‘Husband’s aunt’s son’, ‘wife’s older brother’s wife.’ Have you ever thought what to call them instead of by their given name? Maybe you’ve never even considered about this matter because you, reading this article, might be a foreigner or a student not yet married. But in Korea, this is a common issue that you face right after marriage. Korean family terms are very complicated. You can see hundreds of posts on the Internet, when you search ‘Korean terms of family and kinship’. Nowadays, there is someone who claims that these terms are sexist and inconvenient. Should we change these terms that have been used for a long time?

The argument first started on a the Blue House online petition board before the Chuseok holiday last September. The post had a title of ‘I strongly petition to change the family terms that women have to use after marriage,’ and pointed out that “A women’s term for family in-laws mostly includes the meaning of respect, but on the other hand, most of men’s terms don’t.’ She also said “What is worse is an unmarried younger brother or the sister of a husband is respected too much in the terminology.” She argued “These need to be changed, and a number of married women should be provided equal rights with other family members. It’s time for the government to handle this problem.”

Last year in the survey ‘How to improve family terms in everyday life’ conducted by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and the National Institute of Korean Language, 94.6% of female participants said some terms of women in-laws should be changed. More than half of male participants agreed on changing the terms. As there were repeated complaints about this issue, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced that new ‘2019 A Schematic Design of Family Health’ will contain improvements of gender-equal family terms.

Gender-equal family terms seems fine, but why can’t we call family members just by their name? Why did Korean family terms become so complicated? To find the answer, we should view this issue from a linguistic side. One of the characteristics of Korean language is that we need another name to call a second person instead of ‘you’. Language is the product of the past, and the Korean family term system is passed down from past times to modern times. The Joseon Dynasty had a rigid status system and close family relations were of very important value. The status system has been abolished and the family has been getting smaller, but the family terms remain the same. Especially, the terms were made in a patriarchal society, that the order of people’s importance is naturally made, just by calling each other using those terms.

Last December, the National Institute of Korean Language and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced an agenda to change some of sexist terms of the family in-laws. However, people criticized how it will be efficient for the government to take the lead of these changes, because they consider it is impossible to control the language of everyday life. But someone who feels discomfort can’t handle this problem on their own, and if new norms are made with the government’s involvement, we can anticipate a more widespread perception of understanding that these terms are sexist, and furthermore, a gradual change in society.

It may take a long time for the whole process to make alternative family terms, or to apply new terms into real society. But discussing them is in itself meaningful. Discomfort in calling each other accepted terms, creates a lack of communication among people. As this issue could become a serious matter for someone in the near future, please stay tuned!

Cho Suyeon  7osooyon@gmail.com

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