Leiden University Student Repository

Matthies, Stine (2023)

Back to the roots: On the lexical divergence of Modern Korean and reunification prospects of the two Koreas

Bachelor thesis | International Studies (BA)

On the background of the Korean split into North and South, this thesis examines the lexical changes found in the Korean language as influenced by entirely different political and social structures that developed in each part of the peninsula and what those developments mean for reunification prospects. The dictatorship in the North has been found to prescribe language changes top-down, purging most foreign influences in Korean lexica, while the South experienced a bottom-up language change shaped by the influx of foreign, particularly American, influence, economic growth and globalization. Situations of contact over the years, and especially the joint project for 'A Unified and Unabridged Korean Dictionary', as well as shared cultural roots and sufficient lexical similarities, lead to the conclusion that a hypothetical reunification could be executed despite the 75-year long separation.

North Korea

South Korea

Lexical Divergence

Korean Language

Korean Reunification

Author

Matthies, Stine

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

East Asia

Supervisors

Laméris, T.J.

ECTS Credits

15

Language

en