The Korean language is a major regional language of Southeast Asia, and an interesting one from several linguistic perspectives. Part of today’s interest in the Korean language comes as the South Korean communities are embracing English as a world language and broadening their global relationships. However, much of the linguistic interest in this language is based on its long history: the Korean language dates back to the era B.C., which scholars often refer to as Proto-Korean, and is still spoken today, albeit in a modernized form labeled Modern Korean. Experts have identified four major ‘eras’ in which the Korean language underwent various changes: Proto-Korean, Old Korean, Middle Korean, and Modern Korean. Each has its own attributes and conventions, and relevance for professional human translators who have to work with modern text, but benefit from understanding the linguistic history.
Korean and World Languages
Another aspect of the Korean language is its similarities to other major world languages. Although Korean shares quite a bit with other languages in the region, such as Chinese and Japanese, Korean has also been linked to Western Latin-based languages in key ways. Studying these links helps to show the Korean language’s “connections” to other major languages around the world, which can help in translation and interpretation.
Korean and Language Changes
There’s also been a lot of interest in the major changes that occurred in the Korean language from its beginnings to the present day. One major issue is whether older forms of Korean may have been ‘tonal language,’ a popular trend in the region. Other major changes have to do with vocabulary and the way that the language has evolved over time in its various dialects, which were supposed to be based on separate past kingdoms and language communities.
Many of these areas of interest have a lot of application to professional human translation of the Korean language. Professional translators rely on a detailed knowledge of the language to provide excellent results that will look and sound authentic to native speakers. Aside from the historical and cultural benefits of learning about the Korean language, this kind of research and language acquisition will help qualify those who translate and interpret professionally for audiences. Those who need content translated or interpreted to or from Korean should ask about whether a service firm hires professional human translators with the right skills and experience to treat this complex language well and provide accurate delivery. The professional Korean translators on our translation team are native-speaking and most often located in country as well.
