The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
The Korea Times
amn_close.png
amn_bl.png
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
amn_bl.png
Business
  • Tech
  • Bio
  • Companies
amn_bl.png
Finance
  • Companies
  • Economy
  • Markets
  • Cryptocurrency
amn_bl.png
Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Thoughts of the Times
  • Cartoon
  • Today in History
  • Blogs
  • Tribune Service
  • Blondie & Garfield
  • Letter to President
  • Letter to the Editor
amn_bl.png
Lifestyle
  • Travel & Food
  • Trends
  • People & Events
  • Books
  • Around Town
  • Fortune Telling
amn_bl.png
Entertainment & Arts
  • K-pop
  • Films
  • Shows & Dramas
  • Music
  • Theater & Others
amn_bl.png
Sports
amn_bl.png
World
  • SCMP
  • Asia
amn_bl.png
Video
  • Korean Storytellers
  • POPKORN
  • Culture
  • People
  • News
amn_bl.png
Photos
  • Photo News
  • Darkroom
amn_NK.png amn_DR.png amn_LK.png amn_LE.png
  • bt_fb_on_2022.svgbt_fb_over_2022.svg
  • bt_twitter_on_2022.svgbt_twitter_over_2022.svg
  • bt_youtube_on_2022.svgbt_youtube_over_2022.svg
  • bt_instagram_on_2022.svgbt_instagram_over_2022.svg
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
  • 1

    Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway

  • 3

    Koreans wish to work less than 40 hours per week: survey

  • 5

    Yoon faces strong political backlash after Tokyo summit

  • 7

    Video footage highlights details of stepmother's fatal abuse of 12-year-old

  • 9

    Actor Yoo Ah-in to appear for questioning Friday over alleged drug use

  • 11

    INTERVIEWNorth Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers

  • 13

    New EU trade policies unnerve Korean firms

  • 15

    North Korea fires ballistic missile as US bombers join drills

  • 17

    Whisky sales at E-Mart outlets exceed soju sales in Jan.-Feb. period

  • 19

    Could Doosan Robotics be valued at 1 trillion won in IPO?

  • 2

    Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth

  • 4

    Mask mandate on public transportation to end Monday

  • 6

    Apple Pay's imminent launch in Korea draws mixed responses

  • 8

    Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building

  • 10

    Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation

  • 12

    KAIST student becomes first Korean recipient of Apple Scholars fellowship

  • 14

    ANALYSISYoon-Kishida summit may 'raise ceiling' for trilateral cooperation with US: expert

  • 16

    Land minister fortifies city building cooperation with Indonesia

  • 18

    UBS eyeing swoop for Credit Suisse, sources say, amid fears of banking contagion

  • 20

    Trump expects to be arrested Tuesday as DA eyes charges

Close scrollclosebutton

Close for 24 hours

Open
  • The Korea Times
  • search
  • all menu
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Photos
  • Video
  • World
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment & Art
  • Lifestyle
  • Finance
  • Business
  • National
  • North Korea
National
  • Politics
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Multicultural Community
  • Defense
  • Environment & Animals
  • Law & Crime
  • Society
  • Health & Science
Tue, March 21, 2023 | 20:27
Multicultural Community
Korea Encounters'Fighting' over Konglish in the 1960s
Posted : 2018-07-03 13:28
Updated : 2018-07-03 21:36
Print PreviewPrint Preview
Font Size UpFont Size Up
Font Size DownFont Size Down
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • kakaolink
  • whatsapp
  • reddit
  • mailto
  • link
By Matt VanVolkenburg

In a January 1967 "Thoughts of The Times" column, Michael Daniels, a staff member at Sogang University, wondered "why Koreans use so many Koreanized English words when they have a perfectly good word in their own language that would cover the same situation."

Referring to them as a "corruption of English," he also noted, "The strange thing about many of them is they often don't have the same meaning as they do in English. Some of them have something like the same meaning, but with a little twist."

In a letter published days later, English teacher Kim Byong-woo criticized Daniels for his "dim view of the Koreanized English words," particularly since "English has sometimes borrowed freely from other languages." Though Kim himself was sometimes annoyed by those who overused these words due to a "desire to show off" and warned his students against this, he was not opposed to their use, and was in fact fond of words like "salaryman" and "close-up." He also expressed surprise that Daniels could not perceive the reasons for such extensive Korean borrowing from English ― the ROK-US relationship ― and wondered what Daniels' point was.

"Does he mean that so many Koreanized English words suggest how contemptible Koreans are? Does he mean that the Korean language might be replaced by the Konglish (Koreanized English) someday in the future for lack of self-respect and self-confidence?"

