Oct 9, 2026
When it comes to Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, two figures are often mentioned: King Sejong (1397-1450), who initiated its creation, and linguist Ju Si-gyeong (1876-1914), who helped develop and systematize Korea's modern grammar and writing system. Last year, Yoo Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea and a historian, highlighted another important contributor to the development of Hangeul: Homer Hulbert (1863-1949), an American educator, Christian missionary and scholar. “Hulbert recommended Ju Si-gyeong use spacing in Hangeul writing, and Ju accepted the recommendation. That decision to accept the recommendation, I believe, made the biggest contribution to Hangeul’s development,” Yoo said during a lecture on Hangeul. Kim Dong-jin, chairman of the Hulbert Memorial Society (HMS), also said historical records provide supporting evidence that Hulbert was behind bringing spacing to Hangeul. Newspaper with Hangeul Hulbert came to Korea in 1886 as a teacher at Yugyeong Gongwon, also known as the Royal English School, one of the country’s first modern schools. Hulbert became
As Korea celebrates Hangeul Day's 100th anniversary this month, The Korea Times asked three people learning Korean what drew them to the language, where they struggle now and which study habits have worked best for them. They range from a beginner in the United States to advanced speakers pursuing graduate degrees in Seoul. Name: Adrian Adams Level: Beginner Study tip: Constant exposure, repetition and practice For Adrian Adams, a 22-year-old church secretary in Springfield, Missouri, Korean began as a way to fill the long days of the COVID-19 lockdowns, when a friend recommended a few BTS songs and K-dramas. Adam's interest quickly became something more than a pastime. "Korean culture is so beautiful and intricate," Adams said. "I was amazed by the respect and beauty found in the spoken language." Wanting to understand what the singers and actors were actually saying, Adams started learning in 2022 by following Korean teachers on social media and picking up Hangeul through YouTube videos, then hired a tutor to prepare for a trip to Korea that Adams' parents gave as a surprise high school g
South Korea urged North Korea to take "responsible measures" Thursday at the United Nations, accusing Pyongyang of violating the Armistice Agreement by deliberately planting a land mine that injured three South Korean soldiers near the inter-Korean border last month. During a committee meeting of the 81st session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, South Korean Ambassador to the U.N. Cha Ji-hoon said a joint investigation by the South Korean military and the United Nations Command (UNC) confirmed that a Sept. 21 explosion was caused by a land mine deliberately planted by North Korean forces south of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) separating the two Koreas. "A joint on-site investigation by ROK military and the UNC supported by forensic analysis confirmed that the explosion was caused by a landmine deliberately planted by DPRK forces south of the military demarcation line," Cha said, referring to the two Koreas by their official names, the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, respectively. Cha said the incident constituted a clear violation of the A
When King Sejong of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) created “Hunminjeongeum,” the Korean alphabet now known as Hangeul, in 1443, it did not immediately replace the Chinese characters which Koreans had used for centuries. For centuries afterward, it was largely shunned by the dynasty's aristocrats and intellectuals, who favored the use of Chinese characters. It wasn't widely popular among ordinary citizens either. A major change came in 1894, when King Gojong declared Hangeul as the country’s official writing system. Three decades later, in December 1926, a group of Korean linguists and independence activists gathered and proclaimed Gagya Day — at the time, the name of Hangeul was not widely known and “gagya” was the starting sounds of people learning the alphabet. That marked the beginning of what would later become Hangeul Day, which this year reaches its 100th anniversary. It was set on Sept. 29 based on the lunar calendar and was moved to the current Oct. 9 in 1940. Historical legacy of Hangeul Day Establishing Gagya Day a century ago was part of a cultural independence move
The number of Chinese fishing boats operating illegally near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea has more than doubled since the government announced a sweeping crackdown in late August, the Korea Coast Guard said Friday. About 190 Chinese boats were operating near the de facto inter-Korean sea border early this month, up from about 80 in late August. The figure is 50 fewer than the 240 counted a year earlier, and the number of boats typically rises during the autumn fishing season. The Coast Guard and the ministries of foreign affairs, unification, national defense and oceans and fisheries announced joint measures Aug. 27. They included deploying more Coast Guard special operations personnel, forcibly removing illegal fishing gear, installing artificial structures to block illegal fishing and revising the law to penalize vessels that anchor for purposes unrelated to passage. The Coast Guard said at the time that its goal was to drive all Chinese fishing boats out of the area. Foreign vessels are banned from fishing in the waters, but Chinese boats exploit the division of the Ko
Korea has honored a Filipino worker killed in August in a factory explosion, marking the third case under its initiative to support bereaved migrant workers’ families here. The Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service (K-COMWEL), a government agency responsible for administering industrial accident insurance, said Friday that it had helped the family of the worker bring his remains back to the Philippines. The worker, identified by the agency as Jisrael, died Aug. 28 in an explosion and fire at a factory manufacturing paint ingredients in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province. “He worked diligently for his family, even in unfamiliar surroundings, living a life marked by a deep sense of responsibility and devotion,” K-COMWEL President Park Seung-heup said in a letter presented at the memorial service held at Incheon International Airport on Thursday. “K-COMWEL and the Republic of Korea will never forget his dedicated efforts and the legacy he leaves behind. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones.” Park then presented the bereaved family with a co
