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Chuseok, also known as Korean Thanksgiving or the harvest festival, is an important holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar on the full moon. It is common that Koreans return to their ancestral hometowns to eat traditional foods with family. In fact, train and plane tickets are usually sold out three months in advance. Although it’s true that food is often associated with Chuseok, the significance of Chuseok actually is to remember and spend time with family. It’s not uncommon that families visit their ancestor’s graves and perform different rituals to honor their memory. It’s similar to American thanksgiving in the aspect of sharing meals with family members. However, Korean Thanksgiving emphasizes more of the ancestors that are not alive while American Thanksgiving is focused on living family members. 

I remember celebrating Korean Thanksgiving when I live in Korea. I remember the taste of the soft sweet rice cake, Songpyeon. I remember helping my mom and grandmother make them while trying my best to contain my drooling. There was also Hangwa which is a Korean cookie. Hangwa is a desert food that is usually decorated with many different colors, textures, and patterns. Hang is generally made with rice flour, honey, fruit, and roots. I used to think that Hangwa was food for old people because it was considered a desert but was not that sweet. My favorite Korean Chuseok food is probably Japchae. Japchae is stir-fried glass noodles mixed with often with beef many vegetables such as onions, spinach mushrooms. The best combo is to have rice and kimchi with Japchae.

I also remember some of the games we used to play with my family. My favorite game we played together was Dak Sa Um, Chicken Fight. It’s a game where both players bring one of their ankles up above the knee and attempt to knock down the other person’s knee while standing on one leg. It definitely would get intense and physical, but it was loads of fun even though due to my size I did not win too many games. My family has not celebrated Chuseok in a while. We do however celebrate American Thanksgiving. Yet, I definitely do miss celebrating Chuseok. 

Following the traditions of your culture, the traditions that your ancestor had also participated in, gives you a distinct sense of fulfillment in ways that you feel like you are getting to know yourself better. I think that is something I have noticed during Thanksgiving. My family celebrates it because that’s what American families do. Yet, I have no individual attachment towards the American holiday because my ancestors and I cannot relate to it. Nevertheless, I’m glad that we still celebrate some sort of thanksgiving because it’s a time where we as a family come together and appreciate each other. I believe that most holidays are significant because of the gathering of family. It’s a time where you pause the mundane things of life to remember your roots and loved ones. Likewise, Chuseok is no different.

I am very excited by the progress I am making in Indonesian. The switch to meeting synchronously three times a week and having independent assignments twice a week has been especially helpful. 

We had our first monthly assignment, part one was to write about why we were studying Indonesian (at least ten lines typed). Farida, my language teacher, then gave us feedback to make sure we were using proper grammar. Once we had these ideas written down, we had to make a video of ourselves talking through the prompt, but the catch was that we do so without reading a script. I had to practice reading through my written version many times, and then I adjusted what I was saying to use vocabulary that felt more natural to me. For example, rather than talk through my original reason for wanting to learn about religious diversity based on my studies, I instead phrased it as wanting to go to diverse places of worship. This sentence construction flowed more naturally so it felt like I was communicating rather than speaking from memorization. 

Last week, we talked about occupations (I can now tell everyone that I’m an artist who loves to paint) and places to visit in Indonesia. The landscapes we saw were beautiful, and they make me want to visit! This past week, we learned about animals. While at this moment, I don’t have much need to talk about elephants, lions, and monkeys right now, but the vocabulary was still helpful and allowed us to practice using colors. I think I’m getting a pretty good handle on verbs. I can easily say what I want to do but could expand my adjective and noun vocabulary. My goal this weekend is to work on transferring all this new vocabulary into my vocabulary notebook. When I need to find a word, I’ve been just using the Mango language translator. I think it may be helpful to push myself to use my dictionary so that I am looking at my handwriting, which may aid with memory retention and making sure to review the vocabulary we have covered in past classes to build on. For our daily vocabulary reports, I have noticed that I can use them correctly in a sentence, but I have not been effective in committing these words to my long term memory. This week, my goal is to take these vocabulary memorizations seriously and try some different strategies on testing myself to make sure I remember the words. I have had a hard time remembering numbers greater than ten. Learning how to count big numbers correctly is very important for navigating daily life in Indonesia so that I can buy food at the market. Even for small purchases, the denominations are much bigger than in the United States.  A pound of rice may cost 7,000 rupiahs! The other students and I did a role play of being in the market, and it was very tricky to tell the customer how much her items cost. I know that striving to say and hear these numbers accurately will help me in Indonesia so I will do some extra practice during the upcoming weeks!

