Korean Job Discussion Forums

[garykasparov]

http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=040000&biid=2007111054108


The New Dating Rule: At Last, Nationality Doesn�t Matter



NOVEMBER 10, 2007 07:50


A Korean woman and an Arabian man were seen talking together in a coffee shop in Itaewon yesterday. They were a couple.

Kim Mi-yeon, the female, a 24-year-old university student, said, �My boyfriend triggered my interest in Islamic culture. We met while I was in the U.K. studying English.� Mahid, also 24, said that he is learning Korean, too.


The number of inter-ethnic couples in Korea is on the rise. The rules of dating for the younger generation in this global era no longer seem to include hang ups about their partner�s nationality.


85.7% of Koreans say they are willing to date a foreign national-


Recently, Duo, a marriage consulting company, conducted a survey of 516 singles. 80.2% of the respondents answered that they would date a non-Korean. Only 3.9% replied that they would not.


This is a big difference compared to the results of the same poll conducted in 2000 of 357 single men and women. In that poll, 21% said they would probably not be inclined, and 29.4% answered that they would not date a non-Korean.


Globalization has changed that sentiment. Among university students, international couples are no longer surprising to see, and the number of international couples who hold hands in public without being conscious of what others might think of them are increasing.


Kim Hyeon-mi, a Sociology Professor at Yonsei University, said, �More Korean students have overseas experiences through trips, international student exchange program, and studying opportunities. The language barrier is slowly disappearing, and it is becoming natural for them to spend time with non-Koreans.�


The increase of foreign residents in Korea has also had an effect. Currently, more than one million foreigners live in Korea.


Jeon Eun-ji, a university student dating a U.S. English teacher, said that there is nothing strange about having a non-Korean friend. She lived in Germany for more than a year, and also traveled in Canada and the Philippines.


Cultural differences are the challenge-


Although Koreans are more open toward international dating than before, some still have trouble due to cultural differences.


Shim, a male university student going out with a Russian exchange student, said that once he cursed in Korean and his girlfriend imitated him. He told her that it is wrong to use the word, and they fought because his girlfriend was asking why. He added that sometimes the relationship is stressful for him because she can�t eat spicy foods.


Kim Eun-jeong, who married an English man after two years of dating, said that there are still times she feels the culture gap. �When married Korean couples fight, usually the man apologizes first, but my husband and I argue until everything is dealt with. It is due to cultural differences, but it baffled me in the beginning.�


However, these differences also have positive sides.


Kim Uk, a graduate student who has a Chinese girlfriend, said that the relationship made his family happier. He said, �My girlfriend doesn�t understand the concept of hierarchy based on age. So she easily gets along with my parents, which makes them happy.�

[ldh2222]

With the amount (probably to an excess) of westernization and traveling abroad Koreans have done in the past xx years, this is a no-brainer. However, I will admit the homogeneity is very unique, but that appears to be dissipating rapidly nowadays.

[barneyy]

I agree that people don't care as much as they used to, at least around Seoul. I think this is largely due to the proliferation of foreigners in the area. That being said, though Korean people may be okay with foreign relationships, I think most still prefer to date among their own.

Also, never forget the influence of Korean parents. This pertains more to marriage. Things are not like what they are in Western countries, where it's largely up to the two individuals involved. While Koreans are on the road to adopting Western practices, for some Koreans, marriage is a fit between two families as much as it is a fit between two individuals.

I don't think any of these things are all that surprising. People tend to date those that are similar to them (whether ethnicity, culture, socioeconomic status, ...). It's true in any country, in any culture. Korea though has a stronger emphasis on the three things I mentioned than the U.S. (I don't feel I can fairly comment on other countries ...).

[Hanson]

[princess]

[Young FRANKenstein]

[in_seoul_2003]

[lastat06513]

Its pretty sad that something like this has to come in the form of a news article while many people have been saying it for years.......I guess they take the media's words over supposedly educated people.........

[Roch]

[komerican]

why do people think interracial dating is western? I grew up in the West and white people always dated white people. For example, the percentage of whites dating outside their race is much smaller than for korean-americans. And in all the years I spent in the West I only saw one white man/black women couple even though there are millions of black women in the States. Interracial dating overall is not that popular in the west.

Interracial dating is actually more of an EASTERN thing, lol.

We live in a time where we have to label things "western" in order for it to gain notice, hence this absurd article.

[NightSky]

[Young FRANKenstein]

[caniff]

[Atavistic]