‘신세대말’: The Language of the New Generation It is no secret that as social media continues to grow in global influence and every platform sees an increase in the number of users, formal language on social media sites loses its presence and relevance; the eloquence and ‘properness’ of the previous generations in both speech and writing is seemingly dissolving with the constant introduction of new terms, slang, abbreviations, and the like. Today, South Korea is seeing a introduction of a wave of new terms and phrases deriving from both Korean (and some English!) words, especially as Korean is a language of such logic and simplicity. The name given to this is ‘신세대말’, literally translating to ‘New Generation Language’. This new ‘language’ that is continuing to grow is a form of evolution of the Korean language, demonstrating that a language’s origins and history can still be respected and preserved even as it evolves in various ways, with this new wave as one of them – it is a modern branch of evolution which is not only for efficiency, but also for enjoyment. I have picked out some examples of the most frequently used terms from this ‘language’, as well as my favourite phrases which I think are the most innovative and fun (-if you were to use them in Korea, you could be considered an 인싸*!): (*in-ssa = taken from the English ‘insider’: someone in the know; of the ‘inner circle’; trendy) 1. no jae-mi
no-jaem = no fun
2. li-eol-lo
lyeol-lu = for real
a. i-geo-lae-al b. li-eol-paek-teu
ㅇㄱㄹㅇ(?) = this is real / is this real? ㄹㅇㅍㅌ = real fact
3. sae-sang-ae-seo jae-il yae-bbeum 4. gung-gum-hae-seo mul-eo-bom
sae-jael-yae = most beautiful in the world gung-mul = asking because you’re curious
5. jeom-shim mae-nyu chu-cheon-hae ju-sae-yo
jeom-mae-chu-hae = please
recommend me a lunch menu 6. kkil-ddae kki-go bba-jil ddae bba-ji-da
kkil-kki-bba-bba = involving yourself
when necessary, and withdrawing when necessary 7. hal mal-eun man-ji-man ha-ji an-gaet-da à hal-mal-ha-an = having a lot to say but not saying anything 8. go-gu-ma baek-gae meog-eun-deut-han dab-dab-i à go-dab = you feel so uncomfortable that it’s as if you’ve eaten 100 sweet potatoes Fleur 민서 Lee 17
