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Language Lineage

Jeju

The language of Jeju Island, largely unintelligible to mainland Korean speakers. It keeps the Middle Korean vowel ㆍ (arae-a) that the mainland lost, and has words from the island's century of Mongol rule.

c. 13th century CE – presentJeju Island, off the southern coast of Korea
On this page
  1. An Island Language
  2. 4.3 and After
  3. In its own words
  4. Where it's spoken
  5. Turning points

01

An Island Language

Jeju, called Jejueo by its speakers, developed on Jeju Island after it came under Korean rule in the 12th century. The Yuan Mongols ruled the island from 1273 to 1374 and raised horses there, and Jeju still has Mongolic loanwords, especially for horses and their colours. It keeps the old vowel ㆍ (arae-a), which mainland Korean lost by the 18th century, and it differs so much in vocabulary and grammar that mainland speakers struggle to understand it. Many linguists therefore treat it as a separate language.

02

4.3 and After

In the Jeju uprising and its suppression (1948–1954), known as '4.3', government forces and right-wing groups killed tens of thousands of islanders, perhaps one in ten of the population. For decades the event could not be discussed. Together with schooling and media in standard Korean, the trauma left few young speakers. In 2010 UNESCO listed Jeju as critically endangered. Since the 2000s the provincial government and community groups have supported teaching and documentation.

A sample

In its own words

Jeju

혼저 옵서예
honjeo
quickly
opseoye
come.HON.IMP-POL
‘Welcome (literally 'Come quickly')’
Sources (1)
  • Jeju Special Self-Governing Province. 2009. Gaejeong jeungbo Jejueo sajeon [Revised and enlarged Jejueo dictionary]. Jeju.

On the map

Where it’s spoken

Spoken todayShading marks whole countries, not the regions within them.
  1. South Koreac. 5,000–10,000

Figures are rough first-language estimates, rounded, from censuses and Ethnologue. Counts for small or scattered communities are especially uncertain.

Rings along the limb

Turning points

Oldest first.

  1. Splitc. 13th – 15th century CEContested

    The island diverges

    Jeju's speech develops separately from mainland Korean after the island is incorporated into Goryeo. When it should be counted as a separate language is debated.

    Sources (1)
    • Yang, Changyong, William O'Grady & Sejung Yang. 2017. Toward a linguistically realistic assessment of language vitality: The case of Jejueo. Language Documentation & Conservation 11.
  2. Contact1273 – 1374

    Mongol horse ranches

    Under Yuan rule the island becomes a horse-breeding station, and Jeju takes Mongolic vocabulary for horses and their colours.

    Sources (1)
    • Lee, Ki-Moon & S. Robert Ramsey. 2011. A History of the Korean Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  3. Contact1948 – 1954

    The 4.3 massacres

    The suppression of the Jeju uprising kills tens of thousands of islanders. Its aftermath and decades of silence contribute to the decline of the language across generations.

    Sources (1)
    • National Committee for Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju April Third Incident. 2003. The Jeju 4.3 Incident Investigation Report. Jeju.
  4. Revitalization2007 – 2010

    Protection and recognition

    Jeju Province passes an ordinance to preserve the language (2007), and UNESCO lists it as critically endangered (2010). Documentation, teaching and media programmes follow.

    Sources (1)
    • Yang, Changyong, William O'Grady & Sejung Yang. 2017. Toward a linguistically realistic assessment of language vitality: The case of Jejueo. Language Documentation & Conservation 11.