Proposal for Korean Generation Panel
to ICANN
January 21, 2016
Contents
1. General Information ····························································· 1
1.1 Target Script for the Proposed Generation Panel
1.2 Significant User Communities for the Script
1.3 Principal Languages Using the Script
1.4 The Basic Rules on the Use of the Script
1.5 The Framework Act on the Korean Language
1.6 Hanja and Hangeul in the Technical Standards
2. Proposed Initial Composition of the Panel ······················· 9
2.1 Panel Chair and Members (with Expertise)
2.2 KGP Panel Activities
2.3 China, Japan and Korea GPs Panel Activities
3. Work Plan ··········································································· 12
3.1 Suggested Timeline with Significant Milestones
3.2 Proposed Schedule of Meetings and Teleconference
3.3 Sources of Funding for Travel and Logistics
3.4 Need for ICANN Advisors
4. References ········································································· 13
1. General Information
1.1 Target Script for the Proposed Generation Panel
(1) Origins of the Korean Language
The origins of the Korean language remains unclear. In the early 20th century, when
comparative linguistics prevailed, certain linguists presented a theory according to which
Korean belonged to a putative Ural-Altaic language family. This theory was later discredited
as others argued that even if Korean originated from the Altaic family, the two were barely
inter-related, posing a mystery about the origins of the language. Korean textbooks used in
Korean high schools write that "it is likely that Korean belongs to the same proto-language
from which Manchu, Mongolian and Turkish are derived. In other words, it is possibly a
member of the Altaic language family.1)". Old Korean had two geographically distinct
dialects, the North and South Korean dialects, which can be verified in ancient Chinese texts
such as Sanguozhi (三國志) (The Records of Three Kingdoms) and Hou Han Shu (後漢書)
(The History of the Later Han).
(2) Old Korean
From a linguistic perspective, Korean can be classified into three groups: Old Korean, Middle
Korean, and Modern Korean.
Old Korean refers to the Korean language that was used from the Three Kingdoms Period to
the Unified Shilla Period, and whose use during this time can be verified in various ancient
records. The unification of the three kingdoms by the Shilla Dynasty led to the consolidation
of the dialects of the three kingdoms into the dialect of the conqueror Shilla. At that time,
there was no writing system in Korea, and hanja or adapted Chinese characters were used
instead to stand for Korean words. Chinese characters were used to denote the meaning or to
represent the sound of Korean words in such writing systems as idu, hyangchal, or gugyeol,
all of which remained in use until the end of the Modern Korean era. A Korean high-school
textbook writes, "During this period, people spoke Korean, but there was no writing system.
People had to use Chinese characters for the purpose of writing, which is vastly different in
terms of structure and syntax.2)
1) Kim Jungshin, Section 3 of High School Korean II, The Past and Present of the Korean Language and the Writing System, taken from the
website of Kyohaksa, < http://www.kyohak.co.kr/2014textbooks/h_kor1.html >
2) Kim Jungshin, Section 3 of High School Korean II, The Past and Present of the Korean Language and the Writing System,, taken from the
website of Kyohaksa, < http://www.kyohak.co.kr/2014textbooks/h_kor1.html >
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(3) Middle Korean
Middle Korean was the language used from the early 10th century, when the Goryeo Dynasty
was founded, until the end of the 16th century when Japan invaded Korea. Unlike Old
Korean, Middle Korean was largely consolidated and standardized. Middle Korean is divided
again into two periods: The first half of the Middle Korean era corresponds to the period of
the Goryeo Dynasty, while the second coincides with the early period of the Joseon Dynasty.
During the first half of the Middle Korean period, the influence of Goguryeo's language
continued to linger, but in general, the Shilla language was predominant, and both languages
were still written in Chinese characters. The creation of Hunminjeongeum (The Proper
Sounds for the Instruction of the People) or Hangeul marked the beginning of a new era
in the latter half of the period, as Korea now had its own writing system. However, the
ruling class insisted on using Chinese characters instead of Huminjeongeum and dismissed it
as "eonmun" or a vernacular script. So the use of Hangeul was largely limited to
explanatory notes to Buddhist scriptures, songs, and some letters. It has been less than 100
years since Hangeul replaced Chinese characters as the main writing system in Korea, with
most documents being written entirely in Hangeul.
(4) Early Modern Korean
Modern Korean was used from the early 17th century to the late 19th century when the
Joseon Dynasty began to open up to the outside world and ushered in the period of
enlightenment.
