chinese loan sounds. Thus, it is possible that in a given period of time the Sino-Korean words
were mostly Chinese loans preserving Chinese sounds. However, even if they are mostly at the
base of Sino-Korean words, we can imagine that some were delivered with Korean sounds at that
time. This could therefore be considered as borrowing using Chinese Korean sounds. We find
the same phenomenon in Japanese.
The Kanji often have two possible readings: one in Chinese and the other in Japanese
(Frellesvig, 2010); the difficulty remains in defining whether loans originated from Chinese
sounds or Korean sounds. This may be because their arrival occurs in written or verbal manner.
This is especially true for Middle Korean (tenth to sixteenth century) after the sounds of Chinese
were to be established. There was also still a degree of consistency between the Korean sounds
of that era and those of Chinese used up to the fifteenth century.
In fact, we are quite familiar with the phonological evolution of Korean from the fifteenth
century and more specifically after the invention of the Korean writing system, but throughout
the period that process was neglected. This is partly due to time constraints in reconstructing
Bailbl, O. 42
sounds transcribed only in Chinese characters (the use of these characters varies greatly) and other
documents (Ham, 1980). Nevertheless, some scholars such as Li Sng Chae (Seoul National
University) have published very interesting books concerning the sounds of Chinese characters
under Baekje ( , 2014).
Table 2: Examples of Chinese loan words, type 1 (Li, 1991):
Pronunciation in the 16th century Pronunciation in the 17th century
huanghuo Hwangho hwangha
shaotang sat'ang sat'ang
baicai baech'ui baech'u
Table 3: Examples of Chinese loan words, type 2 (Li, 1991):
Pronunciation in the 16th century Pronunciation in the 17th century
xiongbei hyongbi hyongbae
tangshui tangsoe you angsu
chaobing syobing sobyng
1.4 Native words replace Chinese loan words:
Many Chinese loans during this period were excluded if they had an equivalent in Korean.
For example, the Chinese word chyupi or leather whip () was used in the Paktonsa
nhae in 1667 and the yklyuhae in 1690. Later, we find the word hukli (), written in
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
the form of a native in Dongmunlyuhae dating from 1748. Then, after a relatively short period
of time, the Chinese word chyupi or leather whip reappears again. It was thus that hukli,
leather whip also ended up finding the two terms - indigenous and Chinese loan - in several
books at the same time.
When they began to coexist together, the Sino-Korean eventually is replaced by the word
hukli in pure Korean. Likewise, the Chinese loan for "bell" was pronounced chong ().
When it was introduced for the first time in Korea, purists changed it to soebuk () an
indigenous term meaning literally iron battery. This exclusion of Chinese words appeared for
the first time in the early sixteenth century in the first edition Nokldae Korea. This tendency
to spread Korean Chinese words reinforced the idea that Korea wanted to get away from the
sphere of Chinese influence and its position as a vassal state as expressed through the concept of
sadae chui servility. Here are a few examples:
Table 4: Chinese loan words replaced by native words in Late Middle Korean:
Chinese loan words : Native words :
age swi nah
chest hyongch kasom
This somehow foreshadowed what would come three centuries later with the policy of
maldadmki undong, or the Movement for linguistic normalization launched by Kim Il-Sng
in the 1960s. This is essentially the progressive abolition of Chinese loans in favor of indigenous
terms, but the comparison stops there - there was no effect on language policy to remove words
Bailbl, O. 44
of Chinese origin en masse as was the case in North Korea. Despite a nascent nationalism,
Koreans remained, in effect, very dependent on China politically, culturally and militarily. The
Ming dynasty also repeatedly came to the rescue of the Kingdom of Yi against the Japanese
invaders.
1.5 The statement of Chong Da-San ():
The sounds of Chinese characters in Korean were formed through a long period of time.
Thus, there were significant differences in the Korean phonological system. In this way, people
started interpreting Chinese sounds with Korean sounds. If we consider the case of mdok
hancha, or loan words using Korean sounds, they were introduced mostly through written
language. Both government officials and scholars were habituated to reading every day the great
Chinese Confucian classics such as Four Books and Five Classics3, and most scholars and
schools only knew the Korean pronunciation of Chinese words, not their original pronunciation.
In this way, the mdok hancha began to grow and after their introduction, and the new
vocabulary based on the Korean sounds was enacted. This explains why many loans with
Korean sounds are still used in modern Korean, and many words derived from Chinese sounds
were converted into Korean sounds. The famous Chosn dynasty scholar Chng Yagyong4
was one of the first to criticize this phenomenon. He said, after he finished writing the an
kakpi5 the following:
3
The Four Books and Five Classics (; Ssh Wjng) are the authoritative books of Confucianism in
China before 300 BC.
4
Often simply known as Dasan ( ; 1762-1836).
5
This book written by Dasan is a thorough research on the expressions of the Korean Language and its etymology.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
There are a large number of words in this way. When those words are spoken, there were no problems
because their pronunciation coincided with the Chinese ones. But when they were delivered in the
Korean way, it became different. In general, the names of things were invented by slaves while literary
words were entirely created by intellectuals. This is undoubtedly a mistake on the part of high ranking-
scholars. (Dasan, aonkakpi)
1.6 Chinese loan words in Modern Korean:
We have seen through this article that Chinese loan words in the Late Middle Korean
period faced a lot of changes. Some terms were deliberately eradicated while others were
systematically replaced by the Korean pronunciations of the type mdok hancha, which were
better adapted to the Korean phonetic system. After five centuries, we could categorize the
Chinese loan words in contemporary Korean:
Table 5: Chinese loan words from 16th to Contemporary Korean:
Chinese loan words categories during 16th Contemporary Korean:
century
Chinese loans words with Chinese baechui ()
pronunciation Chinese cabbage baech'u
Chinese loans words with Korean

