Indonesia's Cia-Cia tribe learning 'Han Geul' again

 http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2013/01/116_128258.html 

By Na Jeong-ju

A Korean language institute has resumed teaching the Korean alphabet, or Hangeul, to the Cia Cia, an Indonesian ethnic minority, the institute's chairman said Thursday.

The King Sejong Institute, which operates Korean-learning programs overseas, established a language school in Bau-Bau City on Indonesia's Buton Island in early 2012 to teach Hangeul but it was temporarily closed eight months later due to a budget shortage.

The school, located inside Muhammadiyah Buton University, has resumed operations said Song Hyang-geun, chairman of the King Sejong Institute.

"We've reopened language courses for the Cia Cia after resolving the financial problem," Song said. "A 27-year-old Indonesian teacher, who completed Korean teaching programs in Korea last year, will give lessons twice a week, using textbooks tailored for the minority tribe."

Song also said another Korean language school will be established in Makassar City on Sulawesi Island in March. There is also a similar school in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.

Song said the Cia Cia people have shown a growing interest in learning Korean since the tribe adopted the Korean alphabet to transcribe its native language in 2009.

"We are focusing on improving the quality of the teaching material and giving more Cia Cia students opportunities to learn the Korean language," he said.

The tribe, which has a population of some 80,000, chose to use the Korean alphabet to preserve its spoken language. The adoption drew keen attention in Korea because it was the first case of Hangeul being used by an ethnic group abroad.

The King Sejong Institute is operating some 90 Korean language schools around the world, and 30 more will be set up this year.

The program is a part of the government's efforts to promote the Korean language among countries with which the nation's cultural and economic ties have been growing.

Applications for the Test of Proficiency in Korean have also increased sharply as the exam has become a must for foreigners who want to study and work here. It is now seeking to upgrade the test and provide better textbooks and learning materials abroad to make Korean a more widely-accepted language.

Example of Cia Cia words written in Han Gul Korean:

Basic numeral 1 ~ 10 in Bahasa Cia Cia (a Sunda-Celebesic, South East Celebes language family with in Western Malay-Polynesian of Austronesian)

1 디세 dise / ise 
2 루아 rua / ghua
3 똘루 tolu
4 빠아 pa'a
5 을리마 lima
6 노오 no'o
7 삐쭈 picu
8 활루 walu / oalu
9 시우아 siua 
10 옴뿔루 ompulu