Category Archives: Learning
Diabetes 당뇨 as common in Korea as USA
Diabetes is 당뇨. Also, diabetes is 당뇨병 where 병 means illness. Korean is a thin-country, but has approximately the same rate of diabetes as USA. The sudden change in the typical diet from vegetarian to eating lots of junk … Continue reading
Hard work pays off
Check out the Economist article “The model minority is losing patience”. It quotes one study that says a reason why Asian Americans excel academically is they work hard. “On average Asian-Americans are unusually well educated, prosperous, married, satisfied with their … Continue reading
Posted in Korean, Learning
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Hanja for Cimi: 苹 apple 사과
We learned 平 peace. It also means flat, level, equal (picture a level scale). We learned grass 艹. Put them together, and you get apple 苹. Apple is one of the earliest Korean words I learned from Boys Over Flowers Korean drama. Apple … Continue reading
Korean Bible
Received a gift of a Korean bible from the Korean woman I met in town. Since the bible is organized by chapter and verse, it is easy to match the Korean to an English bible. I am the light of … Continue reading
Posted in Friends, Korean, Learning
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Hanja for Cimi: 味 taste 맛
I take great thrill in my fortune cookies, now that I am learning a little Chinese. This one taught me the word “taste”. Imagine in ancient times, you are a king who can’t eat yet until the food is first … Continue reading
Hanja for Cimi: 天 sky 천
天 sky, heaven, day 천 I chose the character 天 because of a Zen poem “An Answer on Behalf of Heaven and Earth” 代天地答. We learned soil/earth is 土. See 土 (earth) in the character 地 ? 答 is answer and 代 is on … Continue reading
Hanja for Cimi: 永 eternal 영
When I first saw this character, I thought it was water 水 until I noticed the extra dot. It is a character used as a warm up for calligraphy because it has so many types of strokes.
Intention and Results
What does it take to change intention to results? Here are some things that help. Clearly define your intention. Schedule a specific time to work on the goal. Identify possible obstacles and solutions. Know why you want to do this. … Continue reading
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Hanja for Cimi: 民 people 민
Let’s see some Korean words that use 민. 인민 the people 국민 a nation, a people 자유민 a free citizen 민족 a race (ethnicity) 유목민 a nomadic race 빈민 poor people 貧民 민주주의democracy 民主 Cimi smartly pointed out that some of the words we have … Continue reading
Frequently used tools
When I first started Hanguk Babble, I was on the hunt for any and all tools that I might use to learn a language. I did not know how to teach myself Korean, so I was grasping at everything. … Continue reading
Language Exchange: Rice and Flowers
I would like to share a typical language exchange I had today with my friend Chulmoon, the organic rice farmer in South Korea. I come off a lot better in text messages that I have time to compose with a … Continue reading
Buddhism: 5 Precepts 오계
In South Korea, the lay Buddhist ordination is called sugye 수계. It is a public ceremony where the student affirms their Buddhist practice by accepting the Five Precepts (ogye오계). The Five Precepts I vow to abstain from taking life. I vow to … Continue reading
Korean prayer – repetition & habits
Every night before I go to sleep, I play KUSZ’s evening bell chant. Then I repeat in English until I drift off Hearing the sound of the bell, all thinking is cut off, Wisdom grows; enlightenment appears; [suffering] is left … Continue reading
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What’s your excuse?
What’s your excuse for not studying, making progress, and speaking your target language? Today, mine is that it is too hot. Then I remember that my teacher Joonhee wrote “It’s toooooooo hot here in Korea. 너무 더워요.” Summer and it’s … Continue reading
Posted in Interpals, Korean, Learning
Tagged language exchange, motivation, vocabulary, writing
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Starting again: my language mountain to climb
“after a few wasted moments of despair, I discarded the negativity, and just got started on it. I stopped thinking about all the problems I had, stopped being such a crybaby and just got on with it. Whatever countless number … Continue reading
