Say "(gamyeombyeong) segyejeok yuhaeng" instead of "pandemic"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jonggil Lee] The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Institute of the Korean Language recommended on the 10th to replace the term ‘pandemic’ with the Korean phrase ‘(감염병)세계적 유행’ (meaning ‘global infectious disease outbreak’).

‘Pandemic’ is the highest alert level defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) among the new influenza alert phases. It refers to the simultaneous widespread outbreak of an infectious disease across multiple continents and countries. The two organizations decided at the Saemal Meeting held from the 2nd to the 4th that ‘(감염병)세계적 유행’ is an appropriate Korean substitute for this term.

Additionally, they proposed replacing ‘epidemic’ with ‘(감염병)유행’ (meaning ‘infectious disease outbreak’). ‘Epidemic’ is the alert phase just before ‘pandemic’ in the new influenza alert system. It refers to the rapid spread of an infectious disease among many people.

The Saemal Meeting is a committee operated to provide Korean alternative words that are easy for the general public to understand before difficult foreign neologisms spread. Experts from various fields including Korean language, foreign languages, education, publicity and publishing, information and communication, and media participate in the committee.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.