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Lee Kyung-min

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Korean language boom prompts Seoul to add 29 new King Sejong Institutes worldwide

Korea is aggressively expanding its state-backed language schools worldwide to keep pace with an unprecedented global surge in demand for Korean language and cultural education. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the King Sejong Institute Foundation unveiled 29 new institute locations across 23 countries Tuesday. This latest expansion pushes the total global network to 273 institutes in 89 countries, broadening the reach of the government’s flagship cultural export program. The rollout follows a milestone year for the language network. In 2025, total enrollment across all King Sejong Institutes hit an all-time high of 239,020 students across both online and offline learning platforms. International interest from foreign educational institutions wanting to host the schools has also peaked, with 102 organizations across 45 countries applying to open branches this year — marking the highest application volume the ministry has seen in five years. The latest selection establishes a permanent presence for the state-funded language program in Greece, Rwanda and Sri Lanka for th

Jun 30, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Korean language boom prompts Seoul to add 29 new King Sejong Institutes worldwide
People & Events

Daegu sets stage for global push with chicken and beer festival lineup

Daegu is turning its signature summer festival into a global spectacle this year, unveiling the performance lineup and opening ceremony details for the 2026 Daegu CHIMAC Festival as it seeks to cement its status as an international tourism draw centered on the classic combination of chicken and beer. The city said Monday the opening ceremony will be held at 7:30 p.m. on July 1 at 2·28 Freedom Square in Duryu Park, located in Dalseo District. A central feature of the ceremony will be the unveiling of a large illuminated “chicken and beer globe,” a symbolic installation representing the festival’s ambitions. The main stage will host nightly performances from K-pop and indie artists. The lineup includes FT Island on July 1, N.Flying on July 2, 10cm on July 3, rappers Wonstein and Hangzoo on July 4, and comedian Park Myung-soo with singer-songwriter Car, the Garden on July 5. Organizers said paid seats at the main venue sold out within 11 minutes of reservations becoming available, reflecting strong demand for the event. The 2·28 Democracy Movement Memorial parking area will be transfo

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Daegu sets stage for global push with chicken and beer festival lineup
Companies

Fried chicken chain bhc expands US footprint with first Virginia restaurant

Korean fried chicken giant bhc is planting its flag in one of the Washington metropolitan area’s busiest commercial hubs, anchoring its latest push into the United States with its first Virginia location. The chain, operated by Dining Brands Group, said Monday it opened its Arlington location in the Ballston neighborhood of Arlington County, marking its debut in Virginia as the company continues to broaden its North American presence. The restaurant is located near offices, residential complexes, shopping centers and recreational facilities, with convenient access to the Ballston-MU Metro station. The company said the area, which borders Washington across the Potomac River, attracts a steady mix of office workers, residents and visitors, making it a strategic location for growth. The approximately 169-square-meter restaurant offers full-service dining with 32 seats across 15 tables. Its menu has been tailored to local dining preferences, featuring wing- and tender-based combo meals, chicken sandwiches, Crispy Bun sandwiches, cheese balls and fries. Reflecting the popularity of dipping sa

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Fried chicken chain bhc expands US footprint with first Virginia restaurant
Companies

Naver Pay adds facial recognition service for faster airport departures

Travelers departing from Incheon International Airport can now clear key checkpoints with a face scan through the Naver Pay app, as the digital payments platform expands its biometric services ahead of the peak summer travel season. Naver Pay said Monday it has launched Smartpass, the airport's facial recognition departure service, allowing eligible travelers to pass through departure checkpoints and participating boarding gates without presenting their passport or boarding pass. The service enables users to register their facial information, passport and boarding pass in advance through the Naver Pay app. After the initial registration, travelers only need to upload their boarding pass before departure to use the service. The feature is integrated with Naver Pay's facial authentication service, Facesign. Users who have already enrolled in Facesign would only need to register their passport and boarding pass to activate Smartpass. The service is available to Korean nationals ages 7 and older, with parental or legal guardian consent needed for children ages 7 to 14. Once registration is comp

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Naver Pay adds facial recognition service for faster airport departures
Global Community

Korea reimagines diplomatic missions as cultural portals via yearlong film festival

Korean diplomatic missions around the world are transforming into immersive cultural venues as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expands a yearlong festival that pairs Korean films with hands-on experiences, aiming to introduce global audiences to everyday life in Korea beyond the country's blockbuster pop culture exports. The ministry said Monday that more than 60 overseas embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions are hosting the Korean Story Festival this year. The program features monthly screenings of Korean films alongside interactive events that allow local audiences to experience Korean food, beauty, language and daily culture depicted on screen. The ministry said the initiative marks a shift from simply showcasing Korean culture to giving overseas audiences opportunities to experience it firsthand. Each diplomatic mission tailors its film selection and accompanying events to local interests. The lineup spans a wide range of genres and themes, including food, family, sports, history, action, comedy, fantasy and thrillers, while also highlighting Korea's landscapes and social deve

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Korea reimagines diplomatic missions as cultural portals via yearlong film festival
South Korea

