Transcription of Native Language Pronunciation into Hangul for Foreigners
The Hangulnuri Foundation (hereinafter Hangulnuri) announced on the 1st that it will hold a video content contest titled "Hangul Used by the World." The purpose is to create a foundation for using Hangul as a global common script by transcribing various world languages into Hangul. Kyungdong Navien is sponsoring Hangulnuri to support the expansion of Hangul usage.
This contest will be held over three months until August, targeting three categories: ▲writing song lyrics ▲writing stories ▲reading and translating the preface of Hunminjeongeum. Any foreigner who knows Hangul can participate.
The song lyrics writing category focuses on the children's song "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." Participants write the native pronunciation of this song phonetically in Hangul, then create and submit a video singing the song according to the written pronunciation. The story writing category targets the fairy tale "The Wind and the Sun." The reading and translating of the Hunminjeongeum preface is a challenge category for Korean language proficient participants. They read the preface of Hunminjeongeum in Hangul, translate it into their native language, then write the native language pronunciation phonetically in Hangul and produce a video reading it.
Foreigners wishing to participate can find detailed information on the Hangulnuri website. Video submissions are accepted until August 31. The winning works will be announced on October 9, Hangul Day, through the website, and a total of $31,000 in prize money will be awarded to 99 winners, including the top prize of $5,000 and the Hangul Society Chairman's Award.
The Hangulnuri Research Institute under Hangulnuri estimates that using the current Hangul letters, it is possible to transcribe the pronunciation of 132 languages, about 29% of the 451 major world languages. Furthermore, by using the old Hunminjeongeum script, which has more letters and more diverse character combinations than the current Hangul, it is expected that the pronunciation of 254 languages, or 56%, can be transcribed.
Professor Emeritus Kim Juwon of Seoul National University, who serves as the director of the Hangulnuri Research Institute, said, "Through this contest, we hope to confirm new possibilities of Hangul together with people around the world and share our proud cultural heritage, Hunminjeongeum, as a common asset for humanity."
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