# Korea or Corea? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 18, 2002, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726 "2002-06-18T18:46:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Tsubaki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@Tsubaki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tsubaki)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/21 "2002-06-20T10:27:08Z")
**xejkh** , I don’t know how you found that out, but thanks for the great explanation! ---
**Author:** ![Hemlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Hemlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hemlock)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/22 "2002-06-20T11:25:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by China Guy \* > \*\*… Beijing matches the standardized romanization used with China. Where’s the problem? > > If someone speaking for a significant part of the Korean population wants it spelled “Corea”, I would be happy to comply. …\*\* Standardized by whom? In the English language, the things I wear on my feet are called “shoes”. The liquid I’m drinking is called “beer”. And the capital city of China is called “Peking”. What Cantonese or Mandarin or Swahili speakers call these things is irrelevant. Several UK and US newspapers do use “Beijing”, but others use the traditional “Peking”. Chris Patten always said the latter. Several French newspapers use “Peiping”. Fine - they’re using French. Can’t place names change from one language to another just like any other nouns? Or do we have to start using “Bei” (or “Pak”) when we want to say “north” from now on? Of course, if I’m speaking Mandaring or Cantonese, I’ll say “Beijing” or “Pakging” - that’s their language. What’s “Myanmar shave”? “Beijing Duck”? “Xiang Gang”? ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/23 "2002-06-20T12:18:33Z")
Thanks, **xejkh** , for the linguistic info. Thanks for the pictures, **GIGObuster**. The Koreans have been waving those signs during most of the World Cup. It’s not a small movement. **Hemlock** , while I agree in principle with your view, I’m looking for a factual answer, not a Great Debate. And as **China Guy** mentioned, there’ve been many other threads debating this point. I’m looking for a evidence either supporting or debunking the “imperialist Japan forces Korea to change its name” theory. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/24 "2002-06-20T13:14:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Monty \* > \*\*And it’s certainly not “Deh-Han.” More like “Tae-Han” as in “Tae-Han-Min-Guk” (that’s a long u), which stands for “Republic of Korea.” > \*\* And it’s also the main cheer whenever their soccer team wins a game-- as I’ve been reminded three times just after dawn in the past two weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/25 "2002-06-20T13:18:41Z")
Um, xekjh, South Korea has not discarded Hancha; however, North Korea has. ---
**Author:** ![xejkh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/22d042/32.png) [@xejkh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xejkh)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/26 "2002-06-20T13:46:09Z")
Thanks, **Tsubaki** and **Pleonast** , it’s not so bad if you can read kanji/Chinese characters/hancha. I also stand corrected; South Korea has not discarded totally the hancha. My take on this: we should continue to call Korea “Korea” since it has always been spelt this way. Unless the Korean government decides that “Corea” is the correct spelling, and has requested the world to spell it “Corea” as well (as China and India had requested previously), I don’t see why we should change the spelling by ourselves. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/27 "2002-06-20T14:43:34Z")
**xejkh** , Korea has definitely not _always_ been spelled that way. As I stated in the OP, the K form has only been used since around 1885. I tend to agree that we should stick with Korea until their government (which is democratic) makes a change. But if the Japanese really did force the change (which I am very skeptical of), I would see no problem with individuals using “Corea” to apply some pressure towards the change. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/28 "2002-06-20T15:07:45Z")
Getting back to the OP, I think English speakers should spell names of places according to the traditional English way of spelling them, regardless of how the people in the country want it spelled. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/29 "2002-06-20T18:03:11Z")
So, **acsenray** , are you in favor of the original spelling “Corea” which was used for over two hundred years? Or, would you use the more recent form “Korea” used in the past century? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/30 "2002-06-20T20:17:27Z")
xejkh: You know what’s really funny? Either _Korea_ or _Corea_ doesn’t match the way the word’s really pronounced in Korean! It’s more like _Ko-Ryuh_, and that’s not even the name of the whole former kingdom, but just one of the previous kingdoms! All in all, to me, I see a bunch of whiners who are just pissed at the United States for something else and figure they can bitch about this, too. I’m even willing to bet that had the French spelt the word with a _K_ and the Americans with a _C_, then they’d be bitching about the US spelling it with a _C_. Btw, I did live in Seoul for a while back in the 1970s. And I speak the language. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/31 "2002-06-20T20:39:58Z")
