Koreans have developed and use a unique alphabet called Hangeul. It is considered to be one of the most efficient alphabets in the world and has garnered unanimous praise from language experts for its scientific design and excellence.

Hangeul was created under King Sejong during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). In 1446, the first Korean alphabet was proclaimed under the name Hunminjeongeum, which literally meant "the Correct Sounds for the Instruction of the People."

King Sejong, the motivating force behind Hangeul, is considered to be one of the greatest rulers in the history of Korea. Highly respected for his benevolent disposition and diligence, King Sejong was also a passionate scholar whose knowledge and natural talent in all fields of study astounded even the most learned experts.

When King Sejong was not performing his official duties, he enjoyed reading and meditating. He could also be very tenacious at times and would never yield on what he thought was right. Love for the people was the cornerstone of his reign (1418-1450), and he was always ready to listen to the voices of the common folk. He was a ruler of virtue, with the welfare of the people dictating all policy formulations.

King Sejong also established the Jiphyeonjeon, an academic research institute, inside the palace. Noted scholars from all academic disciplines gathered here to engage in lively discussions and also to publish a variety of scholarly books.

During his reign, King Sejong always deplored the fact that the common people, ignorant of the complicated Chinese characters that were being used by the educated, were not able to read and write. He understood their frustration in not being able to read or to communicate their thoughts and feelings in written words.

The Chinese script was used by the intelligentsia of the country, but being of foreign origin, it could not fully express the words and meaning of Korean thoughts and spoken language. Therefore, common people with legitimate complaints had no way of submitting their grievances to the appropriate authorities, other than through oral communication, and they had no way to record for posterity the agricultural wisdom and knowledge they had gained through years of experience.

King Sejong felt great sympathy for the people. As a wise ruler strongly dedicated to national identity and cultural independence, he immediately searched for solutions. What he envisioned was an alphabet that was uniquely Korean and easily learnable, rendering it accessible and usable for the common people.

Thus, the Hunminjeongeum was born. In the preface of its proclamation, King Sejong states as follows:

"Being of foreign origin, Chinese characters are incapable of capturing uniquely Korean meanings. Therefore, many common people have no way to express their thoughts and feelings. Out of my sympathy for their difficulties, I have invented a set of 28 letters. The letters are very easy to learn, and it is my fervent hope that they improve the quality of life of all people." The statement captures the essence of King Sejong's determination and dedication to cultural independence and commitment to the welfare of the people.

When first proclaimed by King Sejong, Hunminjeongeum had 28 letters in all, of which only 24 are in use today. The 24 letters are as follows.

Consonants:

(g, k), (n), (d, t), (r or l), (m), (b, p), (s),
(ng), (j), (ch), (k), (t), (p), (h)


Vowels:

(a), (ya), (eo), (yeo), (o), (yo), (u), (yu), (eu), (i)

The basic letters of the alphabet when Hunminjeongeum was first created numbered eight; they were the consonants " , , , , " and the vowels " ., , "

The reason consonants and vowels were separated was due to their differing functions when two letters were combined to form a syllable. Hunminjeongeum is basically a type of hieroglyph. Consonants, the initial sound letters, resemble a person's speech organs. The shape of each letter is based on the form of different sound articulation units.


"(giyeok)": To pronounce this letter, part of the tongue touches the molar teeth and sticks near the uvula. The shape of the letter is based on the lateral form of this process.



"(nieun)": To pronounce this letter, the front of the tongue curves and the tip of the tongue sticks to the upper gums. The shape of the letter is based on the lateral form of this process.

"(mieum)": To pronounce this letter, the upper and lower lips are joined. The shape of the letter is based on the form of the joined lips.
"(siot)": To pronounce this letter, the tip of the tongue and the upper teeth are brought close together, and sound is created by blowing through the narrowed passage. The shape of the letter is based on the form of the teeth during the process.
"(ieung)": To pronounce this letter that is created by stimulating the uvula, the throat assumes a round shape, hence the form of the consonant. Nine additional letters were made by adding additional strokes to the five basic consonants based on the strength of the sounds, as follows.




