[KS] (no subject)

[McCann, David]

I would suggest that in English-language circles, the event can and should be referred to in whatever terms the writer wishes.

David McCann

On Nov 12, 2011, at 1:51 PM, DeberniereTorrey wrote:

Dear List Members,

Forgive my ignorance, but in English-speaking circles, is it acceptable to refer to what happened in Kwangju in May 1980 as "The Kwangju Uprising"? I see both "Kwangju [People's] Uprising" and "Kwangju Democracy Movement" used interchangeably, although in Korean-language sources, in line with the official re-naming in 1988, the proper name is the translation of "Kwangju Democracy Movement," that is, 광주 민주화 운동 (Kwangju minjuwha undong). I'm assuming that English-language sources use both "Uprising" and "Democracy Movement" because "uprising" doesn't have the negative connotation of 반란 pallan/ballan (rebellion) or 내란 naeran (civil unrest), which is what the movement was referred to before the official re-evaluation and re-naming. (Then again, from a Western outsider's perspective, would "rebellion" and "civil unrest" have the same negative connotation that they would from a perspective internal to the Korean context?)
Thanks for any enlightenment on this issue.
Deberniere Torrey.

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