An Indian man has filed a petition to the South Korean human rights watchdog alleging physical abuse during his deportation, such as being duct taped in the mouth and choked by immigration authorities. The Indian national submitted the petition to the National Human Rights Commission last Friday over violations to his bodily freedom and human dignity during his deportation on Aug. 27. According to the petition, the man had been detained at an immigration holding center in Hwaseong, about 40 kilometers south of Seoul, for about eight months before officials forcibly removed him from the site. Under immigration law, foreigners subject to deportation can stay at such facilities for up to nine months. The petition said the man was handcuffed with duct tape around his mouth, with the man saying he suffered physical abuse, such as being hit in the cheek and being choked after he arrived at the airport to be deported. Rep. Park Eun-jung of the minor Rebuilding Korea Party shared body cam footage submitted by the justice ministry on the deportation during a parliamentary audit of the ministry Thu
President Lee Jae Myung on Friday hailed the Korean writing system – Hangeul – as the "face" of the country as he marked the 100th anniversary of Hangeul Day. "Writing is the face of the country and language is its heart," Lee wrote on Facebook, using South Korea's official name. "The strength of our language and writing is the competitiveness of the Republic of Korea." Hangeul was invented by King Sejong of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) in 1443 and promulgated three years later to augment the existing writing system based on the Chinese script. Hangeul Day was established in 1926 by the Korean Language Society as Koreans sought to preserve their language and writing system under the brutal 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule of Korea. "A century ago, our ancestors devoted all their efforts to preserve our language and writing system," Lee wrote. "It was a determination that even though they had lost their country, they could not lose our spirit and identity." Lee said the writing system is now learned by people across the world, noting that King Sejong Institute, which teaches Korean lan
President Lee Jae Myung's approval rating held steady at 37 percent this week, with disapproval falling to 51 percent, a poll showed Friday. Positive assessment of Lee's performance remained unchanged from the last poll conducted three weeks earlier, according to the Gallup Korea survey conducted from Tuesday through Thursday on 1,000 people aged 18 and older. Lee's disapproval rating fell 5 percentage points from 56 percent in the previous poll. Among those who positively assessed Lee's performance, 24 percent cited foreign affairs, followed by economic and livelihood issues at 14 percent. Among those who negatively assessed his performance, 18 percent cited his real estate policies, followed by defense, security and North Korea policy at 15 percent. Support for the ruling Democratic Party fell 5 percentage points from the previous survey to 35 percent, marking the lowest since the launch of Lee's administration in June last year. Support for the main opposition People Power Party fell 1 percentage point to 26 percent. The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points
Prime Minister Han Seong-sook on Friday pledged to make efforts to uphold the value of the Korean writing system, Hangeul, even in the era of artificial intelligence (AI). Han made the remarks during a ceremony celebrating the centenary of Hangeul Day, which commemorates the Korean script created by King Sejong of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) in 1443 and promulgated in 1446. "The government will do its best so that Hangeul is loved not only by our people but people around the world and so that its value is maintained even in the era of artificial intelligence," she said. Han, a former chief executive of online portal giant Naver, said the value of language has become increasingly more important, noting its role connecting people with AI. She shared plans to increase the number of types of Korean language corpora used to train AI from the current 174 to 340 by 2030 so that the technology better understands the language. Han also noted the country plans to expand the number of King Sejong Institutes, which teach the Korean language overseas, from the current 273 to more than 350 by 2030. M
Internet cafes accounted for three-quarters of food hygiene violations since 2020 at leisure venues popular with children and teenagers, while inspections of kids cafes have fallen by nearly half, according to data from the office of Rep. Seo Young-seok of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), Friday. Authorities recorded 782 violations of the Food Sanitation Act at kids cafes, internet cafes, comic book cafes and board game cafes from 2020 through June this year. The figures come from Ministry of Food and Drug Safety data submitted to DPK lawmakers on the National Assembly’s Health and Welfare Committee. Internet cafes, known locally as "PC bang," accounted for 588 cases, or 75.2 percent, followed by kids cafes with 121, comic book cafes with 38 and board game cafes with 35. Failure to complete mandatory hygiene training was the most common violation at 464 cases, or 59.3 percent. It was followed by failure to undergo health checkups at 107, violations of operator compliance rules at 78, breaches of sanitary handling standards at 67 and facility standards violations at 40. Inter
Police have expanded the team investigating a recent series of hacking attacks on financial institutions to 43 members from the previous 28, adding specialists in digital forensics and international cooperation. The National Office of Investigation, the investigative arm of the Korean National Police Agency, announced the reinforcement Friday. “We are investigating thoroughly, securing relevant data and analyzing the affected systems,” police said, adding that they are also pursuing international cooperation, including blocking the servers used in the attacks. Data leaks have been confirmed at seven financial firms, including major commercial banks, and police opened a formal investigation on Tuesday. The announcement came amid questions over whether the case will be handed to the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency (SCIA), which launched Oct. 2 and took over the investigation of major crimes, including cybercrime, from the now-abolished prosecutors’ office. Under the law governing the SCIA, police and other investigative bodies must notify the agency immediately when they judge a c
![[WEEKENDER] A century of Hangeul Day: From cultural independence to AI challenge](https://newsimg.koreatimes.co.kr/2026/09/21/7b055ec5-d124-4a65-87b2-b10e64890c87.jpg)