kyaki ()
pronunciation
arrogance Kyoki
Chinese loan words replaced by other kammo () cold kamki
Chinese words
Chinese loans words not replaced

chyuby
alcohol Turtle
Bailbl, O. 46
As mentioned, the Korean-Japanese war of 1592 had devastating effects on the country in
every aspect of daily Korean life. There was social strife, economic turmoil and cultural
disruption as evidenced by widespread accounts of Japanese looting in the cities, accompanied by
the indiscriminate burning of Korean historical texts, books and other documents. The level of
social and cultural disruption made the further development of the Korean language that much
more challenging, indeed nearly impossible, as priorities for maintaining order and meeting the
needs of the people took center stage. Thus, without the ability and mechanisms necessary to
reproduce these lost, historically important Korean texts, X severely crippled any effort directed
towards development.
Of course, to the extent possible, supplemental documents that remained were used to
begin the development effort. However, these sources were at best second and third hand
writings, and were in some instances scholarly impressions and interpretations, which would not
have been as rich or as accurate as the original sources. Nevertheless, during the tumultuous late
fifteenth century, Korea continued to use borrowed Chinese words and also replaced native words.
This other category shows also the strong influence of China despite Koreas will to keep distance
with the Chinese lexicons influence. For instance:
Table 6: Native words changed into Chinese words:
Native words Chinese loan words
me mountain changed into san
o rai gate mun

August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
In summary, we can distinguish two groups in this category of Chinese loan words. In
the first group of loans there were very few changes in their pronunciation, but other written words
changed considerably. In other words, the direction of the borrowing has hardly changed, but
the phonetic Korean has replaced the Chinese. This is one of the most important characteristics
of the Korean language. Despite some reservations about Chinese loans in the sixteenth century,
we can still say that the majority of words that have been borrowed persist even today in modern
Korean. They entered the Korean language and it is impossible to exclude them. Moreover,
today they are not really considered as borrowed since their integration dates back hundreds of
years.
From the late seventeenth century, we have witnessed a new phenomenon in the Korean
language: a massive influence of European culture in Asia. Chinese ambassadors who have
lived abroad have introduced new terms from Western culture. These words were then
translated into Chinese using Chinese characters before being again used by Koreans. This
relatively new phenomenon marks the beginning of a new era in the process of borrowing Chinese
loan words. While the terms are still considered as Chinese loan words, they are translated from
existing foreign words. Previously, the loans were borrowed directly from Chinese culture.
Some examples of this new generation of Chinese loans:
Snggyng (~) Bible
chnju (~) God
Sngmo (~) The Virgin Mary

