North–South differences in the Korean language

The Korean language has changed between the two states due to the length of time that North and South Korea have been separated.

Korean orthography, as defined by the Korean Language Society in 1933 in the "Proposal for Unified Korean Orthography" (Hangul: 한글 맞춤법 통일안; RR: Hangeul Matchumbeop Tong-iran) continued to be used by the North and the South after liberation of Korea in 1945, but with the establishments of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea in 1948, the two states have taken on differing policies regarding the language. In 1954, North Korea set out the rules for Korean orthography (조선어 철자법 Chosŏnŏ Chŏljabŏp). Although this was only a minor revision in orthography that created little difference from that used in the South, from then on, the standard language in the North and the South gradually differed more and more from each other.

In the 1960s, under the influence of the Juche ideology came a big change in linguistic policies in North Korea. On 3 January 1964, Kim Il-sung issued his teachings on "A Number of Issues on the Development of the Korean language" (조선어를 발전시키기 위한 몇 가지 문제 Chosŏnŏrŭl Paljŏn Siki'gi Wihan Myŏt' Kaji Munje), and on 14 May 1966 on the topic "In Rightly Advancing the National Characteristics of the Korean language" (조선어의 민족적 특성을 옳게 살려 나갈 데 대하여 Chosŏnŏŭi Minjokchŏk T'ŭksŏngŭl Olge Sallyŏ Nagal Te Taehayŏ), from which the "Standard Korean Language" (조선말규범집 Chosŏnmalgyubŏmjip) rules followed in the same year, issued by the National Language Revision Committee that was directly under the control of the cabinet. From then on, more important differences came about between the standard language in the North and the South. In 1987, North Korea revised the aforementioned rules further, and these have remained in use until today. In addition, the rules for spacing were separately laid out in the "Standard Spacing Rules in Writing Korean" (조선말 띄여쓰기규범 Chosŏnmal Ttŭiyŏssŭgigyubŏm) in 2000 but have since been superseded by "Rules for Spacing in Writing Korean" (띄여쓰기규정 Ttŭiyŏssŭgigyujŏng), issued in 2003.

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