[KS] Languages in Korea

[Stefan Ewing]

Rupert Atkinson wrote:

"Definitions? To me, languages have separate grammar and vocab whereas 
dialects have similar grammar and similar vocab, with some differences, 
especially in pronunciation (English / Scottish). But thinking about it, 
that would make Japanese and Korean dialects, would it not? Surely the 
question of why Japanese and Korean grammars are so similar is important."

I don't want to belabour what some might call an obvious point, but the 
similarities between Korean and Japanese grammar are on those words that are 
formed from Hanja/Kanji (i.e., Chinese or Han characters).  There is a vast 
difference between the native Korean and Japanese vocabularies--i.e., those 
whose words make up the bulk of everyday conversation.

The relationship between native Korean and Sino-Korean (Hanja) words is 
highly analogous to that between Germanic and Greco-Latin words in English.  
Most of the function words, concrete nouns, basic verbs, etc. that we use 
with such frequency come from English's Germanic roots, by way of Old 
English or in some cases Old Norse, and likewise with function words, etc. 
in Korean, most of which are native Korean in origin.  Most of the abstract 
or otherwise high-falutin' words we use in English come of course from Greek 
or Latin (often by way of French) or are formed from Greek or Latin word 
elements, and likewise with many of the nouns and verbs in Korean, which are 
formed from hanja.

It is true, however, that the grammars of Korean and Japanese are remarkably 
(almost uncannily) similar.  Is this just an accidental consequence of their 
both being agglutinative, SOV (subject-object-verb) languages, or does it 
bespeak of some deeper long-distant connection between the two languages' 
ancestor(s)?  (I have no idea, as it's far beyond my area of knowledge.)

Stefan Ewing

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