Bailbl, O. 48
Chinese loans continued until the late nineteenth century. From there, the trend reversed
(Reischauer, 1997). Terms of Western origin were always translated using Chinese characters,
then introduced in Korea, but at this time it was Japan who had become the new loft words of
Asia.
2. Japanese Language Empire: 19th century to 1945
2.1 The Sino-Japanese words during Meiji Period:
As mentioned, at the end of the nineteenth century, the trend reversed. Previously, words
coming from the West were introduced into Korea after being translated by Chinese, but this time,
Japan became the new lexicon creator in Asia. While much Sino-Japanese vocabulary was
borrowed from Chinese, a considerable amount was created by the Japanese themselves, as they
coined new words using Sino-Japanese forms (Cu, 1989). These are known as wasei kango (
, Japanese-created kango).
The best-known example of this form is the impressive number of kango coined during
the Meiji era on the model of Classical Chinese to translate modern concepts imported from the
West. These words include kagaku ('science'), shakai ('society'), jidsha
('automobile'), denwa ('telephone') and a host of other basic words. Many of these new
words are attributable individuals such as Nishi Amane, Fukuzawa Yukichi and Inoue Tetsujiro,
who have coined 2500 Sino-Japanese words relevant to philosophy (Frellesvig, 2010). For
example, the Japanese formation denwa means 'electric' + 'talk'. Much of this vocabulary
was borrowed back into Chinese around the turn of the twentieth century and is now
indistinguishable from native Chinese vocabulary. Many of these words have also been
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
borrowed into Korean and Vietnamese, forming part of their Sino-Korean and Sino-Vietnamese
vocabularies (Ruan, 2009). Interestingly, many Japanese-created kango refer to uniquely
Japanese concepts. For instance:
geisha () Female Entertainers
jd () Modern Martial Art
Translating a book on politics, economics or philosophy from Western languages into
Chinese could take up to ten years. 8,000 Chinese people (mostly students and scholars) lived
in Japan in 1905, and the number soared to 13,000 in 1906. Under such circumstances,
Japanese-Chinese translations far outnumbered Western-Chinese translations. In fact, 321 of the
533 books translated into Chinese during 1902-1904 were originally written in Japanese (Kim,
2008). Here is an example of the common vocabulary Chinese, Japanese and Korean share. For
instance:
Table 7: Sino-Japanese Lexicon in Korean and Chinese
Languages Japanese Korean Chinese
democracy minshu shugi minjujuui mnzh zhy
Most of the words were borrowed at the beginning of the twentieth century, and are still
in use today. At the same time, Japan also began its expansionist policy. The Japanese
domination of Korea was born with the Treaty of Protection of 1905 imposed after the Russo-
Bailbl, O. 50
Japanese War, in which Japan took control of the Foreign Affairs section of the Kingdom of
Chosn, followed by the police and the army, then currency and banking, then communications
and all vital sectors. Korea was annexed by Japan in 1910, and while the Chinese classics were
always parties of the literary tradition in Korea, Japanese quickly became the language of
occupation. Therefore, language policy was based on the teaching of Kokugo, the national
language, that is to say, the Japanese (Haruhiko, 2010).
In 1938, the use of Japanese became mandatory and Korean Language became a
forbidden language. This period is called hankuk munhwa malsal chngch'aek or Policy of
suppression of Korean language (). The school curriculum was radically
