Korean

Korean, 한국어/조선말,  is the official language of Korea, both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing system was commissioned by Sejong the Great, the system being currently called Hangul. Prior to the development of Hangul, Koreans had used Hanja and phonetic systems like Hyangchal, Gugyeol and Idu extensively for over a millennium.

The genealogical classification of the Korean language is debated by a small number of linguists. Most classify it as a language isolate while a few consider it to be in the Altaic language family. The Korean language is agglutinative in its morphology and SOV in its syntax.

Dialects

Korean has several dialects (called mal (말) [literally "speech"], saturi (사투리), or bang-eon (방언) in Korean). The standard language (pyojuneo or pyojunmal) of South Korea is based on the dialect of the area around Seoul, and the standard for North Korea is based on the dialect spoken around P'yŏngyang. All dialects of Korean are similar to each other and mutually intelligible, with the possible exception of the dialect of Jeju Island (see Jeju dialect). The dialect spoken in Jeju is classified as a different language by some Korean linguists.[who?] One of the most notable differences between dialects is the use of stress: speakers of Seoul dialect use very little stress, and standard South Korean has a very flat intonation; on the other hand, speakers of the Gyeongsang dialect have a very pronounced intonation.

It is also worth noting that there is substantial evidence for a history of extensive dialect levelling, or even convergent evolution or intermixture of two or more originally distinct linguistic stocks, within the Korean language and its dialects. Many Korean dialects have basic vocabulary that is etymologically distinct from vocabulary of identical meaning in Standard Korean or other dialects, such as South Jeolla dialect /kur/ vs. Standard Korean 입 /ip/ "mouth" or Gyeongsang dialect /t͡ɕʌŋ.ɡu.d͡ʑi/ vs. Standard Korean /puːt͡ɕʰu/ "garlic chives". This suggests that the Korean Peninsula may have at one time been much more linguistically diverse than it is at present. See also the Buyeo languages hypothesis.

There is a very close connection between the dialects of Korean and the regions of Korea, since the boundaries of both are largely determined by mountains and seas. Here is a list of traditional dialect names and locations:

Standard dialect Where used

Seoul Seoul (서울), Incheon (인천/仁川), most of Gyeonggi (경기/京畿)

P'yŏngan (평안

/平壤)

P'yŏngyang, P'yŏngan region, Chagang (North Korea)

Regional dialect Where used

Gyeonggi limited areas of the Gyeonggi region (South Korea)

Chungcheong Daejeon, Chungcheong region (South Korea)

Gangwon Gangwon-do (South Korea)/Kangwŏn (North Korea)

Gyeongsang Busan, Daegu, Ulsan, Gyeongsang region (South Korea)

Hamgyŏng Rasŏn, Hamgyŏng region, Ryanggang (North Korea)

Hwanghae Hwanghae region (North Korea)

Jeju Jeju Island/Province (South Korea)

Jeolla Gwangju, Jeolla region (South Korea)

Classification

Since the publication of the article of Ramstedt in 1928, some linguists support the hypothesis that Korean can be classified as an Altaic language or as a relative of proto-Altaic. Korean is similar to the Altaic languages in that they both lack certain grammatical elements, including articles, fusional morphology and relative pronouns. However, linguists agree today on the fact that typological resemblances cannot be used to prove genetic relatedness of languages as these features are typologically connected and easily borrowed. Such factors of typological divergence as Middle Mongolian's exhibition of gender agreement can be used to argue that a genetic relationship is unlikely.

The hypothesis that ancient Korean might be related to Japanese has had some supporters due to some apparent overlap in vocabulary and similar grammatical features that have been elaborated upon by such researchers as Samuel E. Martin and Roy Andrew Miller. Sergei Starostin (1991) found about 25% of potential cognates in the Japanese-Korean 100-word Swadesh list, which—if valid—would place these two languages closer together than other possible members of the Altaic family.

Other linguists, most notably Alexander Vovin, argue, however, that the similarities are not due to any genetic relationship, but rather to a sprachbund effect and heavy borrowing especially from ancient Korean into Western Old Japanese. A good example might be Middle Korean sàm and Japanese asa ‘hemp’.This word seems to be cognate, but while it is well-attested in Western Old Japanese and Northern Ryūkyū, in Eastern Old Japanese it only occurs in compounds, and it is only present in three subdialects of the South-Ryūkyūan dialect group. Then, the doublet wo ‘hemp’ is attested in Western Old Japanese and Southern Ryūkyū. It is thus plausible to assume a borrowed term. 

Speech levels and honorifics

The relationship between a speaker or writer and his or her subject and audience is paramount in Korean, and the grammar reflects this. The relationship between speaker/writer and subject referent is reflected in honorifics, while that between speaker/writer and audience is reflected in speech level.

Honorifics

When talking about someone superior in status, a speaker or writer usually uses special nouns or verb endings to indicate the subject's superiority. Generally, someone is superior in status if he/she is an older relative, a stranger of roughly equal or greater age, or an employer, teacher, customer, or the like. Someone is equal or inferior in status if he/she is a younger stranger, student, employee or the like. Nowadays, there are special endings which can be used on declarative, interrogative, and imperative sentences; and both honorific or normal sentences. They are made for easier and faster use of Korean.

History of honorifics

Honorifics in traditional Korea were strictly hierarchical. The caste and estate systems possessed patterns and usages much more complex and stratified than those we have now. The intricate structure of the Korean honorific system flourished in traditional culture and society. Honorifics in contemporary Korea are now used for people who are psychologically distant. It is a given that you use honorifics when you address acquaintances or strangers. Honorifics are also used for people who are superior in status. For example, older relatives, people who are older, teachers, and employers.

Discrepancies in honorifics

Nowadays, younger-generation speakers no longer feel obligated to lower their usual regard toward the referent. The psychological shifts and socio-cultural changes show the shortening of the axis of power and the lengthening of the axis of individual solidarity. Because Korea has been so influenced by the West, Korea is gradually shifting from a collectivist society to an individualistic society. Nowadays, it is common to see younger people talk to their older relatives with ban-mal (반말). This is not out of disrespect, but it is to show the intimacy and the closeness of the relationship between the two speakers. Transformations in social structures and attitudes in today's rapidly changing society have brought about change in the way people speak.