10 Oldest Languages Still in Use Today in South Korea: A Deep Dive into Linguistic Heritage

10 Oldest Languages Still in Use Today in South Korea: A Deep Dive into Linguistic Heritage

South Korea, a country with a rich cultural and linguistic heritage, is home to a multitude of languages. While the country is best known for its official language, Korean, which belongs to the Koreanic language family, the linguistic landscape of South Korea is diverse and contains many ancient languages that have been spoken for centuries. Some of these languages still retain speakers and have an important place in the country’s heritage, even as the modernized world increasingly favors global languages like English and Chinese. 

 

This exploration will take you through the oldest languages in use today in South Korea, examining their history, significance, and current state.

1. Korean (Hangul)

Korean, or 한글 (Hangul), is by far the most significant language in South Korea, being the official language of the country and one of the oldest languages in continuous use. The history of the Korean language dates back over 1,500 years to the Three Kingdoms period in the 1st century CE. The language evolved from Proto-Korean, which was the root of several dialects that spread across the Korean Peninsula and parts of Manchuria. However, the version of the language we know today is shaped by numerous influences and adaptations over time.

The Korean language has a rich history tied to the development of Hangul, the script invented by King Sejong the Great in 1443. Sejong and his scholars created Hangul as a simplified and efficient script for the Korean people, who were previously forced to use the complex Classical Chinese characters. Prior to the invention of Hangul, Hanja (Chinese characters) were used for writing Korean, and while this system remains in use for certain aspects of writing (such as formal names, literary references, and academic contexts), Hangul is the dominant script today.

Over centuries, Korean has evolved with changes in grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. However, it has preserved many aspects of its ancient linguistic structure, particularly in the formal language used in classical literature and historical texts. Despite globalization and the pressures of English and Chinese on South Korea’s linguistic landscape, Korean remains a symbol of national identity and cultural pride. It is spoken by the majority of the population in both North and South Korea and is one of the most well-preserved ancient languages still in active use today.

2. Jeju (Cheju)

Jeju is a unique language spoken on Jeju Island, the southernmost part of South Korea. It is considered a language isolate, meaning it does not belong to any major language family. Jeju is often categorized as a dialect of Korean, but linguists have debated whether it should be considered a separate language due to its significant linguistic differences from standard Korean.

Jeju's origins trace back more than a thousand years, with its linguistic features heavily influenced by the island’s isolation and unique cultural history. Jeju has its own distinct set of phonological, morphological, and syntactical rules, making it intelligible only to a small group of older speakers in Jeju and those with formal training in the dialect. Many younger generations have switched to standard Korean, and the use of Jeju is gradually declining.

Historically, the Jeju language evolved from Old Korean, which was the standard language in the early centuries of the Korean Peninsula. Over time, Jeju became a distinct dialect due to the geographical isolation of the island and the unique cultural influences it experienced. The island’s distinct geographical, political, and cultural context allowed Jeju to develop independently, leading to significant differences in pronunciation and vocabulary.

In recent decades, Jeju has come under threat as younger people have been moving away from the island’s traditional ways of life. Today, efforts are being made to preserve and revitalize Jeju through language education programs and media. The inclusion of Jeju in the UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list reflects the importance of the language in preserving South Korea’s rich cultural diversity.

3. Classical Chinese (Hanja)

While not a language in the traditional sense of spoken language, Classical Chinese (Hanja) has played an essential role in South Korean culture and language for over a millennium. Hanja refers to Chinese characters that were used to write Korean before the invention of Hangul. While the use of Hanja in spoken language has long since been replaced by Hangul, its presence remains in certain literary, historical, and formal contexts.

Hanja has been part of Korean culture since the early Three Kingdoms period (57 BCE – 668 CE), when Chinese culture and language began to influence the Korean Peninsula. Throughout Korean history, scholars, politicians, and elites used Classical Chinese as the lingua franca for formal writing, academic texts, and literature. The influence of Chinese on Korean is visible in the many loanwords that are used in Korean today, many of which are derived from Classical Chinese.

The use of Hanja has waned over time, with Hangul becoming the dominant script for writing Korean. However, Hanja is still taught in South Korea, especially in schools, and it remains an integral part of understanding older texts and classical literature. In modern South Korea, Hanja is occasionally used in newspapers, legal documents, and scholarly writing, though its use has been largely supplanted by Hangul in everyday life.

Despite its decline, Classical Chinese's role in shaping Korean intellectual history cannot be overstated. As a result, it is considered one of the oldest languages still in use, in the form of writing, in South Korea today.

4. Gyeongsang Dialect

The Gyeongsang dialect, spoken in the southeastern provinces of South Korea, has its roots in the Old Korean spoken during the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). The dialect has preserved many linguistic features that have been lost in other forms of Korean, making it one of the oldest varieties still spoken in the country today.