modified to eliminate teaching in the Korean language and history. Further, the Korean language
was banned generally and Koreans were forced to adopt Japanese names, while newspapers were
prohibited from publishing in Korean. Additionally, numerous Korean cultural artifacts were
destroyed or taken to Japan. According to an investigation by the South Korean government,
75,311 cultural assets were taken from Korea (Miyata Setsuko, 1992). Assimilation efforts,
including drastic measures such as the prohibition of the Korean language and even Korean
surnames, ended only with the defeat of Japan in 1945.
2.2 Chinese words from China against Chinese words from Japan:
During the Japanese occupation, Japanese Forces pushed the Korean people to give up the
use of Chinese loan words (from China) in order to replace them with Chinese loan words coined
by Japanese. This phenomenon is very well described in the book written by the Kim Ch'ang-
Kyu (2003) entitled The Trash Left by Japanese Language Cultural Colonialism. He held the
belief that due to the permanent use of Chinese loan words in Korean, more hancha words from
the Chinese side should be used in the hancha lexicon. Indisputably, many hancha words were
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
introduced during the Meiji Period, but a great number of them were also introduced by force
under Japanese colonialism6.
Below are two examples of Wasei Kango (Chinese loan words made in Japan) replacing
Chinese loan words. These words, borrowed from Chinese, were used in Korea before the
Japanese occupation (prior to 1910):
pilp (~) to graduate
anmin (~) police
In contrast, the following words were borrowed from Japanese and used in Korea when
Japan occupied Korea and after Japan withdrew from Korea (After 1945):
cholp (~) to graduate
kyngchal (~) police
There is another category of Chinese words in Korean that was not borrowed from China
and Japan. In fact, similar to their neighbor Japan, the Korean people created their own hancha
based on Chinese characters (Li, 2003). These words are generally called Chinese-Korean
words from Korea, hankuk hancha.
The number of Chinese-Korean words made by Koreans is small, and it is hard to estimate
6
According to Kim Ch'ang-Kyu, South Koreans scholars should pay more attention when they publish the Korean
National Dictionary. He believes that too much Japanese loan words in Korean language are used.
Bailbl, O. 52
their age. They appeared most probably at the end of the nineteenth century. Some Korean
linguists were very familiar with the restoration launched during the Meiji Period, so they began
to create words according to the Japanese model. But according to Kim Mu-Lim (2006, p.26),
hancha had appeared as early as the fifth century. No detailed descriptions regarding this
problem were available at the time. However, some related articles or footnotes to individual
sections of books regarding the history of Korean language have managed to fill the blank. The
hankuk hancha, with its limited lexicon, is classified as native language. That it combined
with Chinese characters is noteworthy of Korean. Below are some examples of locally-
produced hancha words that are still in use today.
pynji (~) letter
yangmal (~) socks
Moreover, the Korean people themselves have created their own Chinese characters.
Such words were limited in number of hancha and existed mainly in names (family names and
place names). Linguists in Korea have found only 189 Chinese characters that were invented by
Koreans so far. However, it is likely that there are more. The words below are not borrowed
from Chinese, but created by Koreans.

