Foreign-language signs, menus in S. Korea spark concerns among locals

South Koreans have noticed a change in their country in recent years: More signboards and restaurant menus are being written in foreign languages.

This has left some of them frustrated, reported local media recently.

A 35-year-old office worker in Seoul, known only as Kim, made a reservation last week at a Japanese restaurant, which had a Korean name online, The Korea Times reported.

But he could not find the restaurant when he arrived at the location as the signboard was in Japanese.

“I had to call the restaurant after going around the block several times because I couldn’t find it,” Mr Kim told the daily.

In a building in the Apgujeong ward of Gangnam district, most signs were written in English, noted the Korea JoongAng Daily.  

A sign in the basement, which has a shopping area and is connected to the Apgujeong subway station, has the English word “Retail” and a symbol of a train.

The report said that seven out of eight cafes in the same alley as the building put up signs in English only. 

The use of foreign languages on signboards presumably began in the hip areas of Seoul, such as Gangnam, where restaurants and cafes popular on social media are located, said the report.

“Indiscriminate English signs may have sprouted from a misleading perception that sees foreign languages as more in style than Hangul,” Korean Language Society president Kwon Jae-il told the daily.

The Korea Times, citing a survey by a local civic group promoting Korean, said that in 2019, 23.5 per cent of store signs in Seoul’s 12 districts were in foreign languages. The report did not state what the foreign languages are.

Only 15.2 per cent of signs were written in Korean and the store names were in a foreign language as well.

In South Korea, a signboard that is not written in Hangul, or Korean alphabet, is considered illegal.

Under the law, advertisements, including signboards, that are in a foreign language must have the content written in Hangul as well, “unless there is a compelling reason not to do so”.

The law, however, does not apply to menus.

At a restaurant in Apgujeong, the menu is written only in English, said the report in Korea JoongAng Daily.

The only Korean sign in the restaurant says: “Use a spoon and fork instead of chopsticks to enjoy the food with proper formality.”

It appears that the problem is also seen outside of Seoul.

In Suwon city, the provincial capital of Gyeonggi-do, a 60-year-old resident was stumped by the English menu at a coffee shop in her neighbourhood.

“For a moment, I wondered, ‘Am I in Korea?’” the woman, who gave her surname as Oh, told The Korea Times. “I had no idea what they meant and had to wait for my daughter to arrive to understand what they sell and to make an order.”

At a cafe in Gyeonggi province, misugaru – a traditional beverage made of powdered grains – was listed as “MSGR” on the menu. There was no Hangul for the beverage, said Korea JoongAng Daily.

A card with the words “Please wait” was given to customers who placed an order, said the report.

“It seems like a silent gesture to fend off people who cannot read English well – similar to the ‘No Kids’ zone,” said a 43-year-old customer, who was not named in the report.

Cafe staff said they wrote the notices in English as many foreigners lived in the vicinity. Having both English and Hangul in a limited space may confuse customers, they reportedly said.

“Please consider it as a marketing move that... differentiates us from other cafes,” they added.

A Korean-language Bill was drafted in July for district governments to advise businesses on how to properly use Korean at their establishments.

A review of the Bill by the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee began on Sept 20, reported Korea JoongAng Daily.