Jae-il Kwon, professor of Seoul National University and former Director General of the
National Institute of the Korean Language, explains, "From the 17th century on, the Korean
language began to go through distinctive changes in its phonology, vocabulary and grammar,
compared to the previous periods, and its vowels underwent structural changes as well. Many
grammatical phenomena disappeared altogether, and new ones were introduced into the
language3). During this period, unlike the previous period of Middle Korean, Hangeul was
expanding its ground as the prevailing writing system in all aspects of people's daily life. A
school textbook explains, "King Gojong declared the Gabo Reforms in 1894 and ordered that
'the Korean versions of laws and regulations shall prevail as the primary and official forms
of all documents, and their translation into Chinese characters shall be provided, or Korean
and Chinese characters shall be mixed in such documents'"4). This period is also characterized
3) Jae-il Kwon, The History of Speech, Stories of the Korean Language, National Institute of the Korean Language,
retrieved from http://www.urimal365.kr/?p=18722
4)Kim Jungshin, Section 3 of High School Korean II, The Past and Present of the Korean Language and the Writing System,, retrieved from the
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by rapid inflows of Western culture into the country via China and Japan, and, as a result,
there was a large influx of new vocabulary to express new cultural phenomena, items, and
concepts.
(5) Modern Korean
Modern Korean refers to the Korean language that has been used since the period of
enlightenment to the present day. In the early stage of Modern Korean, Hangeul and hanja,
the Korean name for the Chinese characters used in the Korean language, were mixed in
writing5), but Hangeul gradually took over hanja. A school textbook writes, "Hangeul took
over hanja as the dominant script in Korean writing after Korea gained its independence from
Japanese rule in 1945, but hanja remained in use, mixed with Hangeul, in newspapers and
technical publications until the 1980s. Even today, hanja is sometimes provided in
parentheses, next to Korean words such as homonyms, contracted words, academic or
technical terms, people's names, etc., when it is deemed that further clarification is required
because Korean words alone may not be sufficient to deliver the intended meaning or may
be misunderstood and confused with other words that have the same sounds." However,
Korean is written mostly and only in Hangeul, and hanja are simultaneously added for
additional information only in exceptional cases where it is deemed necessary by the author
to clarify the meaning or to avoid potential confusion or vagueness in understanding the
meaning of the words.
website of Kyohaksa, < http://www.kyohak.co.kr/2014textbooks/h_kor1.html >
5)Kim Jungshin, Section 3 of High School Korean II, The Past and Present of the Korean Language and the Writing System,, retrieved from the
website of Kyohaksa, < http://www.kyohak.co.kr/2014textbooks/h_kor1.html >
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1.2 Significant User Communities for the Script
There are three groups of people who use Korean around the world. According to Professor
Kwon, “the first group of people speaks Korean as their first language and the official
language, and this group includes South and North Koreans. The second group speaks Korean
as a second language and includes Koreans who live in other countries than Korea, such as
China, Japan, the U.S.A., and Central Asia, as well as Koreans who speak the language of
the host country as their first language while speaking Korean in their homes and the ethnic
community. Korean immigrants and their descendants living in other countries belong to this
group. Meanwhile, the "Joseon language" is a variant of Korean that is spoken by the
so-called "Joseonjok" or Joseon people living in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture
in Jinlin Province and other pats of the three Northeastern Provinces of China, while the
variant of Korean used by the descendants of Goryeo people living in Central Asia including
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan is, "Goryeo-mal" or the Goryeo language. Foreigners
who learn and speak Korean as a foreign language, but not as a first or second language,
make up the third group”6).
A considerably large number of people speak Korean. According to Professor Kwon, "In the
latest edition of Ethnologue, which provides a wide variety of information on languages
around the world, 77.2 million people spoke Korean as of 2010, making the language the
13th largest linguistic group in terms of the number of speakers of the language. According
to data released recently by an Internet-related international organization, Korean is the
world's 10th most frequently used language on the Internet. In addition, Korean was adopted
as a language of international publication at the 43rd General Assembly of the WIPO held in
September 2007, allowing applications for international patents to be submitted in Korean and
international patents to be viewed in Korea”7)8).