August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
kal (~) place name
t (~) place name
kk (~) persons name
After the Second World War, we can see the end of the two language(s) empires on the
Korean peninsula. The Japanese Empire language, the shorter one (end of the nineteenth century
to 1945), had nevertheless influenced many countries in Asia such as Vietnam (Ding, 2012),
Korea and China. Moreover, it is very easy to identify those words because they had been
borrowed only two hundred years ago. This also marks the end of the Chinese Language Empire
in Korea because the country was divided into North Korea and South Korea. North Korean
leaders have decided to create a new language without any foreign influence. In the South,
missionaries and the victory of the US army at the end of the Second World War and the Korean
War had brought great prestige to English, which had become the new language empire in the
south of the peninsula.
3. English Language Empire: 1945 to 2015
3.1 English Language Empire in South Korea:
After the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), the language in South Korea encountered
great changes. Not only did it accept the words it had borrowed from its neighbors China and
Japan, but also it started to use a lot of words in English. The strong influence of American
culture in South Korea accelerated the phenomenon of borrowing English words, especially at the
Bailbl, O. 54
end of the 1980s. Since then, the Korean language has entered a new stage called honchong
or mixed language. Below are some examples used nowadays.
tkpyl menyu () 7 special menu
keim iron () game theory
This mixed language appears in other areas. In 2009, 63% of television programs in
South Korea had foreign origin titles. In the field of information, words borrowed from abroad
accounted for 12.2%. Words mixed with Korean and foreign languages accounted for 34.8%,
accounting for 47% of all words borrowed from abroad. Also, 77.4% of the names of hotels were
of western origin, and 96.7% of the names of beauty salons were borrowed from foreign languages
(Song, 2009).
Professor Song Chl-i, a specialist of Korean language at Seoul National University,
believes that this phenomenon will influence Korean for a long time to come. Titles of television
news used by the media or names of department stores are not temporary, and will have a
tremendous and lasting impact on the Korean people. Professor Song adds in his article (Song,
2009):
The use of borrowed words is inevitable and also positive. However, the misuse of foreign words will
create problems for us. Words borrowed from Chinese are influencing Korean in a systematic way,
which is totally opposite to words borrowed from foreign languages.
7
Special is borrowed from the Chinese word tbi , and menu is borrowed from English. Game is
borrowed from English and theory lln from Chinese.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
If those English words already existed in Korean, borrowed words would be viewed as
foreign languages. For example8:
English Loan Word English
Kutmoning ikonomi good morning economy
( )
Kibuni nais hada To feel happy
( )
There are many other examples of foreign language use which are considered unnecessary
by many Korean linguists, such as Song Chl-i or Li Sng-Chae (both scholars at Seoul
National University), including the titles of TV programs, newspaper articles, and store names,
for instance:
TV News title:
KBS nyus lain () KBS News Line
KBS nyusu panolama () KBS News Panorama
From the above examples, we can see that any foreign words can be used in Korean. But
in South Korea, other intellectuals support also the idea of using English. Writer Pok K-Il for
example advocated unlimited use of English9.
8
kibuni means mood in Korean + nais is nice in English, that is happy + hada meaning to do in Korean.
9
(Korea Times, October 31, 2006) Since the establishment of democracy in South Korea, nobody has the right to
stop the phenomenon from developing. As a matter of fact, it has finally influenced the South Korean public. However,
nothing could ever eliminate it. I have to admit when seeing people trying to oppose it, I doubted the righteousness of
Bailbl, O. 56
As far as Korean is concerned, words borrowed from Chinese and the use of words
recently borrowed from English have made native Korean die out unknowingly (Li, 2003). Only
26% of the native words in Korean (Wang, 2009) remain. In Japan, Chinese characters are
accompanied with their Chinese and Japanese pronunciations and the pronunciation of native
words, making it possible for native Japanese to survive. Many pure Korean words have either
been totally forgotten or replaced by Hancha words, or at best, have retained their past status.
Below are words once used during the Chosn period (1392-1905) and their counterparts in
modern Korean.
Native words having already disappeared in Korean:
Old Native Word Chinese Word
Ae () : intestine (~)
Chocha (): market (~)
Korean is a phonetic language characterized by its own indigenous language, but when
comparing different modern dictionaries in South Korea, we can see that native words have been
significantly reduced. Nevertheless, it will be illustrated that Chinese characters are still playing
a significant and positive role among the loan words in Korean.
3.2 Lexical refinement in South Korea:
As English words are increasingly in use in South Korea one can observe that Koreans
borrow not only foreign words in great magnitude, but also combine Roman letters with Hangl
the behavior. Do they have the right to oppose the choice of the public? My answer is negative.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
(Korean letters). Of course, there are some agencies responsible for regulating changes in the
Korean language:
- Borrowed Words Examination Committee
- Chinese and Foreign Languages Examination Committee
According to scholars from the Korean Department of Seoul National University (such as
Nam Sng-U or Li Sng-Chae) and from other universities in South Korea, such agencies need
more power in order to control the use of words by the media and in academic circles. In so
doing, they would aim to reduce the misuse of such words. We can take for instance the word
last in Korean to explain the problem. The word exists not only in native Korean, but also in
Hancha. In the latest Korean-French Dictionary (2007), we can find the word rast (last
in English).
Native Korean Chinese Loan Word English Loan Word
Machimak () Choehu (~) Rast ()
In 1992, the Korean governments Department of General Affairs published a list of 8673
refined legal and administrative terms (Kim-Renaud, 2002). Actually, we may consider why
another word is borrowed from English to denote the same thing with the existence of two very
popular words having the same meaning. In order to eliminate borrowed words generally
thought to be incorrect, foreign words were made the targets in another movement of language
purification, which began in July 2004.
The South Korean government eventually decided to change its policy on Korean words
Bailbl, O. 58
borrowed from English. The National Institute of the Korean Language set up a website
(www.malteo.net) to invite South Koreans to find correct Korean words to replace the borrowed
ones each week. The list of words is published every month through the website, to which
Korean people can refer. For instance, here are some words revised in recent years.
English Word Chinese Word

