Oxford University opens doors to Hallyu Academy as K-wave hits UK

Students pose for a photo during the UK Hallyu Academy opening ceremony held at Oxford University's Hertford College on Sunday. [UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD]

Oxford University has opened the doors to its UK Hallyu Academy, a 10-week course introducing students to Korean culture and language amid the global K-wave.

Oxford's Hertford College on Sunday hosted an opening ceremony to welcome the first UK Hallyu Academy students.

Around 20 students attended the event. Some said they decided to sign up for the course because they wanted to watch Korean dramas without subtitles, while others became interested in Korea through BTS or were interested in Korean food and hanbok, Korean traditional dress.

This year is the first the university is running the program. Classes will be held online every other Saturday for two hours each.

The first half of the course will focus on the intricacies of Korean language, such as dialects and the difference between banmal, casual language, and jondaemal, or honorifics.

The second half will introduce students to key Korean people, including historical figures like painters Kim Hong-do and Shin Yun-bok, King Sejong, King Jeongjo and scholar Lee Bingheogak. Modern figures like singer Seo Taeji will also be discussed.

The Korean Education Center UK helped develop the curriculum.

"We hope the UK Hallyu Academy can enhance knowledge about Korea and Korean, even helping Korean to be taught as a regular subject at middle and high schools in the UK," Ahn Hee-seong, the center's director, said.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]