[KS] Hangul and u-ri-mal

[Byung-Joon Lim]

Dear list:

I've observed many Korean native speakers using "Hangul" to refer to the 
Korean language itself, not the Korean alphabet.

Not only relatively uneducated Koreans but many well-educated Korean people 
also use "Hangul" to refer to the Korean language.

I myself don't mix them together, but some of the Korean folks I met, mostly 
college graduates, do use the words "Hangul" and "u-ri-mal" interchangeably, 
especially when they talk about the written Korean language.

For instance, I've heard the following conversation between two native 
speakers of Korean:  When someone used a Korean slang, which was not 
generally acceptable to general public, another person said "What would King 
Sejong say if he heard that slang?"

Of course King Sejong had nothing to do with the Korean language itself, 
because he didn't create it.  But in that speaker's mind, "Hangul" and 
"Korean" were obviously confused.

I really like this discussion list, and I enjoy reading your postings every 
day.

Peace and grace,

Byung-Joon Lim        http://wwud.com


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