Was a cool dude, beloved for his benevolence and hard work

Got tired of the fact that the common citizen was unable to read Chinese characters used by the educated

Invented hangul in 1446

Sejong wanted all Koreans (not just the educated) to be able to:

"the correct sounds for the instruction of the people"

One of the easiest alphabets to learn

(most Korean children can write by the age of 3!)

Composed of symbols that describe distinct
consonant (chongsong) and vowel (chungsong) sounds

Good working knowledge of hangul can be learned in a couple hours of study!

One vowel

One consonant +

and sometimes
another consonant

T

J

CH

Door

[ng]

Hat

KiLL

Tine

Nose

River

Bin

Map

Skirt

Jump

Charm

Front

Far

over

root