The Korean Alphabet Day, known as Hangeul Day in South Korea, and Chosŏn'gŭl Day in North Korea, is a national Korean commemorative day marking the invention and the proclamation of Hangul, the alphabet of the Korean language, by the 15th-century Korean monarch Sejong the Great. It is observed on October 9 in South Korea and on January 15 in North Korea. Excluding year 1990 to 2012 where the government maximized business days to expedite industrial growth, Hangul day has been a national holiday in South Korea since 1970.
Synopsis
Every 9th of October is selected as Hangeul Day to spread its originality and excellence in addition to commemorating Sejong the King's achievement. Even till 2020, citizen hoist Korean national flag to honor the day. Hangeul is one of few languages where both the founder and founding date have been revealed. To compensate its significance, Korean government legislated the following amendment below. Language Amendment Section 20 1. Government shall dictate every October 9th as Hangeul Day with commemorative event in order to spread Hangeul's originality and scientific superiority, further enhancing pan-national awareness and affection towards the language. 2. Matters regarding commemorative event above shall abide presidential decree
Etymology
South Korea
In South Korea, the holiday is called Hangeul Proclamation Day, or Hangeul Day for short, and is celebrated on October 9 to commemorate the promulgation of the Hunminjeongeum on October 9, 1446.
North Korea
In North Korea, the holiday is called Chosŏn'gŭl Day and is celebrated on January 15 to commemorate the creation of the Hunminjeongeum on January 15, 1444.
History
Before the creation of Hangul, people in Korea primarily wrote using Classical Chinese alongside native phonetic writing systems that predate Hangul by hundreds of years, including idu, hyangchal, gugyeol, and gakpil. However, due to the fundamental differences between the Korean and Chinese languages, and the large number of characters needed to be learned, there was much difficulty in learning how to write using Chinese characters for the lower classes, who often didn't have the privilege of education. To assuage this problem, King Sejong created the unique alphabet known as Hangul to promote literacy among the common people. According to the Sejong Sillok, King Sejong proclaimed publication of Hunmin Jeongeum, the document introducing the newly created alphabet which was also originally called by the same name, in the ninth month of the lunar calendar in 1446. In 1926, the Korean Language Society, whose goal was to preserve the Korean language during a time of rapid forced Japanization, celebrated the octo-sexagesimal anniversary of the declaration of hangeul on the last day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar, which is on November 4 of the Gregorian calendar. Members of the Society declared it the first observance of "Gagyanal". The name came from "Gagyageul", an early colloquial name for hangeul, based on a mnemonic recitation beginning "gagya geogyeo". The name of the commemorative day was changed to "Hangullal" in 1928, soon after the term "hangul", coined originally in 1913 by Ju Si-gyeong, became widely accepted as the new name for the alphabet. The day was then celebrated according to the lunar calendar. In 1931, the celebration of the day was switched to October 29 of the Gregorian Calendar, the calendar which is in contemporary use. Three years later, the date was moved to October 28, to coordinate the date with that of the Julian Calendar, which had been in use during the 15th century, when King Sejong had made his proclamation. The discovery in 1940 of an original copy of the Hunmin Jeongeum Haerye, a volume of commentary to the Hunmin Jeongeum that appeared not long after the document it commented upon, revealed that the Hunmin Jeongeum was announced during the first ten days of the ninth month. The tenth day of the ninth month of the 1446 lunar calendar was equivalent to October 9 of that same year's Julian calendar. The South Korean government, established in 1945, declared October 9 to be Hangeul Day, a yearly legal holiday which excused government employees from work. Major employers pressured the South Korean government to increase the country's annual number of work days. In 1991, to balance out the adoption of the United Nations Day, it vacated Hangeul Day's status as a holiday. By law, Hangeul Day remained a national commemoration day, and the Hangeul Society campaigned for the holiday's restoration. On November 1, 2012, the Society won that campaign, when the National Assembly voted 189 to 4 in favor of a resolution that called for the return of Hangeul Day as a national holiday. This put pressure on the Lee Myung Bak administration, which applied the change in 2013.