6) Jae-il Kwon, The History of Speech, Stories of the Korean Language, National Institute of the Korean Language,
retrieved from http://www.urimal365.kr/?p=18722
7) Jae-il Kwon, The History of Speech, Stories of the Korean Language, National Institute of the Korean Language,
retrieved from http://www.urimal365.kr/?p=18722
8) Retrieved from https://www.ethnologue.com/country/KR
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1.3 Principal Languages that Use the Script
Until the first half of the Joseon Dynasty (equivalent to the later period of Middle Korean),
Chinese characters were used to write Korean as no Korean writing system existed at that
time. Koreans developed "idu" and "gugyeol" as writing systems, in which Chinese
characters were used to represent the sounds of Korean words. After the creation of
Hunminjeongeum (or Hangeul), both Hangeul and hanja were used together, while only
Hangeul is used in modern Korean.
Today, Korean is written in Hanguel. Hanja are sometimes provided in parentheses next to
Korean words, but only when the word in Hangeul alone may be misunderstood due to its
multiple meanings or when further clarification of a specific meaning is necessary. In rare
cases, words are written in hanja and the particles and suffixes associated with the words
are left in Hangeul. Under "The Writing System of the Korean Language" the Naver
Knowledge Encyclopedia9) explains that "hanja consists of ideographs while Hangeul is a
phonemic orthography, so they are two very distinct scripts that are used together in the
Korean language. Hanja was imported from China as a product of growing interaction with
China. It is presumed that hanja became the dominant writing system in Korea from the
4th to the 6th century, during which each of the three kingdoms that were competing for
hegemony on the Korean Peninsula established a centralized system of government in their
respective territories, and many historical books were published during this period.
Consequently, Chinese characters dominated written texts in the three old kingdoms, and
this state of affairs continued until the end of the 19th century. So the Korean people
spoke Korean but wrote their speech in Chinese characters, the script of another country,
creating a discrepancy between speech and script, which caused interferences between the
two languages over time. As a result, elements of the Chinese language were incorporated
into Korean, and many Chinese words made their way into the Korean vocabulary,
replacing the original Korean words."
Huminjeongeum was invented in 1443 during the early days of Joseon Dynasty and
promulgated in 1446. Finally, Koreans had their own writing system to record the sounds of
their speech. The section of Naver Knowledge Encyclopedia titled "The Korean Language"
describes Hangeul "as an independent and complete system of writing that is unique and
highly scientific. Most countries adapted existing writing systems and adopted them as their
9)Naver Knowledge Encyclopedia, retrieved from http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=1189683&cid=40942&categoryId=32978 The
Writing System of the Korean Language (Doosan Encyclopedia)
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own, but Hangeul is an original language that is isolated in the sense that it has not been
derived from any other previous script. The graphemes and phonemes of hangeul are
directly and systematically related10).
Cheol Huh (2010)11) classified the Korean vocabulary and analyzed how frequently
individual hanja were used in the Survey of Frequently Used Modern Korean Vocabulary
(National Institute of the Korean Language, 2002) and the Survey of Frequently Used
Modern Korean Vocabulary II (National Institute of the Korean Language, 2005). The
survey found that hanja-based Korean words accounted for approximately 66%, purely
Korean words around 26%, and loan words originating from other languages some 4%,
indicating that hanja-based Korean words are frequently used in Korean. Although words
based on Chinese characters make up a high portion of frequently used Korean vocabulary,
these hanja words are written in Hangeul in modern Korean.
10) Naver Knowledge Encyclopedia, http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=1189683&cid=40942&categoryId=32978 The Writing
System of the Korean Language (Doosan Encyclopedia).
11) Huh Cheol, 「An Analysis of the Use of Hanja, based on 『The Survey of Frequently Used Modern Korean Vocabulary
1·2』」, <Korea Education Research, Vol. 34, (June 2010), pp.221-244 1225-1321 KCI>.
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1.4 The Basic Rules on the Use of the Script
Source: Nuri Sejong Hakdang, retrieved from http://www.sejonghakdang.org/, Learning Materials(Grammar)
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1.5 The Framework Act on the Korean Language
The Framework Act on the Korean Language was proclaimed on January 27, 2005 to
declare Korean as the official language of the Republic of Korea and to enhance the
people's quality of life by helping them use the national language in the most effective
manner. Paragraph (1) of Article 14 (Preparation of Official Documents) prescribes that
public institutions, etc. shall prepare official documents in the Korean language in
accordance with language norms: Provided that Chinese characters or other foreign letters
may be entered in parentheses, in cases prescribed by Presidential Decree. According to
Article 11 of the Enforcement Decree of the Act (Preparation of Official Documents and
Use of Hangeul), Chinese characters or foreign letters may be used in parentheses in
official documents prepared by public institutions when it is necessary to clarify the
meaning or to help readers understand difficult technical terms or newly coined words.