In my geography class a couple of weeks ago, we were exploring the Environmental Justice Atlas. This map includes case studies of environmental justice issues from all over the world, including many in Indonesia. For this cultural post, I will be focusing on the Wawonii islanders of Sulawesi and how they are responding to unwanted nickel mining permits. Here is a link to the study, which is called "Islanders Resisting Nickel Mining Permits." https://ejatlas.org/conflict/islanders-resisting-nickel-mining-permits-wawonii-southeast-sulawesi-indonesia

The report soberingly acknowledges that despite many years of hard work from the local people fighting these corporate investors, environmental injustice persists. Destructive nickel extraction continues to threaten the community’s traditional fishing practice: nickel contaminates the water, and biodiversity challenged as mining changed the landscape. It does not help that the governing body, known as the Konawe Kepulauan (Konkep) Regency, actively supports the international actors. To these government leaders, the success of the nickel exports over the wellbeing of people. The locals, partnered with the student-, environmental-, and faith-based organizations, have been engaging in many forms of activism, ranging from protests to art-based initiatives. Unfortunately, this vigor has been met with police militarization and state-sanctioned violence. Despite the messiness of this situation and enormous obstacles, the local islanders are facing, I grateful that this study emphasized the autonomy of the local community. I felt like I was able to empathize with the work these people were doing together as they worked to preserve their traditional way of life and ancestral land. 

This issue becomes complex when we realize that the nickel extracted in Wawonii is used for electric car batteries, which we consider an ideal green standard in the United States. This example of local Indonesian culture forces me to think about the interdependency of scales. Even though Wawonii is halfway across the world, my consumer preferences and purchases affect their livelihood. And is this digital age, I can get involved in environmental issues in Indonesia. The bottom of the study includes many links to videos, articles, and even Twitter campaigns. 

The Environmental Justice Atlas provides an authentic artifact that goes beyond celebrating the rich artistic traditions and food culture of Indonesia to grapple with the real problems that members of this country are facing. From this study, I learned how Indigenous Indonesians are committed to protecting their ancestral land to honor past generations and those to come. This is but one example of a courageous community that is willing to work together to preserve their traditional way of life. And yet, I also see that the western countries have influenced the governing structure, i.e., the institution of the police. I was struck by how the images resonate with those we have seen in the United States from Black Lives Matter protests. From my Race and Crime sociology class, I know that the police came out of the slave codes as a way of maintaining order and that such institutions did not always exist in Indonesia. It was painful to see native people are suppressed as violent, disorderly criminals for big corporations to get what they want. 

The topic I am interested in exploring is how Indigenous Indonesian communities relate to the land and how these relationships illuminate ways to work for environmental justice and confront climate change. I will begin my research using the environmental justice atlas, a resource my geography sustainability course.  The following two examples exemplify how this proposed topic relates to linguistics.

During our class discussion of culture and language a couple of classes weeks ago, the Sapir-Wharf hypothesis caught my attention. This experiment illuminated how our language shapes our worldview and the way we engage with the world. As evidence, the study had some subjects identify which of the ten squares was different. To English speakers, it was incredibly difficult to see differences between these color samples, which all appeared to be green. But to those of this other particular culture, which has several different words for green, the difference was immediately apparent. However, when shown a blue square amidst a bunch of green ones, these people could not identify it as different because they only have one word that encapsulates blues and greens. As an artist, I found this study incredibly fascinating. I have been painting at the river a lot this semester and doing my best to capture the nuance in colors that I see. I noticed that the ROYGBIV categorization of colors limits my ability to identify unnamable grays and browns of nature. It seems like I have to actively work to get outside of my usual color vocabulary if I want to accurately paint what I see 

I heard another example of how language shapes the way we perceive the world when I attended a keynote speech by the indigenous scientist and writer Robin Kimmerer. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Kimmerer greeted the audience in her native tongue, which is endangered. She noted how her teachers ask her to use it whenever possible to keep it alive. At the end of the talk, an audience member who was an interdisciplinary artist interested in endangered languages asked about the importance of learning indigenous languages. Kimmerer affirmed that her native tongue promotes a reciprocal relationship that acknowledges the personhood of nature. For example, English positions humans as superior to everyone else with gendered pronouns while everything else is an objective "it." In Kimmerer’s native tongue, plants are spoken of as brothers and sisters. In Bahasa Indonesian, there are no articles whatsoever, so people and animals are on the same level. I am curious, though, about gendered nouns in indigenous Indonesian languages. 