opnkichin () kaebanghyng chubang
open kitchen10 (~)
Baekpaeking () yhaengdngchim (~)11

back packing
Most of the words are usually made with Chinese characters. But despite the efforts
of this website, it can still be wondered if it is very efficient in order to change the trend of
English. Meanwhile, Koreans continue to borrow Chinese characters in order to make new
words and concepts that are not used in China (New Words, 2007). For instance:
Chinese Loan Word Meaning
Kyoyukikichui the ideology of parents unwilling to

discipline their children
( )
Hyuknmyngnyngje the system of giving soldiers vacations

( ) or extended weekends
10
Modified on December 1st, 2014.
11
Modified on January 5th, 2015.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
Those Chinese words can be seen in almost all fields, especially in chemistry,
communication, information technology, geography, medicine, politics, etc. Subsequently, it
can plainly be seen that Chinese loan words in Korean the language are still a reality. And, it
might, at least for a while, slow down the overexposure of English in Korea. But despite the
efforts of the Korean Language Institute, the use of English is a status marker. In this context,
we may think about the future of the Korean language from a post-reunification perspective.
3.3 North Korea and Languages Empire:
Liberation in 1945 also meant division for Korean people. The complicated political,
economic and social situation since then has made it difficult for writers and scholars to launch
real movements for the development of the Korean language. Nevertheless, since the end of the
war, universities have created a great number of colleges in order to facilitate the research on
Korean both in the North and the South. It was only after Japan surrendered that the Korean
language finally became the official language of South Korea. In both South Korea and North
Korea, the development of the Korean language was taken as a state issue and has been debated
since the Korean conflict (1950-1953). In 1964, in North Korea, a movement called
maldadmkiundong (Movement for linguistic normalization) was launched with two major tasks:
outlawing Chinese characters and advancing local Korean through language
purification. The policy was proposed by Kim Il-Sng in his speech entitled Correctly
Acknowledge the National Characteristics of Korean on May 14, 1966 (Nam, 1990):
To carry forward our language, we have to provide enough room for its development. Pyongyang is our
capital, the cradle and base of our revolution. We have to guarantee and ensure the national
characteristics of our language, especially in Pyongyang, and take the language in Pyongyang as the
standard. In this respect, literary language must be abandoned, since it may lead to peoples
misunderstanding that language spoken in Seoul is the template. The name of the language we use in
Pyongyang has to be changed. We hope it to be Cultured Speech and it indeed is much better than the
previous name.
Bailbl, O. 60
Also, Kim Il-Sng was already considering the number of loan words in South Korea:
The language spoken in Seoul is also mixed with English and words borrowed from Japanese and
Chinese. Such words even take up over one-half of the Korean vocabulary, making Korean a
hodgepodge (Nam & Chng, 1990).
The great leader continued, expressing that only North Koreans were truly patriotic and
loved their language, saying, South Koreans have to change their attitude in borrowing words
from Chinese! (Nam & Chng, 1990), as he began to criticize the language used by South Korea
in his speech.
As far as the North Korean government was concerned, the use of hancha had
to be consistent with the basic values of North Korea. Kim Il- Sng believed that too many
Korean words had been mixed with Chinese loan words, some of which were not and are not
today used in China anymore. He added that if the South Korean people remove such words,
what would only remain is almost nothing.
North Korean linguists, additionally, have been paying attention to the disappearance of a
great number of hancha words, studying local dialects with the purpose of finding similar
vocabulary, even restoring language that that had disappeared for decades or even centuries.
In pursuit of this, the North Korean government established a government agency, the
North Korean Standards Preparation Association, in order to begin creating new words.
Between 1968 and 1976, 5,000 new local words were born and recognized by the North Korean
government. Though the words were used only by professors and the media in North Korea,
this progressed to the changing of many words that are still in use today in the DPRK.
Ironically, North Korea continued to borrow some Chinese loan words used during the
Mo Zdng era. Such words, originally created by the Japanese and then borrowed by the
Chinese, were later collected by North Koreans to enrich their own language and develop their
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
propaganda. Words borrowed from Chinese during the Movement for linguistic normalization
for instance:
Chinese Word Sino-Korean Word

