How Korean culture spread over the world

Korean culture has caused quite a stir throughout the world. The Netflix drama “Squid Game” became a huge hit. By the way, the show’s creator has confirmed that there will be a second season. “Parasite” was the first non-English-language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture last year. K-pop (think BTS) and kimchi are also popular. Korean culture has left such an effect that the Oxford English Dictionary recently added 26 Korean terms to its dictionary. One of those phrases, “hallyu,” means “Korean wave,” and was invented to represent worldwide enthusiasm in the country.

As a result, Samsung and Hyundai set up their own film and television studios. The initial purpose is to pique East Asia’s interest. It works, resulting in increased investment in entertainment, particularly K-pop. To cultivate young superstars, record firms create boarding schools. The government establishes a cultural ministry and repeals censorship restrictions prohibiting Korean singers from singing in English. K-pop is growing at the same time as social media is exploding. Psy’s “Gangnam Style” becomes the first video on YouTube to reach one billion views in 2012.

K-pop “has the perfect combination of local and global aspects, something familiar and unusual.” And I believe the combination of those is really appealing,” said Suk-Young Kim, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles’ School of Theater, Film & Television.

K-whimsical, pop’s bubblegum depiction of Korean youth, she claimed, piqued worldwide interest in Korean culture. It also served to acclimate viewers to more detailed depictions of Korean life: Think “Parasite” and “Squid Game,” both dystopian dramas. These stories look at a widening wealth inequality in a country that is rebuilding after a war and military rule.

“Being a mid-power like Korea has its advantages,” she explained. “It isn’t little in the sense that it has the resources to maintain soft power, nor has it been a superpower in the sense that it hasn’t been able to develop emotional and cultural opposition.”

At least in terms of culture, South Korea appears to be on the verge of becoming a powerhouse. Today, one of the fastest-growing exports is entertainment. It’s only worth a tenth of the country’s semiconductor exports, at $10 billion.