KOREAN LINGUISTICS

The course is one of the related educational activities (attività formative affini) of the Master's Degree Programme in Languages and Cultures of Asia and Mediterranean Africa and provides a systematic introduction to Korean linguistics. Over fifteen lessons it covers the levels of linguistic analysis — phonetics and phonology, the writing system, morphology, the particle and verbal-ending systems, syntax, information structure, honorification, tense-aspect-modality, pragmatics and phraseology — situating Korean within linguistic typology and comparing it systematically with Italian. Particular attention is paid to the contrastive perspective and to the language of Italian-speaking learners: the typical difficulties of studying Korean from Italian are explained on the basis of the structure of the two languages rather than presented as mere lists of errors.
The course aims to equip students with the theoretical and analytical tools needed to describe Korean rigorously — identifying its units, formulating testable generalisations, using interlinear glossing and linguistic terminology in both Italian and Korean — and to read the Korean and international scholarly literature. Each lesson combines theoretical exposition, a guided-analysis workshop on Korean data and self-assessment; a guide to the master's thesis, with research topics in morphosyntax, Korean language teaching and artificial intelligence applied to teaching, orients students towards their thesis work. Achieving these objectives consolidates students' linguistic and metalinguistic competence and strengthens their informed use of Korean, in keeping with the educational profile of the master's degree programme.

By the end of the course students will have acquired the fundamental theoretical knowledge and operational tools for the linguistic analysis of Korean, developing an in-depth understanding of the main structures of the language and of its characteristic features from a typological and contrastive perspective. They will also be able to apply the methods of general linguistics to the study of Korean, with particular reference to the phonological, graphematic, morphological, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic dimensions.

In detail, the expected learning outcomes are as follows.

- Knowledge and understanding
- Know the key concepts and main analyses of Korean linguistics at its different levels: phonology and the writing system, lexical morphology, the particle and verbal-ending systems, syntax and information structure, honorification, tense-aspect-modality, pragmatics and phraseology.
- Situate Korean within linguistic typology (an agglutinative, head-final, topic-prominent language) and recognise the structural asymmetries between Korean and Italian.
- Master basic linguistic terminology in Italian and Korean (조사, 어미, 화제, 높임법 etc.), the conventions of interlinear glossing and romanisation, and understand specialist texts in Korean linguistics written in Korean and English.

Applying knowledge and understanding

- Apply the methods of linguistic analysis to authentic Korean data: segment verbal and nominal forms, formulate and test judgements of grammaticality, acceptability and appropriateness, and carry out syntactic tests.
- Conduct Korean–Italian contrastive analyses, identifying function–form correspondences and the asymmetries relevant to learning, translation and mediation.
- Explain Korean grammatical phenomena on a theoretical basis and trace the typical errors of Italian-speaking learners back to the structure of the two languages.
- Design a linguistic research project on a Korean phenomenon — research question, data, method — with a view to the master's thesis.

Making judgements

- Critically evaluate competing linguistic analyses (Korean school grammar, typological descriptions, theoretical analyses) and sources — reference grammars, dictionaries, corpora, artificial-intelligence tools — recognising their limits and reliability.
- Assess their own level of theoretical and applied competence, identifying strengths and areas for improvement.

Communication skills

- Present linguistic arguments and analyses clearly and in a structured way, in writing and orally, with glossed examples and appropriate scientific terminology.
- Take part in academic discussions on questions of Korean linguistics with theoretical awareness and lexical command.

Learning skills

- Independently integrate concepts and methods from different areas of linguistics and apply them to the study of Korean.
- Engage independently and critically with the specialist literature in Korean and English, including Korean databases and journals, as a basis for thesis work.

To successfully attend the Korean Linguistics course, students are expected to meet the following prerequisites:
- Intermediate proficiency in Korean: students should possess solid linguistic skills at least at the B1 level (according to the CEFR), in order to understand authentic language examples and grammatical explanations in Korean.
- Basic knowledge of general linguistics: familiarity with fundamental linguistic concepts (such as phoneme, morpheme, syntax, semantics, etc.), either from prior coursework or independent study, is recommended:
Tullio De Mauro, Corso di linguistica generale, Laterza, 2008.
David Crystal, La linguistica, Il Mulino, 2010 (How Language Works, Penguin, 2005).
Victoria Fromkin et al., Introduzione alla linguistica, Zanichelli, 2003 (An Introduction to Language, Wadsworth, 2003).
Giorgio Graffi & Sergio Scalise, Le lingue e il linguaggio, Il Mulino, 2002.
- Analytical and abstract thinking skills: the ability to engage in theoretical reasoning and metalinguistic reflection will be valuable for understanding more advanced linguistic discussions.
- Passive reading ability in English: as part of the course readings may be in English, students should be able to comprehend academic texts in English

Lesson 1: What Does It Mean to Analyse Korean?
Lesson 2: The Linguistic Typology of Korean
Lesson 3: Phonetics and Phonology I: The Segmental System
Lesson 4: Phonetics and Phonology II: Phonological Processes
Lesson 5: The Writing System: Hangŭl in Graphematic Perspective
Lesson 6: Morphology I: Lexical Morphology and Word Formation
Lesson 7: Morphology II: The Particle System
Lesson 8: Morphology III: The Verbal Ending System
Lesson 9: Syntax I: Constituent Order and Sentence Structure
Lesson 10: Syntax II: Subject, Topic and Focus
Lesson 11: The Honorification System
Lesson 12: Syntax III: Complex Sentences and Connective Endings
Lesson 13: Semantics: Tense, Aspect and Modality
Lesson 14: Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis
Lesson 15: Korean Idiomatic Expressions

