Hangul Day
This month is October, and one of South Korea’s main public holidays is Hangul Day.
What is Hangul Day?
Hangul Day is a day to celebrate the creation and promulgation of Hangul, made by King Sejong the Great.
A statue of King Sejong the Great
Creation of Hangul
Hangul is made to be easier for illiterate citizens who couldn’t read Hanja (한자), Chinese characters, to be able to read and write. Used by the elites, Hanja turned out to be incredibly hard to learn and read, preventing most common people to learn, read, and express themselves on paper.
To solve this problem, King Sejong worked day and night with his supporters to create a language that uses mouth and tongue shapes to form a character. In 1443, Hunminjeongeum (훈민정음) was created to introduce Hangul to common people and was promulgated in 1446, despite strong opposition by elites.
Hunminjeongeum translates to “correct sounds for the instruction of people,” revealing King Sejong’s hope to teach illiterate citizens.
A part of the book Hunminjeongeum
From the day Hangul was promulgated, common people started to learn how to read and write. Nowadays, Hangul is one of the most scientific and straightforward writing systems in the world.