Koryo-mar

Koryo-mar
고려말
Pronunciation[ko.ɾjo.maɾ]
Native toUzbekistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan
EthnicityKorean
Native speakers
(220,000 cited 1989)[citation needed]
current number of speakers is unknown
Koreanic
Hangul
Language codes
ISO 639-3–
GlottologNone
IETFko-143
Koryo-mar
North Korean name
Chosŏn'gŭl고려말
Hancha高麗말
Transcriptions
Revised RomanizationGoryeomal
McCune–ReischauerKoryŏmal
Russian name
RussianКорё мар
RomanizationKoryo mar

Koryo-mar (Korean: 고려말; Russian: Корё мар) is a language spoken by Koryo-saram, ethnic Koreans who live in the countries of the former Soviet Union. It is descended from the Hamgyŏng dialect and multiple other varieties of Northeastern Korean. Koryo-mar is often reported as difficult to understand by speakers of standard Korean due to the differences in writing, pronunciation, and vocabulary; this may be compounded by the fact that the majority of Koryo-saram today use Russian and not Korean as their first language.

According to German Kim, Koryo-mar is not widely used in the media and is not taught in schools. Thus it can be classified as endangered.

Names

In the speech of Koryo-saram, the language is referred to as Koryo-mar (고려말 / корё мар), with several alternative pronunciations, including Kore-mar (коре мар) and Kore-mari (коре мари).[citation needed]

In South Korea, the language is referred to as Goryeomal (고려말) or Central Asian Korean (중앙아시아한국어).

In Russia and other former Soviet states, the language is referred to as Koryo-mar (корё мар) or Koryo-mal' (корё маль), of which the former reflects the spoken form while the latter reflects the literary form of Korean.

Orthography

Speakers do not generally use Koryo-mar as a literary language. Written Korean during the Soviet period tended to follow the North Korean standard language, while both Northern and Southern forms have occurred[clarification needed] after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. However, some modern writers, most notably Lavrenti Son, have created plays and short stories in Koryo-mar using Hangul.

A movement for the romanization of Koryo-mar took place in the late 1930s, promoted by various government officials and linguists, but it did not have much success.

Phonology

Characteristics of Koryo-mar distinct from that of Standard Korean include the following phonological differences:

Pedagogy

The community had schools in the Far East, but this was disrupted permanently by their deportation to Central Asia.

Koryo-mar is not taught as a subject or used as the medium of instruction in any schools. Furthermore, due to the encouragement of younger generations to learn Russian, the decline of Koryo-mar usage in families has also accelerated, with the majority of younger Koryo-saram using Koryo-mar words only when talking about food, especially Koryo-saram cuisine, or possibly certain household items. The Korean language as taught in universities of the post-Soviet states is Standard Korean, with instructors being native or trained. In one instance, a South Korean professor tried to teach Koryo-mar at Almaty State University, but he did not achieve much success.

However, despite the stark decline in the use of Koryo-mar, certain words, especially regarding food and household items, as well as familial titles to a certain extent have continued to be passed down to varying degrees to younger generations of Koryo-saram through exposure by older generations.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Kim, German (2009). "Education and Diasporic Language: The Case of Koreans in Kazakhstan" (PDF). Acta Slavica Iaponica. 27. The Slavic-Eurasian Research Center: 103–123. hdl:2115/39584. ISSN 0288-3503.
  2. ↑ Kwak, Chung-gu (2007). "Data and Ressarches for Korean dialect in Central Asia" (PDF). Journal of Humanities (in Korean). 58: 231–272. hdl:10371/29722. ISSN 1598-3021 – via Institute of Humanities, Seoul National University.
  3. ↑ Khan, Valeriy Sergeevich. "Koreans and the Poly-ethnic Environment in Central Asia: The Experience of Eurasianism". Seoul: Academy of Korean Studies. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved 2006-11-20.
  4. ↑ Kim, German (2009). "Education and Diasporic Language: The Case of Koreans in Kazakhstan" (PDF). Acta Slavica Iaponica. 27. The Slavic-Eurasian Research Center: 103–123. hdl:2115/39584. ISSN 0288-3503.
  5. ↑ Kim, Phil. "Forced Deportation and Literary Imagination". Seoul: Academy of Korean Studies. Archived from the original on 2005-07-29. Retrieved 2006-11-20.
  6. ↑ Kim, German. "The History, Culture, and Language of Koryo Saram" (PDF). Seoul: Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies. hdl:10371/63513. Retrieved 2012-08-08.
  7. ↑ Tranter, Nicolas (25 June 2012). Tranter, Nicolas (ed.). The Languages of Japan and Korea. Routledge Language Family Series. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203124741. ISBN 978-1-136-44658-0.
  8. ↑ King 2024.
  9. ↑ Kim, German. "Korean Diaspora in Kazakhstan: Question of Topical Problems for Minorities in Post-Soviet Space" (PDF). Almaty: Institute of Oriental Studies, National Academy of Sciences.

Further reading