KOREA FOUNDATION

[Letter from a KF Visiting Professor] Trilingual Students Add a Fourth Language

Greetings! I teach Korean language in the Department of Korean Studies at the University of Nairobi (UoN) in Kenya. UoN is the only East African university with a department for Korean studies. Since it opened in September 2013, the department has seen a steady increase of student enrollment. Nowadays, we have to limit enrollment on a first-come first-served basis.

In the meantime, there are many students who haven’t even heard of the department yet. To spread the word, we put up information about our department and hold orientation meetings about what we do during those semesters when we accept first-year students.

Life in Kenya is not very difficult for me. Korean ramyeon instant noodles are available in the big supermarkets, and some Korean residents here sell kimchi and tofu. There also is a Korean rice cake shop where I order songpyeon and baekseolgi for special Korea-related events and share them with the Kenyan participants.

Kenya’s official languages are Swahili and English, and each tribe has its own language. Therefore, our students begin to learn Korean on the basis of their command of three languages. Although their access to Korean language is rather limited, they work hard to meet their study goals, thanks largely to their outstanding talent in language learning.

Students promoting the Department of Korean Studies for first-year students at the University of Nairobi (top). A group photo after the 2019 Hanbok Culture Week fashion show (bottom).

The students take multiple majors, and those majoring in Korean studies usually study political science, psychology, tourism, or other social science subjects simultaneously. When I teach Korean language and culture, I try to give students as many joyful experiences as possible. One of the students has been selected as a recipient of the Global Korean Scholarship (GKS) offered by the Korean government and is now doing a master’s course in international relations in Korea. Three years ago, that student was named the best participant in the KF’s Global e-School and was invited to attend a summer program at a Korean university. While doing the master’s course, the student is creating a webzine specializing in Kenya-Korea relations. Whenever I hear such good news about our graduates, I am overwhelmed with a great sense of happiness and achievement.

The students of the UoN Department of Korean Studies are full of sincerity and passion, and sharing my time in Kenya with them has been wonderful. Of course, I experience moments of loneliness and difficulty, but most of the time I feel happy and joyful. One day when the Department of Korean Studies is stabilized and expanded further, a master’s course in Korean studies or a Korean Studies Center may follow. I hope that day will come as soon as possible.

Park Yuh Jin, KF Visiting Professor of Korean Language, the University of Nairobi

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