1.6 Hanja and Hangeul in the Technical Standards
The number of possible combinations (Korean characters) of the Korean alphabet that can be
used in the top-level domain is 11,172 in total, and ranges from AC00 to D7A3 of the
Hangeul Code in the Unicode.
Some 4,819 hanja can be used in the top-level domain numbers, with the range including
Chinese characters covered in the KS(Korean Industrial Standards) X 1001(4,888 characters
in total), KPS 9566(North Korean Standards), and Chinese characters listed in Columns K
and KP in II CORE of ISO/IEC 10646 and MSR-1 of Hanja Proficiency Test(4,641
characters tested for Grades 1 through 8, and Special Grade II) by the Korea Institute of
Korean Language and Writing.
ISO 15924 No. Korean Title English Title
Korean writing system (including
Kore 287 Korean
Hangeul and Hanja)
Hang 286 Hangeul(한글) Hangul
Hani 500 Hanja(한자) Han(Hanzi, Kanji, Hanja)
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2. Proposed Initial Composition of the Panel
2.1 Panel Chair and Members (with Expertise)
The Korean Label Generation Panel was formed in December 2014 and reorganized on April
16, 2015, with the appointment of two members in charge of managing the state domain
registration system and registration agencies, two hanja experts, and one Korean expert, at
the recommendation of ICANN. Three community members and three industry representatives
were additionally appointed to the Panel on September 10, 2015, resulting in its current
composition.
< KGP Panel Members (as of Jan. 2016), 19 members in total >
Field Name Organization
Kyongsok Kim
Pusan National University
(Chair)
Gyeong-ran Kang Ajou University
Technical experts
Korea Advanced Institute of
Dongman Lee
Science and Technology(KAIST)
Yang-woo Ko -
The National Institute of the
Linguist (hangeul) Jeong-do Choi
Korean Language
Sanghyun Shin Korea University
Linguists (hanja)
Sung-duk Cho Ideographic Rapporteur Group
Korea National Open
Young-eum Lee
University(KNOU)
Policy Makers
The State University of New
Yun-jeong Park
York, Korea
Eung-jun Jeon You Me Patent & Law Firm
Community Boknam Yun Hankyul Law Group
Byeong-il Oh Jinbonet
Minjung Park
Registry Minjee Kim Korea Internet & Security Agency
(Registration Institute) Yun-mi Choi (KISA)
Chae Ryoung
Seong-jin Park Dotname Korea
Registration Agency Chang-Ki Jang Gabia Inc.
Myung-soo Lee MEGAZONE
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2.2 KGP Panel Activities
Date Meeting Major Activity
Ten members (experts from such fields
Composition of the KGP (Korean
Dec-13 as language, Korean language, policy,
Label Generation Panel)
community, and registry) in total
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
24-Mar-14 Conference Presentations on Korea's progress
- ICANN49, Singapore
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
May-14 Presentations on Korea's progress
Conference
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
25-Jun-14 Conference Presentations on Korea's progress
- ICANN50, London
Hosted the 1st KGP New developments were shared with
14-Jul-14
Conference other members.
Hosted the 2nd KGP New developments were shared with
21-Aug-14
Conference other members.
Participated in the
Korea-China-Japan Joint
15-Oct-14 Presentations on Korea's progress
Conference
- ICANN51, LA
The Panel agreed to include hanja in
Hosted the 3rd KGP
30-Jan-15 the KLGR, and two hanja experts were
Conference
appointed to the Panel.
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
11-Feb-15 Conference Presentations on Korea's progress
- ICANN52, Singapore
New members were appointed to the
Hosted the 4th KGP
16-Apr-15 KGP Panel(two hanja experts and two
Conference
code experts).
Hosted the 5th KGP Korea's hanja list (initial draft) and
30-Apr-15
Conference the Yonea algorithm were reviewed.
An initial draft of Korea's hanja list
Hosted the 6th KGP
07-May-15 was prepared (6,046 characters, K-LGR
Conference
v0.1)
Korea's hanja variants table(draft) was
Hosted the 7th KGP
14-May-15 prepared.
Conference
The three countries agreed to use the
Hosted the Korea-China-Japan
15~16-May-15 Yonea algorithm proposed by the JGP
Joint Conference in Seoul
as the basis for the international
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generation rules on hanja top-level
domain.