However, '' is no longer used.

The vowels, on the other hand, were created in the image of the sky, land, and man. That is, " . " resembles the roundness of the sky, '' represents the flat land and '' is the image of a standing man. The other vowels "(a), (ya), (eo), (yeo), (o), (yo), (u), (yu)" are variations of their three basic vowels. " . " is not used today.

The creation of the Hunminjeongeum was a remarkable accomplishment. Creating consonants based on a person's speech organs and vowels based on the shapes of the sky, land, and man was truly a revolutionary and unprecedented process.



King Sejong and the scholars of the Jiphyeonjeon, inventors of the Korean alphabet, considered human sounds as being more than mere physical phenomena. They assumed that an invisible yet more powerful principle was the controlling force behind these phenomena. They adhered to the principle that human sounds and all universal phenomena are based on eum-yang (negative-positive) and ohaeng (the five primary elements: metal, wood, water, fire and earth). Hence, they thought it natural that there be a common link between sounds and the changing of the seasons and between sounds and music.


A Korean syllable is divided into three parts: choseong (initial consonant), jungseong (vowel), and jongseong (final consonant). This is the basic framework that King Sejong and the Jiphyeonjeon scholars adhered to when creating the letters. Jongseong was not separately created and was a repetition of the choseong. Therefore, Hangeul is capable of creating thousands of words by combining the consonants and vowels.





As the above examples clearly show, Hangeul, with only 14 consonants and 10 vowels, is capable of expressing virtually any sound.


The Korean language has a well-developed and expansive vocabulary, and therefore, it is very difficult to express fully in foreign script. However, due to its scientific design, it is quite easy to approximate the sounds of foreign words in the Korean alphabet. Following are some examples of English words expressed in Hangeul.


London -

New York -

Hong Kong -

I am a boy -

Good morning -

In particular, because of its simplicity and the rather small number of letters, Hangeul is very easy for children or speakers of other languages to learn.

Most children are capable of expressing their feelings and thoughts by the ages of two or three, albeit in primitive form. However, most Korean children by the time they reach school age, have mastered Hangeul. This fact clearly attests to the easy learnability and accessibility of the Korean alphabet.

It is ironic that the strongest proof of the easy learnability of the alphabet came from the critics who argued against the creation of Hunminjeongeum. Some scholars vehemently railled against the "new" alphabet because of its learnability, and in derision, they called it Achimgeul (morning letters) or Amgeul (women's letters).

Achimgeul meant that it could be learned in one morning. For those scholars who had spent years learning the complicated ideographs of the Chinese language, Hangeul did not appear to be worthy of learning. Amgeul meant that even women who had no academic training or background at the time Hangeul was invented could easily learn the alphabet. At that time, there were those who considered the pursuit of academic studies and the subject of reading and writing to be the sole domain of a few privileged scholars.

Such misconceptions were the result of confusing simple linguistic learning with more advanced academic studies. Without learning the basic alphabet, reading and writing would be impossible, let alone the study of more advanced subjects. Without being able to read and write, there can be no indirect communication of one's feelings and thoughts. Surely, King Sejong's intent was to enrich the lives of the people by introducing Hangeul, and not to make scholars out of all his subjects.

In its subsequent history, Hangeul has been a mainstay of Korean culture, helping preserve the country's national identity and independence.

Illiteracy is virtually nonexistent in Korea. This is another fact that attests to the easy learnability of Hangeul. It is not uncommon for a foreigner to gain a working knowledge of Hangeul after one or two hours of intensive studying. In addition, because of its scientific design, Hangeul lends itself to easy mechanization. In this age of computers, many people now are able to incorporate computers into their lives without difficulties, thanks to a large number of programs written in Hangeul.