Korea is a place where low individualism prevails but collectivism predominates. Korean people believe in the will of the group rather than that of the individual, and the society emphasises on harmony and group decision-making. Therefore, while you are studying Korean, you will be able to find unique cultural fact and expressions that have traditionally been handed down.

The adjective of ‘our’ is often used when referring to Korea; the country, own home or family members instead of using ‘my’ such as our country and our home. It does not necessarily mean there was a joint ownership involved. ‘Our’ emphasizes community over individuality, which expressing their affiliations that they are belong to. By using this term, Koreans consciously or unconsciously strengthen a sense of harmony. However, when it is necessary to specify one’s possession, ‘my’ is used. ‘Our’ could sound odd in this case.

The other interesting Korean culture fact is calling people as a family member. For instance, a ripe of old age of 80 is normally called as a grandfather or grandmother from other people regardless of family relationship. Brothers and sisters are also frequently used to call rather than their names. Since Koreans historically observe a custom of Confucian ideology that considers the society as a big family in the same vein as collectivism. This unique culture gives Korean people a sense of intimacy to each other.

In addition, when you are willing to call someone only by names, you should make sure if the other person is the same age otherwise the other person might feel uncomfortable to be called since the appropriate title is particularly commonly used rather than names. If someone looks obviously older than you, it may be a good idea to call him or her as a familial title. If it happened in a work place, you should call someone by his or her title (check out the last blog: ‘A word on culture: you’). The term ‘friend’ in Korean is only used to refer to someone the same age as you. Names without any title can be used after you are quite close to someone.