qinlm : chllima
Chollima Movement12
wnhu y : munhwa
Cultural Language
In South Korea, the situation is quite different. People from the South not only continue
to keep borrowing some words from Chinese, but have been combining English, Chinese and
Korean native words (Kim, 2005).
3.4 Publication of the First Unification Dictionary:
The debate that arose surrounding the misuse of foreign words is far from over, as we
have just seen. Another unavoidable problem was raised in North Korea and South Korea: the
unification of the Korean language. Which language will be used in post-unification Korea?
How should the Cultured Language spoken in Pyongyang treat borrowed words (from Chinese
and English)?
North Korean refugees in South Korea often have for instance, some problems
understanding South Koreans. The real problem lies in the communication among new residents.
The use of a great deal of English words, new words, and Chinese loan words can be a real
problem in daily life. In 2006, 53.6% of interviewed refugees admitted that they had great
difficulty in communicating with South Koreans (Korean Institute for National Unification, 2006).
12
chllima is an ancient myth in North Korea about a flying horse that could run 400km every day.
Bailbl, O. 62
This is demonstrated by the fact that North Korean people admit that they have difficulty finding
jobs and taking part in social activities in daily life. Educational levels in North Korea and South
Korea are significantly different, too. For some North Koreans, their lives in South Korea can
be difficult due to the high penetration of information and communications technologies and their
lack of related technical training.
To help resolve and further understand language differences between North Korea and
South Korea, a joint project to compile a dictionary of unification, called Kyraemal-knsajn
() in Korean, first initiated by Reverend Moon, Ik-hwan at his visit to Pyongyang
in 198913. The written agreement was finally signed between Preparing toward One Korea from
South Korea and Minjok Hwahae Hyupeuhoe from North Korea on the 5th of April in 2004.
Former South Korean presidents Kim Dae-Jung and No Mu-Hyn encouraged linguists
from North Korea and South Korea to communicate with each other, and the North and South
decided to publish a common dictionary. The dictionary was also the first dictionary created
between the two countries since the division of the peninsula. A ceremony was held at Kumkang
Mountain, a tourist resort, on February 20, 2005 in DPRK, to commemorate the dictionarys
creation.
Researchers from North Korea and South Korea decided to compile the dictionary into an
encyclopedia and include all Korean legacies in it. The committee was composed of 21 linguists,
of which ten were from North Korea and eleven were from South Korea. All ceremony
participants expressed their understanding of the extraordinary significance of the task. Vice
chairman of the Bilateral Compilation Committee, Li Chun-Bok announced:
13
Website : www.gyeoremal.or.kr. This is the website of the dictionary of reunification.
August 2015, Vol.2, No.3, pp.34-66
Our country is suffering from separation to the fullest extent. There are too many discrepancies between the
written and spoken languages of North Korea and those of South Korea. It is an unacceptable reality for us! 14
(Li Chun-Bok, The Hankyoreh, 2005)
The South Korean poet Ko Un declared, on behalf of South Korea, that it was a national
issue, as well as the first step taken by the Korean Peninsula towards the unification of the two
Koreas. The dictionary is the biggest and the most complete of the Korean language with over
300,000 entry words. Priority will be given to include common vocabularies used by both Koreas.
A next step will be to address the terms South and North Korea speak differently, which
will be listed after rigorous reviews and discussions. This First Unified Korean Dictionary is
planned in 2015. The official website indicates that this Unification Dictionary is still under the
process of proofreading, revision and editing. It is supposed to be published in 2016.
Conclusion
Ultimately, it is clear to see that the Chinese loan word phenomenon has been an enduring
process in the Korean language - borrowing words from Chinese began almost 2,000 years ago.
Still, Chinese loan words adapt very well to modern Korean nouns, adjectives, verbs and suffixes
have gradually formed the language system and have been added into mixed Korean words.
Finally - and this is certainly the most important point - Chinese loan words and Chinese
characters continue to produce new words to this day. Not only do South Koreans use them to
form new words, but Chinese loan words are instrumental in preventing the overuse of English
loan words.
14
The Hankyoreh, Reunifying the Korean Language, 26 February 2005.
Bailbl, O. 64
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34 International Journal of Teaching, Education and Language Learning ISSN: 2373-7921 (print)