Core course texts

Kang, Soon Haeng, Introduzione alla linguistica coreana. Struttura, uso e prospettiva contrastiva italiano-coreano, independent edition, 2026 (course textbook for the fifteen lessons; includes workshops, self-assessment, thesis guide and glossary).
Kang, Soon Haeng, Morfologia coreana, Venice, Libreria Editrice Cafoscarina, 2024.
Kang, Soon Haeng, Sistema verbale coreano, Venice, Libreria Editrice Cafoscarina, 2024.
Sohn, Ho-min, The Korean Language, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1999 (reference grammar).

Reference works — general linguistics

Graffi, Giorgio – Scalise, Sergio, Le lingue e il linguaggio. Introduzione alla linguistica, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2002 (later editions).
Saussure, Ferdinand de, Corso di linguistica generale, ed. Tullio De Mauro, Rome-Bari, Laterza (2008 ed.).
Crystal, David, La linguistica, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2010 (orig. How Language Works, London, Penguin, 2005).
Fromkin, Victoria – Rodman, Robert – Hyams, Nina, Introduzione alla linguistica, Bologna, Zanichelli, 2003 (orig. An Introduction to Language, Boston, Wadsworth).

Further reading — the Korean language

Lee, Iksop – Ramsey, S. Robert, The Korean Language, Albany, State University of New York Press, 2000.
Lee, Ki-Moon – Ramsey, S. Robert, A History of the Korean Language, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2011.
Cho, Sungdai – Whitman, John, Korean: A Linguistic Introduction, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2020.
Martin, Samuel E., A Reference Grammar of Korean, Rutland (VT), Charles E. Tuttle, 1992.

Further readings for each lesson are listed in the course textbook; references to Korean-language scholarship (이익섭·채완, 고영근, etc.) appear in the volume's general bibliography.

The final assessment consists of a written examination, which accounts for 100 % of the mark. The exam covers the topics dealt with in the fifteen lessons and the parts of the course textbook marked as required reading; the in-depth sections are not examined unless otherwise indicated by the lecturer.

The exam (90 minutes) is organised in three parts:

- Knowledge and understanding (approx. 40 % of the mark): short-answer questions on the key concepts of the lessons (typology, phonology and writing, morphology, syntax, honorification, tense-aspect-modality, pragmatics), using linguistic terminology correctly in Italian and Korean.
- Data analysis (approx. 40 %): analysis of Korean examples modelled on the classroom workshops — morphological segmentation and interlinear glossing, reasoned judgements of grammaticality, acceptability and appropriateness, syntactic tests, comparison with Italian.
- Argumentation (approx. 20 %): an argumentative answer on a question of contrastive analysis or on the explanation of a typical error made by Italian-speaking learners.

Assessment criteria:

- accuracy and completeness of knowledge;
- rigour of the analysis and suitability of the tests applied;
- clarity of exposition and appropriate use of terminology;
- ability to justify one's conclusions.

The self-assessment questions at the end of each lesson and the annotated solutions in Appendix D of the course textbook serve as preparation material.

written

The instructor is responsible for ensuring the authenticity and originality of all examinations and coursework. In cases of suspected academic misconduct, an additional on-site assessment may be required during the exams, which may differ from the standard format.

As regards the grading scale, the mark for the written examination is awarded according to the following scheme:

- 18–22: sufficient knowledge of the course contents; basic ability to segment and gloss Korean examples and to recognise the main structures, with still uncertain use of linguistic terminology;

- 23–26: fair knowledge of the contents; ability to apply analytical tests to Korean data and to justify judgements of grammaticality and appropriateness, with some imprecision in the comparison with Italian or in the terminology;

- 27–30: good or very good knowledge; rigorous and complete analysis of the data, appropriate use of terminology in Italian and Korean, ability to explain grammatical phenomena and the errors of Italian-speaking learners from a contrastive perspective;

- 30 cum laude: excellent and in-depth knowledge of the syllabus; full command of the analytical tools and terminology, ability to argue independently, to compare alternative analyses and to identify open questions suitable for further research.

In the introductory session the reference texts, the structure of the course textbook and the course's working methods will be presented. For each lesson the following will be made available in PDF format on the Moodle platform: the lesson slides, the guided-analysis worksheet done in class and the worksheet assigned as homework, together with guidance on which sections of the textbook to read before and after the lesson (required reading and in-depth reading). The materials are designed to support individual study, exam preparation and revision; the annotated solutions to the worksheets and self-assessment questions are collected in Appendix D of the course textbook.

Detailed information on the written examination — its three-part structure, duration and assessment criteria — will be provided in the first lesson. To help students become familiar with the format, a sample exam with annotated solutions will be uploaded to the Moodle platform; the self-assessment questions at the end of each lesson in the course textbook offer a further means of preparation. Non-attending students are required to contact the lecturer at the beginning of the course to receive precise guidance on the assessment method, the teaching materials and the parts of the textbook required for the exam (required reading and workshops).