The world got a crash course in the Korean language in 2012 when “강남스타일” became the most watched video on YouTube. In case you couldn’t read that, that’s of course “Gangnam Style” written in hangeul, the Korean alphabet first developed in the 15th century and still used today.
The story goes that in 15th-century Korea, King Sejong the Great was frustrated that only the intellectual elite could write Korean; others struggled with the Chinese characters they used to write their own language. He led the creation of an alphabet so intuitive and useful that it’s been used in Korea ever since with almost no changes. Five centuries after its birth, Jared Diamond praised it as an “
ultrarational system,” while comic-book writer Ryan Estrada found it possible to learn in
just 15 minutes. No wonder Korea’s
national day on October 9 is named after such a great national asset.
King Sejong’s project remains an inspiration for us at Google, given our mission to make information more accessible. To help promote hangeul around the world, we have partnered with the National Hangeul Museum, as part of the
Google Giving program, to use technology both in the museum and on its website to help foreigners and children learn more about the language. We look forward to these exhibitions opening next year.
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| Mr Jinryong Yoo, Korea Culture Minister, and Eric Schmidt, Google Chairman |
The Korean written language, however, is just one aspect of Korea’s amazing culture that deserves more global attention. Today we also announced new special collections from Korean institutions at the
Google Cultural Institute. You can explore the 300-year old history behind classic hanok houses in a
special collection or zoom in to admire the detail on one of designer Lee Young-hee’s vibrant
hanbok formalwear. These exhibitions capture the beauty and elegance of Korea’s traditional culture, many elements of which are still visible amid the skyscrapers and cutting-edge streetwear in Seoul today.
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| Myeongjae Hanok exhibition |
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| Jeogori, Lee Young-hee |
On top of the other collections,
Korean Film Archive has uploaded 12 exhibitions that celebrate hundreds of significant moments in the history of Korean cinema. You’ll be able to see photos and videos from the Cold War to the present day, summarized thematically in special exhibitions like
Female Stars in Korean Film and
Korean Anti-communist films during the Cold War.
Over at the
Google Art Project, we recently added panoramic imagery from the interior of the National Museum of Korea, the country’s largest museum, which has attracted over 20 million visitors since its reopening in 2005. Thanks to Street View, you can now smoothly move from admiring vitrines of 6th century Baekje gold jewelry to displays of copper Buddhist bells — all without jostling through the crowds. We are also pleased to add the
Korea Database Agency as a partner today, which has made available online 4,800 works of Korean art, ranging from those of the Joseon era (1392-1910) to contemporary artists whose work is now in the public domain.
Korea has been one of the most effective exporters of culture online. Around 90% of the views for Korean YouTube music partners’ videos come from overseas — one of the highest ratios in the world (and a higher export ratio than even the
box office receipts of a Hollywood blockbuster). Given that interest, we hope the world will benefit from having the same level of access to Korea’s entire 5,000 years of culture that it does to K-Pop.
Posted by Kate Park, Communications Manager, and Jinyoung Baik, Strategic Partner Development Manager, Google Korea
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