Domestic survey for the establishment
Signed a contract to conduct
01-Jun-15 of the KLGR and international activities
research on hanja
(Jun. 1~Oct. 30, 2015)
Hosted the 8th KGP Korea's draft list of hanja (6,017,
12-Jun-15
Conference K-LGR v.0.2) was prepared.
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
19~25-Jun-15 Conference Presentations on Korea's progress
- ICANN53, Buenos Aires
The Korea-China-Japan Joint
30-Jun ~
Conference Presentations on Korea's progress
03-Jul-15
- APrIGF, Macau
The range of Hangeul to be used in the
Hosted the 9th KGP
10-Jul-15 top-level domain was determined
Conference
(11,172 characters).
Opinions on the proposed
One person voted for the existing
revision of Korea's hanja list
22~28-Jul-15 list(6,017 characters) and three persons
collected on the KGP
for the revised list.
website.
The draft report consisting of a comparison
KGP Workshop (for experts
30-Jul-15 and analysis of the hanja lists of Korea and
involved in research)
China was reviewed.
Hosted the 10th KGP Korea's hanja list (draft) was revised (4,819
13-Aug-15
Conference characters, K-LGR v0.3).
Hosted the 11th KGP
10-Sep-15 Review a Proposal for KGP to ICANN
Conference
2.3 China, Japan and Korea GPs Panel Activities
CJK had several sessions at ICANN meeting. In 2014 and 2015, CJK met about four times
per year (three ICANN metting and about one special meeting.
Date Meeting
June 2014 ICANN 50/London
Oct. 2014, ICANN 51/ Los Angeles
Feb. 2015 ICANN 53/SIngapore
May., 2015 CJK had a meeting in Seoul, Korea
Oct. 2015 ICANN 53/Buenos Aires
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3. Work Plan
3.1. Suggested Timeline with Significant Milestones
Since variant group defined by Korea are different from those by China, Korea and China need
to cooperate in unifying variant groups. China published its initial version of variant groups in
2015. Korea also published its initial version of variant groups in 2015.Korea analyzed China's
303 variant groups containing 2 or more Hanja characters defined by Korea LGR. Korea sent a
list of 44 acceptable variant groups and a list of 259 unacceptable variant groups. China asked
Korea to divide 259 variant groups intop.12 a list of variant groups composed of chars with
same meaning anda list of variant groups composed of chars with different meaning.
Date Expected Event
JAN-16 Korea's hanja list will be reviewed by a group of experts.
MAR-16 Participate CJK meeting
APR-16 K-LGR XML will be prepared.
* This schedule is subject to change.
3.2. Proposed Schedule of Meeting and Teleconference
o The KGP will meet once or twice a month(to be determined).
o A public hearing or an information session will be held in October 2015(tentative).
o The KGP will participate in the Korea-China-Japan Joint Conference in October 2015
(ICANN54, Dublin)(tentative).
3.3. Sources of Funding for Travel and Logistics
The Panel may ask for the provision of a teleconference program (Adobe Connect) if judged
necessary during the discussions on the development of the LGR at KGP conferences and at
the Korea-China-Japan Joint Conference.
3.4. Need for ICANN Advisors
No advisors are needed at this time, but the KGP may consult ICANN advisors if
questions arise during the discussions (case study) on the Hangeul and Hanja lists or if
further clarification is required at the Korea-China-Japan Joint Conference.
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4. References
Ÿ Jung-sin Kim, Section 3 of High School Korean II, The Past and Present of the Korean Language
and the Writing System, retrieved from the website of Kyohaksa,
<http://www.kyohak.co.kr/2014textbooks/h_kor1.html >
Ÿ Naver Knowledge Encyclopedia, retrieved from
http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=1189683&cid=40942&categoryId=32978, The Writing System of the
Korean Language (Doosan Encyclopedia)
Ÿ Jae-il Kwon, The History of Speech, Stories of the Korean Language, National Institute of the Korean
Language, retrieved from http://www.urimal365.kr/?p=18722
Ÿ Naver Knowledge Encyclopedia,
http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=1161098&cid=40942&categoryId=32978, the Korean Language(Doosan
Encyclopedia)
Ÿ Huh, Cheol, 「An Analysis of the Use of Hanja based on 『The Survey of Frequently Used Modern
Korean Words 1·2』」, <Korea Education Research, Vol. 34, (June 2010), pp.221-244 1225-1321 KCI>
Ÿ Nuri Sejong Hakdang, http://www.sejonghakdang.org/, Learning Materials(Grammar)
* KGP proposal is based on MSR-1, KGP will follow the principles and procedures of ICANN.
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