For most of the world, ice cream is simple treatment with a universal name. But in North Korea, politics has now become a question.
Leader Kim Jong Un reportedly banned the use of the word “ice cream”, described it as a foreign influence, and ordered to be replaced by concepts approved by the state, such as Eseukimo or Eoreumbuseungi, which means “preservation of ice”.
According to reports from Nk dailyThis step is part of a large campaign to cleanse Western and South Korean words from the country’s vocabulary, especially in its expanding tourism industry.
From ice cream to “eseukimo”
Guides in North Korea are currently undergoing intensive three -month training in Wonsan and other key tourist destinations. It is forbidden to use certain Englishized words, even if it speaks to foreign visitors.
Instead of Aiseukeuri – derived from the English word “ice cream” – the guides must now call “eseukimo” or “Eoreumbuseungi”.
This change has left some participants in confusion.
“We would probably have to use foreign words for foreign tourists to understand us,” said one Daily NK practicer, spoke anonymously because of fears of impacts.
Despite their frustrations, trainees are cautious not to openly criticize this policy.
“Being a guide is a good job, and if you say one bad thing, you can be fired from the program,” explained another trainee.
Who are eskimos – and why the name could be controversial
Interestingly, the term eseukimo is derived from ESKIMA, a word historically used to designate indigenous people in Arctic areas, including parts of Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Siberia.
However, the term “eskimo” is now considered to be obsolete and even offensive by many communities that prefer names such as Inuit or Yupik that reflect their different cultural identity.
The acceptance of this concept of North Korea has increased eyebrows, with linguists suggesting that it may reflect the attempt to use foreign sounding words without borrowing directly from English.
From hamburgers to “double bread with ground beef”
Among the prohibited words is a globally recognized “hamburger”, which must now be referred to as Dajin-Gogi gyeoppang, a literal translation that means “double bread with ground beef”.
Even Karaoke machines were rebranding, with guides to tell them “accompanying machines on the screen”.
An official from the province of Kangwon, where the New Town of the Beach Resort in Wonsan develops, explained the reasoning of linguistic purification:
“The aim is to teach professionals in tourism consciously to use the North Korean vocabulary and expressions, while carefully avoiding the expressions of South Korean style and foreign rental words that may be used unknowingly.”
Why Kim Jong Un targets the tongue
An official from the province of Kangwon, where the city of Wonsan develops as a luxury center, explained the justification of the procedure against the Daily NK:
“The aim is to teach professionals in tourism consciously to use the North Korean vocabulary and expressions, while carefully avoiding the expressions of South Korean style and foreign rental words that may be used unknowingly.”
Policy is part of a wider government strategy to promote tourism and at the same time protects the North Korean society from external cultural influences. By mastering the language, Pyongyang hopes to control what locals and foreign visitors hear and say.
North Korean tourism with political reversal
The training program, which began on 21 August, directly oversees the working party of the Korean Korean department.
Wonsan, who hopes the regime to turn into an international tourism center, allegedly pours sources on the initiative, training between 20 and 30 individuals, including graduates of provincial foreign language universities and new recruits from the State of the General Office for Tourist Leaders.
The three -month course covers everything from manipulation with foreign tourists to the codes of dressing, professional behavior and memorizing approved slogans and phrases.
(Tagstotranslate) ice cream
