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It’s Hangul Day today!

Hangul Day (한글날) is celebrated every 9th of October. With great pride, Koreans consider this day as a national holiday that commemorates the invention of the Korean alphabet, Hangul (also spelled as Hangeul). It was King Sejong the Great, the fourth king in the Joseon dynasty of Korea, along with his fellow scholars who developed this writing system which was said to have been completed in the middle of the 15th century.

Before Hangul was developed, Koreans used classical Chinese characters to write, known as Hanja. This was complicated and difficult to learn so, only the elite had the privilege to learn and use this. For the benefit of the general population, especially those who had no education, Hangul was designed to be a simpler writing system compared to Hanja. Because of this, the common people learned to read and write, and consequently, their lives greatly improved.

Hangul is considered as of the most remarkable writing systems in the world. It is phonetic and has 24 letters including 14 consonants and 10 vowels. It is very easy to learn that King Sejong himself even once said, “A wise man can acquaint himself with Hangul before the morning is over; a stupid man can learn it in the space of 10 days.”

Along with the popularity of the Korean Wave through music, movies and dramas, more and more foreigners are becoming interested to learn Hangul. Korean language institutions, therefore, are growing in various countries. The Korean language sure has its own charms and once you start learning, I’m sure you’ll fall in love with it too!

Have you tried learning Hangul? Here are a few sources online that you can go to:
1. 90 Day Korean - https://www.90daykorean.com/how-to-learn-the-korean-alphabet/
2. Talk to Me in Korean - https://talktomeinkorean.com
3. How to Study Korean - https://www.howtostudykorean.com/unit0/
 
Until next time!
Dana