Heo woong((1918.10.30. ~ 2004.01.26.), a linguist
During the Japanese colonial period, Japan completely prohibited the use of our unique language, Korean, and its script, Hangeul, with the purpose of eradicating our national culture.
Many people resisted the Japanese colonial rule and made great efforts to preserve our language and script in their own ways.
Heo Woong showed exceptional academic ability from a young age, his teachers recommended him to attend Tokyo Imperial University(now Tokyo university). However, he disregarded their advice and chose Yeonhee College(now Yonsei university) to learn and research the Korean script, Hangeul.
Heo woong, while attending Yeonhee College, led a secret reading club with his fellow students, fostering a strong anti-Japanese sentiment and showing diligence in his studies of the Korean language.
After the professors at his school were fired and arrested by the Japanese authorities the year after he entered, Heo woong dropped out and self-studied 15th century Korean language and linguistic theories.
After the liberation of Korea, he opened a Korean language training center in his hometown of Gimhae to promote our language and writing system, and continued to serve as a professor, actively promoting the excellence of the Korean language and spreading it to the world by nurturing his students.
“The language of a country represents the spirit of that country and is the driving force behind the creation of its culture.”
“Hangeul was born as a writing system for our people and our nation.”
Heo woong, a linguist who elevated the field of Korean linguistics to the level of language science, Now, become the 21st-century Heo woong and complete Korea that he dreamed of!