The Gyeongsang dialect is particularly known for its distinct pronunciation and intonation. The most notable feature of the Gyeongsang dialect is its tone system, which is different from the standard Korean spoken in Seoul. The use of high and low tones in Gyeongsang is thought to preserve a more archaic sound that was prevalent in early Korean speech.

The Gyeongsang dialect has survived for centuries due to the region’s relative isolation and its distinct cultural history. While standard Korean has gradually replaced many local dialects across South Korea, the Gyeongsang dialect remains vibrant and is a source of local pride.

5. Chungcheong Dialect

The Chungcheong dialect is spoken in the central region of South Korea, specifically in the Chungcheong provinces. This dialect, which has its roots in Middle Korean, has preserved several archaic phonological and grammatical features. Like the Gyeongsang dialect, the Chungcheong dialect also exhibits a distinct regional flavor, with particular features in its pronunciation, vocabulary, and sentence structure.

Historically, the Chungcheong dialect served as a transitional form of Korean between the older dialects spoken during the Goryeo dynasty and the more modern forms of Korean spoken today. The dialect has a unique rhythm and melodic tone, which can be traced back to ancient Korean speech patterns.

While the Chungcheong dialect has diminished in use in favor of standard Korean, it still holds cultural significance in the region. Efforts to preserve the dialect through local media and education have allowed it to persist as an important part of South Korea’s linguistic heritage.

6. Hamgyong Dialect

The Hamgyong dialect is spoken in the Hamgyong region of North Korea, and historically it was part of the linguistic landscape of both Koreas before the division. Although it is now primarily spoken in North Korea, remnants of the dialect can still be found in South Korea, particularly in the descendants of families who migrated from the north.

The Hamgyong dialect is a subcategory of the Northern dialects of Korean and is notable for its distinct pronunciation and vocabulary, which have been preserved since the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1897). The dialect has also retained some of the features of Old Korean, making it one of the oldest regional dialects still in use today.

While the dialect is largely spoken in North Korea, there are still a small number of speakers in South Korea, especially in areas with significant migration from the north, such as the capital region.

7. Pyojuneo (Standard Korean)

The Pyojuneo, or Standard Korean, is the most widely spoken form of Korean in South Korea today. While it is the modern, standardized version of Korean used in formal speech, media, education, and government, it still carries the historical linguistic legacy of Old Korean.

The roots of Standard Korean can be traced back to the Seoul dialect, which was selected as the standard in the 20th century. Despite its modern nature, Pyojuneo retains many linguistic features from the ancient forms of Korean and has served as a unifying language for the Korean people in both the North and South.

8. Incheon Dialect

The Incheon dialect is another regional dialect with ancient roots, spoken in the city of Incheon, which is part of the greater Seoul metropolitan area. The Incheon dialect, like other regional dialects, exhibits unique features in terms of vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammatical structure that date back to the early periods of the Korean language.

Although it shares similarities with the Gyeongsang dialect, the Incheon dialect is known for its softer pronunciation and its historical use in the port city, which was a major center of trade and cultural exchange during the Joseon Dynasty.

9. Busan Dialect

The Busan dialect, spoken in Busan, the second-largest city in South Korea, shares characteristics with the Gyeongsang dialect but is notable for its influence from the maritime culture of the region. The dialect retains many archaic linguistic features, including a distinctive set of intonations and vocabulary that distinguish it from the standard Seoul dialect.

The Busan dialect’s historical roots date back to the early days of the Korean language and its development under the influence of regional isolation and cultural exchange through maritime trade. Though usage has declined in favor of the standard Korean language, the dialect remains a key element of local identity in Busan.

10. North Korean Dialects

The North Korean dialects differ slightly from the South Korean dialects, having developed independently after the division of Korea. These dialects, including the Pyongan dialect and the Hamgyong dialect, have preserved some archaic features of the Korean language.

While the two Koreas have developed distinct forms of speech, some linguistic traits from the North still remain in use among South Korean defectors and historical communities, providing a glimpse into the ancient roots of the language shared across the Korean Peninsula.

Conclusion

South Korea's linguistic landscape is as rich and diverse as its culture, and many of the languages spoken today have ancient origins. From Korean and its various dialects to the isolated Jeju dialect, the country’s languages continue to be a testament to the endurance of cultural and linguistic traditions. While Hangul has become the symbol of modern Korean identity, these other languages and dialects represent the complex history of South Korea’s people and their deep connections to their past. As the country moves into the future, efforts to preserve and revitalize these languages will help ensure that South Korea’s linguistic diversity remains alive for future generations.

Photo from istock

Share this

Earthisone