Korea moves to protect rare Cretaceous fossils

Deep inside a block of Late Cretaceous rock excavated from a coastal mudflat, the fossilized bones of Koreanosaurus boseongensis tell a story that extends far beyond the dinosaur’s lifespan. Discovered more than two decades ago, the small, herbivorous creature is the first ornithischian — or bird-hipped — dinosaur skeleton ever unearthed on the Korean Peninsula. More crucially, it remains the only dinosaur skeleton in the country whose precise excavation was fully documented from the moment it was chipped from the earth. The Korea Heritage Service took formal steps Monday to grant Natural Monument status to the Koreanosaurus and two other rare prehistoric discoveries. The designation reflects an accelerating effort by Korea to institutionalize its rich, yet often overlooked, paleontological record, transforming casual field discoveries into state-protected assets. Preserved at Chonnam National University, the Koreanosaurus provides critical evidence of how the Orodrominae subfamily — known for short forelimbs and swift movement — dispersed between Asia and North America roughl

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Korea moves to protect rare Cretaceous fossils
Global Community

Sejong Institute Foundation launches textbooks to help int'l students master advanced Korean

Korea is rolling out a new linguistic toolkit designed to turn global cultural interest in the Korean language into a permanent talent pipeline, launching specialized textbooks aimed at a rapidly-growing population of foreign students and international conference professionals. The King Sejong Institute Foundation, a state-backed cultural institution under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, announced the release of two specialized textbook series. The new curricula are explicitly tailored for foreign academics and professionals navigating the complex linguistic demands of Korean universities and the international conference sector. The initiative comes at a critical demographic juncture for Korea, which faces domestic labor shortages and a shrinking population. The government has increasingly turned to international students and foreign professionals to fill the gap. According to recent data from the Ministry of Education, the number of foreign students enrolled in Korean educational institutions surged by roughly 65 percent over five years, climbing from 153,000 in 2020 to 2

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Sejong Institute Foundation launches textbooks to help int'l students master advanced Korean
People & Events

Seoul bets big on global startup platform as AI reshapes industries

Over the past seven years, Seoul’s startup ecosystem has ballooned in value by more than $100 billion, generating tens of thousands of high-paying jobs and cementing the Korean capital as a premier global hub for innovation. Now, the city is preparing to showcase that explosive growth on the world stage. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Monday that it will host Try Everything 2026, its flagship global startup festival, from Sept. 9-10 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza. The event is designed to connect domestic entrepreneurs with international investors, corporate giants and tech innovators. According to Startup Genome, a global policy advisory and research firm, Seoul has maintained its position as a top-10 startup ecosystem globally. The rapid ascent is driven by a highly educated engineering workforce, world-class digital infrastructure and aggressive government backing, including the creation of the Seoul Vision 2030 Fund and expansive open-innovation initiatives. This year’s festival, operating under the slogan “AI Changes Everything, Now Try Everything,” reflects a strategic

Jun 29, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Seoul bets big on global startup platform as AI reshapes industries
Travel & Food

Exiled Vietnamese prince sparks tourism push into rural Korea

Looking to disperse international tourism beyond the crowded streets of Seoul, Korea is mining an ancient, forgotten royal connection to lure travelers from its top tourism market: Vietnam. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on Friday a new initiative to develop historical travel routes centered around Bonghwa, a quiet mountainous county in North Gyeongsang Province. While seemingly an unlikely destination for international visitors, Bonghwa holds a unique position in regional diplomacy. It is the final resting place of Prince Ly Long Tuong, a scion of Vietnam’s Ly Dynasty who fled a palace coup in the 13th century, crossed the sea to the Goryeo Kingdom and established a lineage in Korea that survives to this day. Following a bilateral summit in April where Vietnamese officials highlighted Bonghwa as a symbol of shared history, Seoul is moving to institutionalize the narrative. The government plans to link a developing cultural site called K-Vietnam Valley with nearby UNESCO World Heritage sites, including the ancient wooden temples of Buseoksa and the traditional

Jun 28, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Exiled Vietnamese prince sparks tourism push into rural Korea
Korean Heritage

Seoul anoints masters of quilting technique, silver inlaying to preserve traditional crafts

In a bid to safeguard Korea’s vanishing artisan heritage, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has designated two women to lifelong honors in the traditional crafts of geometric silk quilting and intricate metal inlaying, the city said Friday. Kim Yun-sun, a veteran artisan who has spent more than 40 years resurrecting a nearly forgotten textile art, was named as the city's first official master of "saeksilnubi" (colored thread quilting). Concurrently, Shin Seon-i, an internationally recognized metalworker, was appointed as a certified "transmission educator" for "ipsajang" (iron-inlaying), an elite status that tasks her with training the next generation in a craft whose survival remains economically precarious. Kim’s designation as a master — a title reserved for those who can flawlessly replicate historic techniques — recognizes a four-decade dedication that began in 1980, when she stumbled upon her grandfather’s antique tobacco pouch. Captivated by its raised, corded geometric patterns, she began analyzing museum relics and buying up marketplace antiques to reverse-engineer t

Jun 27, 2026By Lee Kyung-min
Seoul anoints masters of quilting technique, silver inlaying to preserve traditional crafts
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