ABSTRACT
After the Second World War, South Korea was known for its ethno-nationalism and its language policies, which aimed at the establishment of standard Korean and its distinct Hangeul script. The discussion of this phase is followed by reflections on more recent neo-liberal stands of the South Korean government with its recognition of cultural and linguistic diversity within the country. The main focus of the chapter is on Jejueo, the severely endangered heritage language of Jeju Island and on the impact of national as well as provincial language policies on this sister language of Korean. Until recently, speakers of Jejueo had low self-esteem and a rather negative attitude towards their language as well as their culture. In the past few years, this has changed with increasing numbers of people on Jeju Island – also nationally and globally – considering Jeju’s language and cultural heritage as precious. Financial and logistic governmental support of the Jejueo maintenance efforts would be required, but ultimately most essential for the Jejueo revitalization is the active involvement and dedication of the young generation of the Jeju Islanders.
