This article interrogates the history of North Korean encounters historical and discursive with Jeju's unique "women divers" (haenyo, alternatively known as "sea women"). Since the colonial days (1910-1945), Jeju Island was exceptional in that much of the socioeconomic and political struggles there were led by women divers, a highly organized group of skilled workers whose contribution to the island's economy was crucial. Divers continued to display their agency after the 1945 Liberation as well, playing a prominent role in the April Third Jeju Uprising of 1948. Migratory workers since colonial days, women divers used to travel to Japan for work, and some of them stayed in various Japanese localities, Tsushima included, even after the Liberation. Ca. ten divers' households moved from Tsushima to North Korea in the early 1960s as a part of Zainichi Koreans' "repatriation movement." Concurrent with this development, North Korean arts and literature began to focus very strongly on women divers' revolutionary contributions. In these ideologized artistic descriptions, the portrayals of Jeju divers in anti-colonial and anti-American struggles spotlighted women's own initiative and agency. These portrayals assumedly reflected the economic importance and social centrality of women divers in Jeju life, as well as their exceptionally strong autonomy from male-dominated groups and institutions.
This commentary critically examines the South Korean Ministry of Education's decision to remove the terms songsosuja (sexual minority) and songp'yongdung (gender equality) from social studies and ethics textbooks revised in 2025. It argues that this exclusion hinders societal understanding and acceptance of sexual minorities by denying the use of crucial vernacular terminology. Specifically, songsosuja is a linguistically accurate, culturally appropriate, and politically strategic term, emphasizing the marginalization and invisibility experienced by these groups within a broader framework of social justice and human rights. This commentary critically examines the prevalent use of anglicized queer terms in Korea, highlighting how uncritical adoption exacerbates communication barriers between queer and non-queer Koreans and undermines the cultural agency and ownership of Korean queer speakers. It calls for collaborative efforts between the National Institute of the Korean Language and queer community organizations to adopt, create, and disseminate culturally relevant and accessible Korean queer terminology.
