Yoon's Surprise Visit to National Hangeul Museum... "Hangeul Spirit Aligns with Freedom, Equality, and Prosperity"

President Yoon: "Hangul Played a Major Role in Becoming an IT Powerhouse"

President Yoon Suk-yeol made a surprise visit to the National Hangeul Museum on the 5th, four days before the 577th Hangeul Day, stating, "The spirit of Hangeul, created by King Sejong, aligns closely with the values of freedom, equality, and prosperity that modern South Korea aspires to."

On that morning, President Yoon visited the National Hangeul Museum located in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and viewed the ongoing event themed "The Power of Hangeul Knocking on the Future," according to Lee Do-woon, spokesperson for the Presidential Office. The National Hangeul Museum, which opened on October 9, 2014, was established to widely promote the linguistic and cultural value of Hangeul, the greatest cultural heritage of the Korean people. Since the 4th, it has been holding various events under the theme "The Power of Hangeul Knocking on the Future" in celebration of the 2023 Hangeul Week.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon first toured the permanent exhibition "Hunminjeongeum, A Millennium Plan for a Script." In the exhibition hall divided into seven sections, he viewed the Hunminjeongeum Haerye and Eonhae editions, as well as the "Jeongjo Hangeul Eochalcheop," a collection of 14 Hangeul letters sent by King Jeongjo to his maternal aunt during his childhood. President Yoon and other visitors were particularly impressed by materials showing palace maids who acted as scribes during the Joseon Dynasty practicing Hangeul, noting that the characters were written so neatly it looked like they were printed by a machine, the spokesperson said. Yu Ho-seon, a curator who provided explanations, added that palace maids were made to practice diligently to the extent that they would not be given lunch if they did not perform well.

Next, President Yoon viewed the evolution of modern Hangeul in the following exhibition room, which included the manuscript of "Malmoe," the first Korean language dictionary, modern Hangeul novels, the Daehan Maeil Sinbo newspaper, and the Dongnip Sinmun newspaper. Curator Yu introduced that during the Gabo Reform, a royal decree mandated that laws and decrees be written in Hangeul, thereby legalizing the use of Hangeul. President Yoon also engaged in conversation with third-grade students from Kkummi School in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, who were viewing digital materials in the digital exhibition room.

After the tour, President Yoon said, "King Sejong wished for everyone to communicate freely through Hangeul regardless of social status or gender," adding, "Contrary to the common prejudice that Hangeul was used only by lower classes or women, it was actually a script used equally by various social classes, from kings to slaves."

President Yoon also referred to materials showing that disputes in government offices during the Joseon Dynasty were resolved using Hangeul, stating, "The fact that lawsuits were written in Hangeul during the Joseon Dynasty means that Hangeul was widely used even in government offices," emphasizing, "Regardless of social rank, even those who could not learn Chinese characters were able to appeal using Hangeul, thereby realizing the value of equality."

President Yoon reiterated the greatness of Hangeul by saying that in the digital age, the most advantageous scripts are the alphabet and Hangeul, and "they played a major role in our advancement as an IT powerhouse." He further explained, "During the Joseon Dynasty, having Hangeul allowed us to be independent from the influence of Chinese characters."

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