Hunminjeongeum

For the Korean alphabet, see Hangul.

Hunminjeongeum
Gansong Art Museum, Seoul, South Korea
The first page of the foreward written by King Sejong the Great
Also known as	The Proper Sounds for the Instruction of the People
Date	October 9, 1446 (South Korean government)
Place of origin	Seoul, Joseon
Scribe(s)	Hall of Worthies
Author(s)	Sejong the Great Hall of Worthies
Script	Classical Chinese
Contents	Introduction of the native Korean writing system Hangul
Korean name
Hunminjeongeum	훈〮민져ᇰ〮ᅙᅳᆷ
Hanja	訓民正音
Korean name
Hangul	훈민정음
Hanja	訓民正音
Revised Romanization	Hunminjeong(-)eum
McCune–Reischauer	Hunminjŏngŭm

Hunminjeongeum (Korean: 훈민정음; Hanja: 訓民正音; lit. The Correct/Proper Sounds for the Instruction of the People) is a 15th century historical document that introduced a script that became the Hangul script for writing the Korean language. An original copy of the document is currently located at the Gansong Art Museum in Seoul, South Korea.

Hunminjeongeum was commissioned and supervised by Sejong the Great based on a writing system he invented in 1443. The original spelling of the title was 훈〮민져ᇰ〮ᅙᅳᆷ Húnminjyéongʼeum (in North Korea, Húnminjyéonghʼeum). The script it introduced was actually originally named "Hunminjeongeum" after the document, but its name was later changed to its present form. It was intended to be a simpler alternative to the incumbent Chinese-based Hanja, in order to promote literacy among the general populace. It originally included 28 letters , but over time, four of those were abandoned, leading to the current 24 letters of Hangul.

The date of the document's publication is subject to some debate. The South Korean government considers October 9, 1446 to be the date; that day is now the holiday Hangul Day in South Korea. However, there is a record in the 102nd volume of the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty that announces the publication of the text in the 25th year of Sejong's reign, which corresponds to 1443–1444.

On December 20, 1962, the document was designated a National Treasure in South Korea. In 1997, the document was registered by UNESCO in the Memory of the World Programme.

History

Before Hangul, the Korean alphabet, was created, Koreans used Chinese characters to record their words. Since Chinese language and Korean language share few similarities, borrowing Chinese characters proved to be inefficient to reflect the spoken language. In addition, at the time when King Sejong was inventing Hangul the Ming dynasty had just come to power in China, which changed the pronunciation of Chinese characters, making it harder for Koreans to learn the new standard pronunciation to record their words. The illiteracy level also stayed high since reading and learning Chinese characters was restricted among the ordinary people. They were generally used in official documents by the ruling class. The ruling class took advantage of this and learning the Chinese characters became a symbol of power and privilege. In order to make written language more accessible for common people, King Sejong started creating Hangul secretly, since the ruling class would be appalled by the news.

Hangul was personally created by Sejong the Great, the fourth king of the Joseon dynasty, and revealed by him in 1443. Although it is widely assumed that King Sejong ordered the Hall of Worthies to invent Hangul, contemporary records such as the Veritable Records of King Sejong and Jeong Inji's preface to the Hunminjeongeum Haerye emphasize that he invented it himself. This is stated in Book 113 of The Annals of King Sejong (Sejongsillok) on the 9th month and the 28th year of reign of King Sejong and at the end of An Illustrated Explanation of Hunminjeongeum (Hunminjeongeum Haeryebon). Afterward, King Sejong wrote the preface to the Hunminjeongeum, explaining the origin and purpose of Hangul and providing brief examples and explanations, and then tasked the Hall of Worthies to write detailed examples and explanations. The head of the Hall of Worthies, Jeong In-ji, was responsible for compiling the Hunminjeongeum. The Hunminjeongeum was published and promulgated to the public in 1446. The writing system is referred to as "Hangul" today but was originally named as Hunminjeongeum by King Sejong. "Hunmin" and "Jeongeum" are respective words that each indicate "to teach the people" and "proper sounds." Together Hunminjeongeum means "correct sounds for the instruction of the people."