In my Indonesian class, we have talked about different occupations, such as farming, so I know some relevant words for my topic. We have also discussed different places to eat, but have not gone over how Indonesians, especially those living in rural locations, produce food. I will talk with my language instructor about having a culture class about Indonesian land practices. Alternatively, I can plan to ask her about how Indonesians relate to the land and environmental justice issues during a one-on-one tutoring session. Overall, I am excited to learn how language shapes local Indonesians' sustainability worldviews. 

In the recent years, I have been paying more attention to how public schools support students who need more accommodations. Since one of my family members has low vision, I learned that finding reliable technology and resources to have similar school experiences as the other students can be difficult. We have moved from different states in the past years, but we were fortunate to be able to attend the schools that had access to resources such as magnification systems and large print materials each time. Knowing about the accommodations schools are required to provide for students with low vision and for those who are blind got me interested in researching how the school system supports those students who are hard of hearing or for those who are deaf.

Although there are certain schools for the deaf and for the blind, over 75% of deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) students attend the mainstreamed public schools in the United States. There are many pros and cons for each system, but the decision should be made with the child as the top priority. Although mainstream schools can better prepare students for the hearing world, there won’t be many DHH students and deafness can be seen as a disability. Deaf schools accept and embrace Deaf culture, but people may have trouble finding a school close to them.

Unlike most mainstream school students who attend the full day with their designated school teacher, DHH students have slightly different schedules. They receive assistance from a teacher of deaf or hard of hearing (TODHH) for about 50% of the school day, a portion of their day attending the routine general education class, and the remainder of their day receiving instructions from the TODHH. DHH students can also have professional sign and oral interpreters to help them communicate with the people around them depending on how the school is funded. For this system to succeed, the students must be academically and socially be integrated in school. This would mean that they must participate in class activities, have access to the learning materials, and be accepted by their peers.

We know that appropriate support such as classroom sound field or FM systems can be provided by the schools so that the students are able to understand the speaker better, but this will only apply to those who are hard of hearing and not for those students who are completely deaf. The academic integration has also been found to be more successful. DHH students academically perform better when they spend more time in a general classroom setting compared to those in a self-contained room. Still, it has also been found that it was more difficult for these students to communicate during group discussions compared to communicating with the teacher.

Even though we know a lot about the mainstream school structure for DHH students, there are still many unknowns such has the specific instructions of the TODHH and if it is actually effective and beneficial to be taught by a TODHH. Furthermore, though students can receive assistance during school, they can find it more challenging to participate in extracurricular activities and therefore can miss out on social integration. I believe that many schools do try their best to accommodate all their students in school, but I think there should be more resources so that these students can also fully experience the social aspect of school.

Sources:

https://hearmeoutcc.com/mainstream-school-vs-deaf-school/

http://www.raisingandeducatingdeafchildren.org/2014/01/01/deaf-and-hard-of-hearing-students-in-the-mainstream/

After watching the "Reply" TV series, I find that the Korean drinking culture to be very interesting and after researching about it, I discover that there are some drinking etiquettes that are pretty similar to that in the Chinese drinking culture from what I know.

1. Senior should do the honour of pouring the first glass

Seniority is respected in Korea and this does not only apply to age, but also to the hierarchy within a company. When you’re out with your friends or colleagues, the most senior person in terms of age or position should be the one pouring the first glass of drink.

Keep in mind that afterwards, the youngest of the group will have to take over and refill the empty glasses. 

2. Pour drinks with both hands

As a show of respect, Koreans generally use one hand to hold the bottle and place the other on their elbow or chest when pouring drinks. If you do find that the bottle is too big to be held with one hand, you can just use both hands. 

3. Receive the drinks with two hands

It’s only polite to reciprocate what you’ve received, be it amongst your friends or co-workers. When receiving drinks from someone older, hold your cup with both hands. However, if you’re the most senior person in the group, you can raise your glass with just one hand.

But Korean drinking rules become less strict when you’re out drinking with close friends, and it’s perfectly fine to use one hand when pouring or receiving drinks. 

Not sure if you and your drinking partner are close enough to bend the rules? Just use both hands – it’s better to be safe than sorry.

