Statue of Korean alphabet inventor unveiled on Hangeul Day

By Kim Eun-jung
SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Friday dedicated a new statue of King
Sejong (1397-1450), one of Korea's most respected ancient rulers credited with
overseeing the invention of the Korean alphabet Hangeul, in celebration of the
563rd anniversary of the alphabet's creation.
The 6.2 meter-high, 20-ton statue was unveiled in Seoul's Gwanghwamun Plaza, a
landmark downtown park, during a Hangeul Day ceremony attended by President Lee
Myung-bak and other government officials.
Sejong, the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), is remembered for
creating Hangeul -- considered one of the world's most scientific alphabets -- to
broaden literacy across the general population and energetically promote
learning.
Hangeul was named Joseon's official alphabet by Sejong on Oct. 9, 1446. North
Korea celebrates its own Hangeul Day on Jan. 15 when the king is said to have
completed the creation of the alphabet.
"It's our pride to have such a great leader as King Sejong and Hangeul, which is
our treasure and world heritage," said President Lee said in his congratulatory
message.
"Hangeul has contributed to the low illiteracy rate among Korean people, giving
our people equal opportunity," Lee said, noting that the king created the 28
letters because he understood the difficulties of the common people trying to
express themselves using Chinese characters.
In front of the statue is a small pond in which water clock, sundial, rainfall
gauge and celestial globe are set. Along the underground passage directly under
the statue is an exhibition hall displaying the achievements of King Sejong.
In a sign of the globalization of Hangeul, a minority tribe in Indonesia adopted
the Korean alphabet as its official writing system in August, and a Korean
language school is to open in Sri Lanka for the first time in the region.
A crowd of ordinary citizens and foreigners stopped at the plaza to see the
unveiling the new statue.
"It's meaningful to have the monument of King Sejong in the center of Seoul,"
said Park Byung-sun, 75. "I was born in the period of Japanese colonization and
didn't have much time to study when I was young. But I have always respected him
for giving us wonderful Hangeul," Park added, volunteering that his traditional
costume and hat were from the Joseon Dynasty era.
William Waycie, a tourist from the U.S., said watching the event in honor of
Korean alphabet was a unique experience for him.
"When I first came to Korea in 1970 as a peace corp volunteer, many books and
newspapers were written both in Korean and Chinese. But now I can see the Korean
government is promoting using Hangeul and many Koreans are proud of having their
own writing system," the 64-year-old said. "It's about preserving their own
culture, and I think that's a good thing."
ejkim@yna.co.kr
(END)