August 2015, Volume 2, Number 3, pp. 34-66 2373-793X (online)

A History of the Korean Lexicon

Chinese Language Empire: Circa 2nd B.C. to 19th century

1.1 The rise of the Chinese characters:

about this writing system.

writing systems: Hyanchal, Idu and Kukyl.

First period: circa 6th century

Hyanchal System writing: Local Letters (Hyangch'al)

Silla (668 CE 935 CE), a new type of writing system appeared.

Second Period: around the 7th century

Idu writing system: Lecturer for public officer

emerged in the late eighth century.

Third Period: Late 8th century

Kukyl writing system: Phrase Parting

specialized markings, together with a subset of Chinese characters, to represent Korean

1.2 Full Chinese loan words (4th to 15th century):

to explain the reading of Chinese characters.

have preserved the Chinese pronunciation (Lee, 2006).

1.3 Two types of Chinese loan words (15th to 17th century):

generally called Chinese loan words standard types(Ch'ayong ). Those

Chinese Loan Word English

kongsa () affair of state

saeng gye () subsistence

Source (Li, 1991).

ch'ayong ( ), thus, in turn, preserved the sounds of Chinese. In his impressive

Chinese loans words: The mdok hancha ( ), or Chinese loan words

and especially to the Korean phonetic system.

the Korean alphabet was created.

Table 1: Two types of Chinese loan words in Late Middle Korean:

Chinese loan words standards Chinese loan words modified

Chinese Sounds: Ch'ayong Korean Sounds: Hancha

mch'a hancha mdok hancha

the same phenomenon in Japanese.

of that era and those of Chinese used up to the fifteenth century.

under Baekje ( , 2014).

Table 2: Examples of Chinese loan words, type 1 (Li, 1991):

Pronunciation in the 16th century Pronunciation in the 17th century

huanghuo Hwangho hwangha

shaotang sat'ang sat'ang

baicai baech'ui baech'u

Table 3: Examples of Chinese loan words, type 2 (Li, 1991):

Pronunciation in the 16th century Pronunciation in the 17th century

xiongbei hyongbi hyongbae

tangshui tangsoe you angsu

chaobing syobing sobyng

1.4 Native words replace Chinese loan words:

books at the same time.

sadae chui servility. Here are a few examples:

Chinese loan words : Native words :

age swi nah

chest hyongch kasom

1.5 The statement of Chong Da-San ():

kakpi5 the following:

1.6 Chinese loan words in Modern Korean:

Chinese loan words in contemporary Korean:

Table 5: Chinese loan words from 16th to Contemporary Korean:

Chinese loan words categories during 16th Contemporary Korean:

Chinese loans words with Chinese baechui ()

pronunciation Chinese cabbage baech'u

Chinese loans words with Korean

Chinese loan words replaced by other kammo () cold kamki

Chinese loans words not replaced