One of the main things that got me interested in learning about Korean culture and language is Kpop without a doubt. With large production music videos and engaging television shows to back them up, the Korean music/entertainment industry is one of the most fascinating cultural phenomena in the world. One intriguing aspect of this is that the music seems to transcend language barriers. Even people like me who can not understand Korean and Hangul are still drawn to the flashy musical experience. Music as a medium of expression seems to be universal in this case; there is no need for any special vocabulary or linguistic knowledge to engage in Korean music initially. However, if one wants to get more than just musical beats from these pieces, one must be able to understand Korean at a masterful degree since the fast paced action and singing accelerate the necessary degree of understanding. Thus, one of the main things that comes with learning Korean is the ability to understand Korean quickly. Though this is difficult to quantify since speed is facilitated by practice. I have not explicitly put down any practice related to Korean music in my learning plan yet since I am still at the elementary level of Hangul. One place that may be worth considering for these musical pieces is the authentic cultural artifacts for SDLC 110. After all, music is a representation of some part of a culture. In the case of Kpop, music is an expression of how this industry was created as a commercial revenue source and may also signify a differentiation between the areas of the Korean peninsula. That is just speculation however. 

Another area of Korean culture that intrigued me greatly was the television shows. Korean variety shows and drama shows illustrate core features of the Korean culture and definitely tie in language. One example of this is that many slang terms in the Korean language will be derived from jokes in Korean variety shows. These slang terms are a part of linguistic studies that focus on less formal and structural vocabulary and are more functional and are often inside jokes for Korean people who understand their language well and also share interest in a popular show. A similar occurrence can happen in Korean dramas. Understanding special vocabulary and linguistic knowledge is often very useful in this area of the culture since many slang terms utilize aspects of the language that fly over the head of a novice learner. Although not immediately necessary, understanding niche details is quite fun and in some cases has been added to my learning plan.

Both the music and television industries are interconnected in Korean, which is not always the case in other cultures. Many times, the artists will join Korean variety shows as guests or act in Korean dramas. This multifaceted web of Korean culture is often what traps unsuspecting viewers like me into deeply enjoying the journey through Korean culture and is what motivated me to study the language itself to have a better understanding of the language that much of the entertainment builds on.

When I travel to different parts of the world, and even to different parts of the United States, I know that I could encounter someone who speaks a language other than English. However, if I were to travel to either England or Australia, where the main language is in fact English, I would expect to be able to understand the local people. I would still be able to read the restaurant menus and I could still ask someone for directions. However, if I were deaf, this would not be the case. In England, British Sign Language is typically practiced and in America, American Sign Langue is typically practiced. The difference between the two languages is not subtle, but rather completely different. Sure, some signs may overlap between the two languages, just as the word for baguette between French and English. In fact, most countries have different signing system. Some countries even have multiple systems, but some countries have the same systems but call them different names. One example of such a sign system exists in India and Pakistan.

       From my research, I also found that like spoken languages, sign languages have different language families. The sign language that has originated from old British sign language is called the Banzsl family tree. Interestingly enough,  American sign language is actually part of the French sign language family tree along with French sign language and Dutch sign langue. According to Wikipedia, there are over three hundred sing languages used around the world, and possibly even more. These languages typically develop through creolization, the process by which different cultural elements are combined and blend together to form a new culture/language and some just develop from nothing. Some forms of sign language development in education institutes and some develop in village communities where the deaf population is large. Those sign languages that develop within a community may possibly be only understood by the members of those communities as the language was formed in that one location. Sign language is constructed between individuals or a population and may not necessarily be standardized across a large area like a country. People develop their own signs in response to new things.

This is present in American sign language, especially for terminology in specific fields. I remember I was describing the difference between a prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell to Reba and after spelling out the two science words - prokaryotic and eukaryotic – we created a new sign for each term. However, the term was only known between us and is not known by anyone else. It appears that sign languages are flexible and adapt to the development of new words much more freely than any other language I have studied.

       I understand that sign language is different from spoken language and that each sign language has a different grammar. However, I do wonder why each country does not have a more established and concrete sign language. Is it due to the fact that the number of deaf people in the country is not large enough? Does no one want to take the task and create a standardized curriculum? Is it simply better to let the language form on its own and not intervene?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sign_languages

https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/2164167/why-there-no-universal-sign-language-and-how

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/13107/7-things-you-should-know-about-sign-language#:~:text=Different%20countries%20have%20different%20sign%20languages.&text=This%20question%20would%20make%20sense,people%20interacting%20with%20each%20other.