American helped bring spacing to Hangeul
Homer Hulbert / Courtesy of Hulbert Memorial Society
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
Dongnip Sinmun / Courtesy of National Library of Korea
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 involved in publishing and education. He developed a close relationship with Ju, one of his students who later dedicated his life to studying Hangeul.
The two were involved in the publication of the Dongnip Sinmun, the first Korean languge newspaper, which was launched on April 7, 1896.
Spacing appeared between words in the newspaper, which the newspaper explained in its inaugural English editorial.
“Difficulty is experienced by those not thoroughly acquainted with the 'on-mun' (Hangeul) from the fact that ordinarily there are no spaces between words. We therefore adopt the novel plan of introducing spaces, thus doing away with the main objection to its use,” according to the editorial.
A copy of "Saminpilji" / Courtesy of Hulbert Memorial Society
Publishing Hangeul textbook
Beside recommending spacing, Hulbert wrote a major educational book in Hangeul in an effort to make it more accessible to people.
"Saminpilji," whose title can be translated as “Knowledge Necessary for All,” was a geography textbook written entirely in Hangeul.
Published around 1891, the book contained 161 pages of text and eight pages of maps. Despite being a geography book, it covered a broad range of subjects including astronomy, political systems, education, religion, industry and finance.
For Hangeul, against Chinese characters
Hulbert was a strong advocate for Hangeul at a time when Chinese characters remained dominant in official and scholarly writing.
In "The History of Korea," published in 1905, he praised the Korean alphabet, insisting that it “scarcely has its equal in the world for simplicity and phonetic power.”
He criticized the social prejudice surrounding the use of Hangeul. In an article titled “The Korean Alphabet” published in the monthly English magazine The Korean Repository in 1892, he argued that Korea would benefit if its people abandon the widespread reliance on Chinese characters in favor of the Korean writing system.
"At a time when Korea was overlooked by Western powers and burdened by internal turmoil, he foresaw the immense potential of the Korean people," Kim said. "He saw that their unyielding passion for education, combined with the unparalleled scientific design of Hangeul, would one day make Korea a shining light on the world stage."
The cover page for Homer Hulbert's article, titled "A Comparative Grammar of The Korean Language and The Dravidian Dialects of Southern India," published in 1906 / Courtesy of Hulbert Memorial Society
Academic approach to Korean language
Hulbert's interest in the Korean language went beyond learning to communicate. While living in Korea, he conducted research into the language and writing system.
Hulbert published multiple columns on Hangeul and the Korean language, including "The Korean Alphabet" (1892 and 1896), "Korean Etymology” (1901), and “The Korean Language”(1902) in local magazines.
In 1903, he published a study of "Hunminjeongeum," the original text introducing the Korean alphabet. He also published "A Comparative Grammar of The Korean Language and The Dravidian Dialects of Southern India."
His works made him one of the earliest Western scholars to conduct academic research on the Korean language.
Lifelong connection with Korea
Hulbert was born in New Haven, Vermont, in 1863. His father, Calvin Hulbert, was a pastor and served as president of Middlebury College from 1875 to 1879. Hulbert studied at Dartmouth College and later at Union Theological Seminary before leaving for Korea.
Beside his advocacy for Hangeul, Hulbert is widely remembered for his efforts to defend Korea's sovereignty against Japanese influence.
He openly criticized Japan's growing control over the country and became a confidant of King Gojong. In 1905, Hulbert traveled to Washington, D.C., as Gojong's representative in an effort to seek U.S. support for Korea's sovereignty.
In 1907, he was involved in Gojong's secret diplomatic efforts at The Hague Peace Conference. Along with the Korean envoys sent to The Hague, he sought to draw international attention to Japan's increasing control over Korea. Afterward, Japan prevented him from returning to Korea.
Homer Hulbert's bust and two monuments unveiled in New Haven, Vt., Oct. 3(local time) / Courtesy of Hulbert Memorial Society
He continued to advocate for Korean independence in the United States, writing and giving lectures about Korea. After Korea was liberated from Japanese rule in 1945, the Korean government invited Hulbert returned to Korea in 1949.
Hulbert passed away in August 1949, just days after returning to Korea and was laid to rest in the Yanghwajin Foreign Missionary Cemetery in Seoul. He was 86.
He was later posthumously awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation for his contributions to Korea's independence movement. To mark his enduring legacy, HMS unveiled monuments and a bust honoring him in his hometown in Vermont, on Oct. 3 (local time).