Hangeul, the Korean System of Writing

Hangeul, which means "great script" and "Korean script," was invented by King Sejong around 565 years ago. It was described in an official document released on October 9, 1446; the anniversary of that day is celebrated as Hangeul Day. I don't get that day off. Prior to the invention of Hangeul, Koreans used a Sino-Korean hanja system, using script and words borrowed from the Chinese language.

Hangeul is divided into syllables, each one of which fits into a square (the square is not drawn, of course). There are no more than four letters per syllable, and no fewer than two. Words and syllables cannot begin with vowels in this script, so a silent letter precedes any vowel that is at the beginning of a syllable. Double consonants within the same syllable are somewhat rare in Korean, relative to English, and can only come at the end of the syllable. When two consonants are put together, only one is pronounced, unless the next syllable begins with a vowel. In that case, the second consonant sound is carried over orally, to begin the next syllable.

Example: the root of the conjugated form of the verb "to sit" is pronounced "an-ja," but the "j" sound is actually in the first syllable, so the romanized version would look like this: anj-a.

The script reads from left to right, then top to bottom, as with English writing, but it can also be read top to bottom, right to left. The former is the preferred modern method of writing, but the latter is the traditional way to write, as influenced by Chinese writing.

Linguists find this written language quite interesting. It was invented with specifical goals in mind. The major goal was to create a writing system that the common man could learn and use easily. When the Chinese hanja system was the only writing available to Koreans, it was mostly only members of the aristocracy who could write, because it was such a difficult task to learn. Once Hangeul was released, it was opposed by scholars who didn't want to lose their high status, but it nonetheless was quickly assimilated into popular culture and the country became literate fairly quickly.

The letters of Hangeul are so easy to learn that it is said "A wise man can acquaint himself with them before the morning is over; a stupid man can learn them within the space of ten days." When I took Korean language classes in LA, the first quarter was devoted solely to learning Hangeul. A quarter was ten weeks long, with classes meeting one night a week for two hours. So, the first class and last class being devoted primarily to placement testing, class organization, fun activities, and ceremonies, it took sixteen hours to learn the whole alphabet and how to read anything written in Hangeul, even if I don't understand it. Not too shabby.

The history of the shapes of the letters is quite interesting, and partly why linguists are fascinated by the system, but I'll have to save that explanation for another day. Stay tuned.