The language family of the Korean language is a debate and depending on different theories, Korean is part of different language families or isolate. The most prominent family Korean is linked to is the Altaic/Ural-Altaic language family. This family group includes languages of central Asia such as Turkish, Mongolian, Finnish, and Hungarian. Korea's history with China and Japan in addition to the history on the peninsula also shape other theories and the language itself. In Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula, two different groups of languages were spoken until the 7th Century when the Silla kingdom united the three kingdoms of the Peninsula and made the Silla dialect the dominant language. The modern writing system of Korea (한글 Hangul) was devised by King Sejong the Great for efficiency and accessibility. Previously, the language used Chinese characters to represent the sounds/meanings of Korean, and only the elite had the time to learn thousands of characters in the Chinese language. Because of the close proximity and shared usage of characters, modern Korean still reflects a lot of Chinese influence (i.e. vocabulary, proverbs). This understanding makes it easier for me to understand the importance of learning 한자 (hanja), old Korean with Chinese characters, when I was little. The historical events of Korea (Japanese occupation, English influence from the US, and ancient Chinese/Mongolian dynasties) also provide some insight into the creation of words following King Sejong’s innovation of the modern Korean language.
According to the previous class, languages change over time through historical events and changes in the people who speak and write the language. Pronunciations evolve, new words are coined or borrowed, new meanings are added to words or usages change, and grammar also changes. Linguists study the formation of sister/daughter languages and compare the differences between languages within a family (or the language itself). The past and present of languages are studied, and therefore make predictions possible.
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