- Idu
Infobox Korean name
caption=A page from the 19th-century yuseopilji.
hangul=이두
hanja=吏讀
rr=Idu
mr=IduIdu is an archaic
writing system which represents theKorean language usinghanja . The term "idu" is used in two senses. It may refer to various systems of representingKorean phonology throughChinese character s, which were used from the Three Kingdoms to Joseon periods. In this sense it includes "hyangchal " and "gugyeol " writing, as well as the narrower sense of "idu". The narrower sense refers solely to the system developed in theGoryeo period, and first referred to by name in the "Jewang Ungi ".The "idu" script used
Chinese characters , calledhanja , along with special symbols to indicate Korean verb endings and other grammatical markers that were different in Korean from Chinese.Fact|date=February 2008 This made both the meaning and pronunciation difficult to parse, and was one reason why the system was gradually abandoned, to be replaced withhangul , after the 15th century. In this respect, it faced problems analogous to those which confronted early efforts at representing theJapanese language withkanji due to the grammatical differences between these languages and Chinese.Characters were selected for "idu" based on their Chinese sound, their adapted Korean sound, or their meaning, and some were given a completely new sound and meaning. At the same time, 150 new Korean characters were invented, mainly for names of people and places. This process led to the Koreans borrowing large numbers of Chinese words, and the "idu" system was quite difficult to learn. Only a small minority of the male aristocracy ever gained literacy.Fact|date=February 2008
References
*Nam Pung-hyeon (남풍현) (2000): Idu Study (吏讀研究), Taehak Publishing (太學社), Seoul, Korea.
ee also
*
Korean language
*Hunmin Jeongeum
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