> [@](#): > > So, acsenray, are you in favor of the original spelling “Corea” which was used for over two hundred years? Or, would you use the more recent form “Korea” used in the past century? Whichever it is to be (and it might change more than once over time), all I’ll say is that the preference of Koreans shouldn’t be a factor in considering the issue. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/32 "2002-06-20T23:07:23Z")
> [@](#): > > preference of Koreans shouldn’t be a factor in considering the issue Well, although I believe it is up to English speakers to choose English words, there’s no reason we can’t be influenced by others’ concerns. Which is why I’m looking for confirmation of the Korean theory. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/33 "2002-06-21T00:14:16Z")
How about we ask the Koreans how they spell the word in their language, Pleonast? Since the two languages use drastically different alphabets, that’s just a silly thing to be griping about. The name of that country is spelt a particular way in the English language because the “normal” indication of the “K” sound in English is the freaking K. And I really don’t think it’s the lot of some little group of malcontents to dictate to another linguistic group what sounds the symbols of that other group represent. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/34 "2002-06-21T00:48:02Z")
**Monty** , I believe it’s more than a small group of Koreans advocating the change. The point is not whether or not we should change the spelling of “Korea” because some Koreans want us to. It’s whether or not their _reason_ for changing the spelling is valid. _If_ their theory of the Japanese forcing the change was correct, I personally would not mind changing how _I_ spell “Korea”. But I strongly doubt that their story is true. My intention for this thread was not to debate dialectal freedom (which I am a strong advocate of), but rather to determine the veracity of the Koreans’ theory. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/35 "2002-06-21T01:16:52Z")
Well, the veracity of that theory is null. English has long used the K to indicate the K sound (kind of obvious, ain’t it?), yet I don’t see a run on changing every K in the language to C, nor even a call for such. ---
**Author:** ![Beruang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@Beruang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beruang)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/36 "2002-06-21T01:39:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by China Guy \* > I don’t have to tell you, I think, that Peking for example is a complete bastardization of the Chinese. \*\* When Hong Kong changed from British to Chinese rule, I saw a televised interview with the Mayor of Shanghai. Speaking in his native tongue, he very clearly said “Peking” several times. – Beruang ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/37 "2002-06-21T01:53:28Z")
I believe the Korean theory is nationalistic nonsense, also. I’m looking for better proof of that than a few cites from the OED. The change of the spelling of one country certainly doesn’t amount to a run on changing every letter K. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/38 "2002-06-21T02:25:50Z")
I agree with you on that, Pleonast. My point is that the malcontents’ “point” isn’t a valid point because it’s selective. That does bolster my theory that had the French and English languages “swapped” the spellings, the same malcontents would be griping about the C spelling. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/39 "2002-06-21T05:12:17Z")
I just asked **Astrogirl** about this… and keep in mind that she is notoriously Corean… She says that she was taught in school that the English spelling was “Corea” before the Japanese occupation; and that the Japanese forced the change to “Korea”. Why? you ask (or, well, OK… I asked)? Because in the English alphabet C comes before J… and K comes after J (therefore, Japan would come before Korea alphabetically)… however, she backpedals furiously when I ask if she can find a cite for this, and admits that it _may_ be a “fact” made up by nationalistic Koreans… Her theory about why we are seeing the C spelling now: they are sharing the World Cup with Japan right now, and it’s meant to promote patriotism. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726/40 "2002-06-21T07:59:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Beruang \* > \*\*When Hong Kong changed from British to Chinese rule, I saw a televised interview with the Mayor of Shanghai. Speaking in his native tongue, he very clearly said “Peking” several times.-- Beruang \*\* [hijack]Can you at least identify what language was his native tounge: Shanghaiese or Mandarin? If the mayor of Shanghai was speaking Mandarin, clearly he would have said “Beijing”. If the Mayor of Shanghai was speaking his native Shanghaiese it sounds more like “boojin.”[/hijack]. If Korea wants to be known as Corea, the people they really have to convince are the wire services and other major news outlets. Once the wire services change, eventually it will become the defacto spelling. How about the ignorant bigot test? No one on these boards is going around saying "so what if you want to be called “black”, I’m gonna call you a “negro” because you’ve always been called a “negro.” It’s respectful to follow the wishes of how a country and people wish to be referred to as. I especially don’t understand what the problem is if the changes are to adopt a standardized romanization system. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/korea-or-corea/114726.md?page=3)