Some might be surprised to see the term "Konglish" in use over 50 years ago, but a survey of Korean newspapers, journals, and magazines from the 1950s and 1960s turns up a large number of English loanwords. Likewise, a number of terms similar to Konglish date from the mid-20th century. The earliest such combination is perhaps "Spanglish," coined by Puerto Rican poet Salvador Tio in the late 1940s. "Chinglish" (Chinese and English) appeared in 1957, while "Franglais" (French and English) appeared in 1959.

The earliest appearance of "Konglish" may be in a Kyunghyang Shinmun article from July 1962 about trends among youth. It noted that "University coeds call the slang they use Konglish. It means a mix of Korean and English." Another article a week later referred to it as a "bibimbap" of English and Korean. One example given was "A.D," which meant "apologize." This was derived from a pun on the Korean word "sagwa," which means both "apple" and "apology"; A.D. was short for "apple do."

With little appreciation for such playfulness, Daniels had another letter published in The Korea Times in December 1969 which he began by obtusely conflating a ban on Chinese characters in newspapers with doing away with all Chinese-derived Korean words. He then criticized the increasing appearance in Korean newspapers of "so called Konglish" which he thought was "ridiculous." Noting that Koreans couldn't even explain some terms (like "start card section"), he argued "these Koreanized English words are very much less understood than the Hanmun or the Korean," and asked, "For whom are these words used?"

If in 1967 Daniels had noted that there were enough Konglish words to "make a good-sized dictionary," by 1975 one was being compiled. In October that year, Pae Yang-seo submitted a "Thoughts of The Times" column titled "Konglish and Jamerican." In it, Pae, the editor of a loanword dictionary, referred to the many Konglish words that originated in Japan and were adopted during the 1910-45 colonial era, such as "old miss" or "cunning" (cheating), but asserted that while Koreans were "less enthusiastic than their Japanese neighbors," they were "nevertheless gifted in coining what they consider to be English words."

Two examples he provided were "nodaji," or bonanza, and "hwaiting" (fighting), which was understood "in the sense of fighting spirit or a cheering call in a sports arena." He said, "Many naive students assume that the word was derived from fighting instead of Fight, team!"

Though Pae thought such Konglish words might occasionally "behave as stumbling blocks for those who strive to learn English correctly," in his final estimation he believed they "should be treated as legitimate, if not dignified" Korean words.

Matt VanVolkenburg has a master's degree in Korean studies from the University of Washington. He is the blogger behind populargusts.blogspot.kr.


 
LG Group
Top 10 Stories
1Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway Woman killed in stopped car struck by bus on highway
2Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth Korea sets record of half million economically inactive youth
3Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation
4[INTERVIEW] North Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers INTERVIEWNorth Korean-born chef delights Southerners' taste buds, breaks down cultural barriers
5KAIST student becomes first Korean recipient of Apple Scholars fellowship KAIST student becomes first Korean recipient of Apple Scholars fellowship
6COVID-hit Myeong-dong bounces back as tourists return COVID-hit Myeong-dong bounces back as tourists return
7Public officials reluctant to dine with coworkers Public officials reluctant to dine with coworkers
8Brides in early 40s outnumber those in early 20s Brides in early 40s outnumber those in early 20s
9OTT service providers negatively impacted by illegal streaming website OTT service providers negatively impacted by illegal streaming website
10[ANALYSIS] Yoon-Kishida meeting raises expectations of 3-way summit with China ANALYSISYoon-Kishida meeting raises expectations of 3-way summit with China
Top 5 Entertainment News
1Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building Centre Pompidou's Korean branch to open in 63 Building
2Celebrities head back abroad to film K-food reality shows Celebrities head back abroad to film K-food reality shows
3Park Sung-woong talks about filming 'Woong Nam' with comedian-turned-director Park Sung-woong talks about filming 'Woong Nam' with comedian-turned-director
4Lee Se-young to lead MBC's new series 'The Story of Park's Marriage Contract' Lee Se-young to lead MBC's new series 'The Story of Park's Marriage Contract'
5From sky to deserted islands, two artists' documentation of nature adds surreal touch to reality From sky to deserted islands, two artists' documentation of nature adds surreal touch to reality
DARKROOM
  • Turkey-Syria earthquake

    Turkey-Syria earthquake

  • Nepal plane crash

    Nepal plane crash

  • Brazil capital uprising

    Brazil capital uprising

  • Happy New Year 2023

    Happy New Year 2023

  • World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

    World Cup 2022 Final - Argentina vs France

CEO & Publisher : Oh Young-jin
Digital News Email : webmaster@koreatimes.co.kr
Tel : 02-724-2114
Online newspaper registration No : 서울,아52844
Date of registration : 2020.02.05
Masthead : The Korea Times
Copyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.
  • About Us
  • Introduction
  • History
  • Contact Us
  • Products & Services
  • Subscribe
  • E-paper
  • RSS Service
  • Content Sales
  • Site Map
  • Policy
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ombudsman
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service
  • Copyright Policy
  • Family Site
  • Hankook Ilbo
  • Dongwha Group