By Honorary Reporter Ghada Mohamed Ali from Egypt

Photos = Ghada Mohamed Ali

Twenty-five students at the King Sejong Institute in Cairo, Egypt, were invited to the event "A Day with Hangeul."

The King Sejong Institute branch in Egypt on Oct. 14 held the event "A Day with Hangeul" at the Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in Cairo to mark Hangeul Day. 

The national holiday in Korea is observed on Oct. 9 to mark the promulgation of the Korean alphabet in 1446 by King Sejong the Great.

In his welcoming speech, KCC Director Oh Seung-ho called Korean a distinct tongue and the only language in the world whose origin, purpose of creation, inventor and launch date are all known.

He said "A Day with Hangeul" seeks to promote the moral values of the alphabet to students, deepen their knowledge of Korean culture and show them a good time at the institute. He also discussed upcoming events at the KCC including "Korean Culture Week," which includes screenings of Korean films and exhibitions and art workshops related to Korean culture, and a K-pop contest in Cairo. 

Twenty-five students of all levels from the branch were invited to the event under precautionary measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The three programs were on questions on Hangeul, Korean calligraphy and engraving Hangeul on personal stamps.

KCC Director Oh Seung-ho gives the welcoming speech at the event "A Day with Hangeul."

Hangeul quiz
Before the first session, a brief presentation was given on the background of King Sejong's invention of Hangeul. Afterwards, students were divided into five groups and each group came with a unique name. The questions varied from those on content in the presentation, general questions on Hangeul and the hit Korean series "Squid Game."

The first session in the event was a quiz on Hangeul.

Korean calligraphy
The students showed their creativity by making their own greeting cards and writing phrases in Korean such as "I love you," "Thank you" and "Happy birthday" and decorating them with stickers. They also wrote Hangeul on traditional Korean fans using ink pens. 

The three best designs as selected by the institute's teachers earned prizes.

Students practiced Korean calligraphy on cards (top photo) and traditional Korean fans (bottom photo).

Engraving Hangeul stamps
The students made their own dojang (personal stamps) with their names written in Hangeul. 

Students of all levels said they enjoyed making dojang (personal stamps).

Afterwards, the students expressed their opinions of "A Day with Hangeul." Amira Mostafa said that despite the quiz questions being hard for her because she is a novice, she enjoyed participating and doing calligraphy on cards and stamps. Sarah Radwan, an advanced student, said she enjoyed the event despite having to come from another area.

Level 1 student Amira Mustafa (left) and advanced student Sarah Radwan (right) give their views of the event.

One of the teachers urged the students to enter a contest for vlogs and videos related to Hangeul hosted by the Cairo branch for a chance to win Korean webtoons.

enny0611@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.