Content

The publication is written in Classical Chinese and contains a preface, the alphabet letters (jamo), and brief descriptions of their corresponding sounds. It is later supplemented by a longer document called Hunminjeongeum Haerye that is designated as a national treasure No. 70. To distinguish it from its supplement, Hunminjeongeum is sometimes called the "Samples and Significance Edition of Hunminjeongeum" (훈민정음예의본; 訓民正音例義本).

The Classical Chinese (한문; 漢文; hanmun) of the Hunminjeongeum has been partly translated into Middle Korean. This translation is found together with Worinseokbo and is called the Hunminjeongeum Eonhaebon.

The first paragraph of the document reveals King Sejong's motivation for creating hangul:

• Classical Chinese (Original):

國之語音
異乎中國
與文字不相流通
故愚民 有所欲言
而終不得伸其情者多矣
予爲此憫然
新制二十八字
欲使人人易習便於日用耳

• Transcription:
  • 1. Kwúyk ci ngě qum.
  • 2. Í hhwo tyung kwúyk.
  • 3. Yě mwun ccó pwúlq syang lyuw thwong.
  • 4. Kwó ngwu min wǔw swǒ ywók ngen.
  • 5. Zi cyung pwúlq túk sin kkuy ccyeng cyǎ ta ngǔy.
  • 6. Ye wúy chǒ mǐn zyen.
  • 7. Sin cyéy zí ssíp pálq ccó.
  • 8. Ywók sǒ zin zin í ssíp ppyen qe zílq ywóng zǐ.
• Mix of hanja (Chinese characters) and Hangul (Eonhaebon):

Template:OldKorean

• Transcription:
  • 1. Kwúyk ci ngě qum í.
  • 2. Í hhwo tyung kwúyk hó yá.
  • 3. Yě mwun ccó lwó pwúlq syang lyuw thwong hol ssóy.
  • 4. Kwó lwó ngwu min í wǔw swǒ ywók ngen hó ya dwó.
  • 5. Zi cyung pwúlq túk sin kkuy ccyeng cyǎ y ta ngǔy lá.
  • 6. Ye y wúy chǒ mǐn zyen hó yá.
  • 7. Sin cyéy zí ssíp pálq ccó hó nwo ní.
  • 8. Ywók sǒ zin zin ó lwó í ssíp hó yá ppyen qe zílq ywóng zǐ ni lá.
• Rendered into written Korean (Eonhaebon):

Template:OldKorean

• Transcription:
  • 1. Na lás mǎl sso mí.
  • 2. Tyung kwúyk éy tal á.
  • 3. Mwun ccáw wá lwó se lu so mos tí a ní hol ssóy.
  • 4. Í len cyen chó lwó e lín póyk syéng í ni lu kwó cyé hwólq páy i syé twó.
  • 5. Mo chóm nǎy cey ptú túl si lé phye tí mwǒt holq nwó mí ha ní lá.
  • 6. Náy í lól wúy hó yá ě yes pí ne kyé.
  • 7. Sáy lwó sú múl ye túlp ccó lól moyng kó nwo ní.
  • 8. Sǎ lom mǎ tá hǒi GGyé sǔ Wí ni kyé nál lwó pswú méy ppyen qan khúy ho kwó cyé holq sto lo mí ni lá.
• Translation:

  Because the speech of this country is different from that of China, it [the spoken language] does not match the [Chinese] letters. Therefore, even if the ignorant want to communicate, many of them, in the end, cannot successfully express themselves. Saddened by this, I have [had] 28 letters newly made. It is my wish that all the people may easily learn these letters and that [they] be convenient for daily use.

Versions

The manuscript of the original Hunminjeongeum has two versions:

• Seven pages written in Classical Chinese, except where the Hangul letters are mentioned, as can be seen in the image at the top of this article. Three copies are left:
  • The one found at the beginning of the Haerye copy
  • The one included in Volume 113 of Sejongsillok (세종실록; 世宗實錄; lit. The Sejong Chronicles).
• The Eonhaebon, 36 pages, extensively annotated in hangul, with all hanja transcribed with small hangul to their lower right. The Hangul were written in both ink-brush and geometric styles. Four copies are left:
  • At the beginning of Worinseokbo (월인석보; 月印釋譜), an annotated Buddhist scripture
  • One preserved by Park Seungbin
  • One preserved by Kanazawa, a Japanese person
  • One preserved by Japanese Imperial Household Agency

External links

• Scanned copy of the Eonhae
• UNESCO provides the photos of the book