https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iILJb38w6g0
I recently stumbled across this video on the Internet of an impromptu Korean-language interview with a fairly fluent expat. It was recorded by HyunWoo Sun from TalkToMeInKorean.com.
I find these kinds of interviews to be quite inspiring. There are people in Korea and around the world who AREN’T Koreans and yet speak Korean quite fluently. I hope to be able to regularly introduce and post about these people on this blog for some more motivation to continue studying hard.
For now, here are the main questions in this interview (typed here for your convenience):
- 자기소개
(Self-Introduction) - 무슨 일 하세요?
(What kind of work do you do?) - 한국에는 언제 왔어요?
(When did you come to Korea?) - 한국어는 언제 처음 배우기 시작했어요?
(When did you first start learning Korean?) - 왜 제주도를 선택했어요?
(Why did you choose Jeju island?) - 실제로도 아름다웠어요?
(Was it really beautiful like you had thought?) - 서울은 어때요?
(How is Seoul?) - 서울에는 사람이 너무 많지 않아요?
(Don’t you think there are too many people in Seoul?) - 일 안 할 때는 뭐 해요?
(What do you do when you don’t work?) - 요즘도 달리기 해요?
(You run these days as well?) - 밖에 너무 춥지 않아요?
(Isn’t it too cold outside?) - 한국어를 학교에서 배운 적 있어요?
(Have you learned Korean in a school?) - 랭귀지캐스트는 언제부터 오기 시작했어요?
(When did you start coming to LanguageCast?) - 한국어 공부하는 사람들에게 해 주고 싶은 이야기는?
(Any tips for other people on learning Korean?) - 새해 다짐은?
(New Year’s resolutions?)
A number of these questions are quite good, and I’m interested in asking them to other fluent Korean speakers. The best ones are:
- 자기소개
(Self-Introduction) - 한국에는 언제 왔어요?
(When did you come to Korea?) - 한국어는 언제 처음 배우기 시작했어요?
(When did you first start learning Korean?) - 한국어를 학교에서 배운 적 있어요?
(Have you learned Korean in a school?) - 한국어 공부하는 사람들에게 해 주고 싶은 이야기는?
(Any tips for other people on learning Korean?)
So, if you or anyone you know is “fairly fluent” and could answer questions like this (in Korean) either in a video or in writing (via email), please Contact Us and let us know. I’m interested in doing either a weekly or bi-monthly Inspiration post with a fluent Korean speaker.
Is anyone you know fluent in Korean? Let us a comment below or Contact Us and let us know about it!
Wow! He sounds like a native speaker. I would never think it was someone from Canada. He sounds really really good ^_^
I agree. Loads of practice went in to get to that level I’m sure. My goal is to someday be able to speak like him or Sam Hammington – fluent with little to no accent. There are some foreigners in Korea who speak fluent Korean, but with a strong accent. My goal is to reduce my accent as much as possible.
Lee ByungHun is a good example of a Korean actor who’s minimized his accent speaking English. Part of what’s helped him minimize his accent is getting a language and pronunciation coach to help him with his lines in the movies. For more info about Lee ByungHun’s experience with learning and speaking English, be sure to check out our post about him! Lee ByungHun and second-language learning