I’m not Korean so my opinion doesn’t count. BUT! I don’t like this idea! Korean names are beautiful! I also hate it when cultures tries to copy everything USA to the detriment of your own culture disappearing. This has been happening here in Brazil, where I’m from. Hardly anything from our culture is BR anymore, and even though I wouldn’t say our culture was ever “rich” to begin with, as this land was colonized by Portuguese (and later Italians and Germans) who brought African slaves and mostly killed off the Natives. So we have almost nothing original to the land, everything else being a mishmash of old European traditions and American things. The “real” Brazilian today is Portuguese-Black-Native, but with no real strong ties to anything from these cultures, instead, modern Brazilians are American wannabes and I HATE IT. So it makes me sad – again, my opinion doesn’t count – that Koreans are changing their names inside Korean companies inside Korea, for the benefit of maybe international investors or business partners (if I got it right)!!! Please, Korea, keep your names and traditions and let outsiders adapt!
I think the idea of this is a good one, but it sounds like it’s been a bit of a disaster in practice. Also, why not just use their Korean given names? Or even their full name, just without the position or honorifics? Or just make a rule that everyone speaks politely to everyone else and attaches -shi at the end of their names? It seems like there are lots of ways to handle this that might work better.
The article mentions the prevalent cultural taboo of not using honorifics. Cultures are not immutable but this one is woven so tightly into the Korean linguistic framework and is reflective of the Neo-Confucian hierarchical values.
Doesn’t using given names have its own hierarchical implications? For example, older siblings call their younger siblings by their names but not the other way around. Full-name-plus-shi seems more reasonable from this outsider’s perspective but I don’t know how much that would do to get around the respect/hierarchy relationships, since that sends its own message about closeness/distance.
I think all of this would have hierarchical implications, but that’s sort of the point, right? You just have to decide some equal way to address each other if you are trying to achieve a more horizontal culture. Whether that equal way is more casual or more formal seems relatively arbitrary as long as everyone is doing it, and it seems like more formal would make more people feel at ease. I just think there must be easier ways to do it than using English names, particularly if people aren’t allowed to choose any name they like, and using their own names might cut down on the “you can’t use that one because the director is using it” type of logic.
I wonder if giving English names to most of the dogs at the vet hospital in My Man Is Cupid is poking fun at this practice – especially since they’re long ones that could be a bit unwieldy for Korean speakers (Alexandra, Elizabeth …).
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DancingEmma
December 18, 2023 at 3:13 AM
“ English name policies at work: top-down policy or horizontal culture”
https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20231218000596
Kitsune Moon
December 18, 2023 at 3:55 AM
I’m not Korean so my opinion doesn’t count. BUT! I don’t like this idea! Korean names are beautiful! I also hate it when cultures tries to copy everything USA to the detriment of your own culture disappearing. This has been happening here in Brazil, where I’m from. Hardly anything from our culture is BR anymore, and even though I wouldn’t say our culture was ever “rich” to begin with, as this land was colonized by Portuguese (and later Italians and Germans) who brought African slaves and mostly killed off the Natives. So we have almost nothing original to the land, everything else being a mishmash of old European traditions and American things. The “real” Brazilian today is Portuguese-Black-Native, but with no real strong ties to anything from these cultures, instead, modern Brazilians are American wannabes and I HATE IT. So it makes me sad – again, my opinion doesn’t count – that Koreans are changing their names inside Korean companies inside Korea, for the benefit of maybe international investors or business partners (if I got it right)!!! Please, Korea, keep your names and traditions and let outsiders adapt!
Kitsune Moon
December 18, 2023 at 3:56 AM
*try, their, GAHHHH typing too fast
Unaspirated
December 18, 2023 at 6:08 AM
I think the idea of this is a good one, but it sounds like it’s been a bit of a disaster in practice. Also, why not just use their Korean given names? Or even their full name, just without the position or honorifics? Or just make a rule that everyone speaks politely to everyone else and attaches -shi at the end of their names? It seems like there are lots of ways to handle this that might work better.
DancingEmma
December 18, 2023 at 10:14 AM
The article mentions the prevalent cultural taboo of not using honorifics. Cultures are not immutable but this one is woven so tightly into the Korean linguistic framework and is reflective of the Neo-Confucian hierarchical values.
Elinor is trapped in the timeslip
December 18, 2023 at 10:30 AM
Doesn’t using given names have its own hierarchical implications? For example, older siblings call their younger siblings by their names but not the other way around. Full-name-plus-shi seems more reasonable from this outsider’s perspective but I don’t know how much that would do to get around the respect/hierarchy relationships, since that sends its own message about closeness/distance.
Unaspirated
December 18, 2023 at 2:46 PM
I think all of this would have hierarchical implications, but that’s sort of the point, right? You just have to decide some equal way to address each other if you are trying to achieve a more horizontal culture. Whether that equal way is more casual or more formal seems relatively arbitrary as long as everyone is doing it, and it seems like more formal would make more people feel at ease. I just think there must be easier ways to do it than using English names, particularly if people aren’t allowed to choose any name they like, and using their own names might cut down on the “you can’t use that one because the director is using it” type of logic.
Elinor is trapped in the timeslip
December 18, 2023 at 10:31 AM
I wonder if giving English names to most of the dogs at the vet hospital in My Man Is Cupid is poking fun at this practice – especially since they’re long ones that could be a bit unwieldy for Korean speakers (Alexandra, Elizabeth …).