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 King Sejong, the 4th king of the Joseon Dynasty, concerned that the majority of
the common people could not learn the written Chinese then in use in Korea
because of its structural difference from Korean, created the Korean alphabet,
which he called Hunmin Jeongeum, (Proper Sounds to Instruct the People). The
task was completed in the 25th year of his reign, 1443. Three years later, at
the king's command, the alphabet was promulgated by the Jiphyeonjeon, or "Hall
of the Worthy ", in a 33-page book in Chinese, Hunmin Jeongeum Haeryebon, The
Explanatory Edition of the Proper Sounds to Instruct the People
This
work consists of two parts. The first part, written by King Sejong himself,
contains a preface setting at his purpose in creating the new alphabet followed
by the main text, which explains each of the 28 letters, with examples of
consonant-vowel combinations. The second part, written by Jeong In-ji and seven
other scholars of Jiphyeonjeon, consists of six chapters: 'An Explanation of the
Design of the Letters,' which expounds the phonetic and philosophical principles
by which the new letters were made, 'An Explanation of the Initials,' which
presents the 17 consonants which appear in syllable-initial position, 'An
Explanation of the Medials,' which presents the 11 vowels, 'An Explanation of
the Finals,' which presents the consonants appearing in syllable-final position,
'An Explanation of the Combining of the Letters,' which demonstrates how the
initials, medials, and finals are assembled to form syllables, and 'Examples of
the Use of the Letters,' which shows words written with the new letters. These
are followed by a postface by Jeong In-ji.
Hangeul, as this alphabet has
come to be known, is unique among the world's writing systems in having been
created at a specifiable time by identifiable people, without any direct
influence from already existing writing systems, to become a national written
language. Moreover, no other writing system has ever been promulgated in an
explanatory volume. Hangeul originally had 28 letters, but four letters have
dropped out of use, leaving 24 letters, 14 consonants and 10 vowels. Hunmin
Jeongeum was designated as National Treasure No. 70 to ensure its preservation
and was registered in UNESCO's Memory of the World in October 1997.
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