Aspiring Korean speakers are virtually all over the world now, thanks to the borderless travel of Korean pop culture. To reach them, the King Sejong Institute plans to go beyond its physical limitations and provide an extensive range of online classes, said Kang Hyoun-hwa, chief of the state-run institution that oversees some 170 Korean language centers worldwide. “On a recent business trip, I ...

When King Sejong invented Hangeul, the Korean alphabet and writing system, hoping to “broadly benefit mankind,” he couldn’t have possibly meant people on the other side of the planet. But five centuries later, thanks to YouTube, video calls and mobile apps, the Korean language is being taught in places far, far away from its native land. On DuoLingo, a hugely popular free language-learning app ...

K-pop speaks Korean -- for the most part -- but not all its fans. In addition to K-pop’s nonverbal appeal, the language barrier is being broken down by a network of fans who translate Korean content into other languages in real-time. BTS performs at MBC Plus x Genie Music Awards 2018 (Park Hyun-koo, The Korea Herald) Jessica Cuadros Marquez, who manages the BTS fan organization of Peru, said S...

In a country where 4 in 10 adults read less than one book written in their native language per year, an unlikely segment of the book market is thriving: English books for children. Lee Seung-a, an 8-year-old elementary student, is one contributor to this boom. A child reads an English picture book inside Mapo English Literacy Center, a public library of English books for children in central Seo...

When it comes to English books, there are three types of readers in South Korea: expats, Korean elites and language learners. For retailers and distributors, the first is the most difficult consumer group to target as their tastes in books are just as diverse as their backgrounds. The most lucrative and competitive market, on the other hand, is that for young English learners, as Korean moms -- ...

Much of Itaewon’s future hinges on Korean landlords who expect their long wait for investment gains to finally pay off in the coming years. With a former US base to be turned into a huge public park, many expect the onset of the “Yongsan era,” with the area rising to match Gangnam’s status as an upscale residential and commercial district. But in that transformation, Itaewon’s unique features a...

Some say Itaewon has lost its soul and is now just another soulless hangout place for young Koreans. Others say the neighborhood has become safer and trendier -- suitable for a wider audience. And if you stand in the right place, you can still find the same expat-led culture thriving, they say. Whichever side one takes, the talk resembles the typical debate that erupts whenever a neighborhood g...

Late on a Saturday afternoon, Itaewon was nothing like the way it is described in most Seoul tourism books. People could be seen walking down the street in sparse numbers. Stores were almost empty. Some had gone out of business and displayed “for rent” signs in their windows. Granted, this neighborhood is better known for its nightlife, but it was too quiet for a place once known as a “magnet” ...

I’ll admit it. From the very beginning, I was kind of in love with WeWork. I loved the concept, I loved how everything felt new, how everything felt casual but still systematic and last but not least, I was delighted at the makeovers it gave to office buildings that were once as dilapidated as a beat-up pillow. cap: Inside WeWork Designer Club In particular, I was ecstatic about the interior d...

The concept of the “sharing economy” has caught on in Korea, but not as much as the enthusiasts had imagined. Uber, the most controversial example, was unable to enter for legal reasons, and others such as Airbnb-like house-sharing services are still fumbling to overcome regulatory hurdles. In a way, coworking spaces are the lone shining star in the sector, with experts predicting the trend to c...

Upon entering the 30th floor of the 123-story Lotte Tower, the tallest building in Korea, visitors encounter a spacious and sleek office with people working on laptops on sofas, at desks or in glass-walled private rooms. Boasting a stunning panoramic view of Seoul, the venue has an atmosphere that is both relaxing and business-like -- unlike traditional offices. It is called Workflex, a premium...

The March 1 Movement was a massive protest joined by hundreds of thousands of people shouting “manse!” nationwide on the streets, but the protests are often remembered as the achievements of few independence activist men who played vital roles in the event. Women were relegated to the sidelines while history was written centering on these men’s stories, and the women independence fighters were o...

Gwanghwamun, Jongno, Deoksugung, Changgyeonggung and Seoul Station: These are all places in central Seoul, frequented by thousands of locals and foreigners every day. Some of them are destinations, others fall on the way to their final destination. Nonetheless, they are some of the busiest spots in the city, always packed with people. Exactly 100 years ago on this day, these streets were also b...

The Seodaemun Prison History Museum, a grotesque shrine dedicated to fallen patriots who fought Japan’s 1910-45 colonization of the Korean Peninsula, is holding an exhibition of artifacts related to their struggle and the March 1 Independence Movement of 1919. The ongoing exhibition “100 Years of History Preserved in Cultural Heritage,” which runs until April 21, is divided into three sections. ...

Imsil-gun, a tiny rural village in North Jeolla Province, is a town that most people in South Korea have heard of and precious few have visited. For starters, a trip there via public transportation is not easy. It is secluded behind mountains and admittedly scenic rivers, crouching behind the slopes just a little over 20 kilometers from Jeonju. Stretched across 597 square kilometers of mostly fa...