So… which Korea are you from?

Korea sends a lot of students to the united states for education. Following table might help you understand how many korean students are studying in the united states. While South Korea only holds 0.7% (50 million) of the world population,  it sends the third most students over the united states, only after the two most populated countries in the world China and Indan with 18.6% (1.38 billion) and 17.9% (1.33billion). (http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/population-by-country/)

Top 5 sending places of origin and percentage of total international student enrollment

:(http://www.iie.org/Services/Project-Atlas/United-States/International-Students-In-US#.WCCw3vkrK71)

So If you go to a school in the united states, the chances are you will run into a few korean people or maybe even befriend one. While it is natural to ask about your new international friend’s culture and their country, one must  be aware of possibly making a bad first impression with the wrong questions.

Here is a common question I have gotten asked to too many times. It goes something like this.

Me: “Hi, My name is Sun, and I am from Korea.

Person: “Hi Sun, my name is Tyler Nice to meet you. You are from korea? So, which korea are you from? Is south korea the crazy one”?

Me:   

Surprisingly,I have encountered this sort of conversation more than a handful times during my stay in the united states. While I understand many people do not follow world politics on the regular, this kind of question can still quickly become annoying. Over 99.99% of the time when you meet a korean, they will be from the south also known as Republic of Korea. There are only about 200 north korean refugees living in the US and most of them live in korea town in Los Angeles). (http://www.voanews.com/a/north-korea-refugees-united-states-struggle/3073973.html) So the chances of you ever meeting a north korean in the united states is very low.

Some of these confusions arise from simply not knowing what to talk about Korea. So, I am going to tell you some questions you can ask next time you meet a korean person. These are some acceptable questions.

1. What are some good korean alcohol and drinking games? (Korean people love drinking)
2. What does "oppa" mean? (like i
3. Do you play League of Legends/Starcraft/… (Many Korean guys play video games intensely)
4. How is Korean Soccer/Baseball (Two sports Koreans love the most)
5. What are some good Korean movies you recommend? (Korea has a very prolific movie industry)

The list goes on, but any of those questions will help you make a better connection with a korean person than questions like “Which Korea are you from?” or “ Do you eat dogs?”. What you think is a funny joke may or may not be funny to others. Korea is a very small country with a lot to offer, and korean people are always willing to help foreigners to get to  know Korea better. So ask them about Korea if you would like to learn more!