Lyrics and a new language #방탄때문에_한글배웠다

Today on twitter, we saw “#방탄때문에_한글배웠다” trending globally. That’s the Korean language of Hangul and the trending hashtag reads “because of Bulletproof”. For the uninitiated, Bangtan Sonyeondan (translated to Bulletproof Boy Scouts) or BTS is a Korean pop music group that has a crazed global fan following, called ARMY ( Adorable Representative M.C for Youth) What is with them and acronyms?

To me, BTS’s song lyrics are the equivalent of Rupi Kaur’s poetry. Nice to read, but not relevant to the way I think or feel. 

But I digress…

The reason for the trending hashtag today is that it is Hangul day and the ARMY has taken to learning to write in Hangul, through BTS’s song lyrics. 

BTS really are the main reason why many people gained interest in studying Korean, including myself. Their impact truly goes beyond music and that in itself is an incredible achievement! #방탄때문에_한글배웠다 pic.twitter.com/oeQ2Gklp24

— M💛 [#Jimtober] (@nanimonanmolla) October 9, 2019

Because of Bangtan I'm learning Hangul.🥺 I’ve also learned that there are lots of different beautiful languages in the world because of @BTS_twt and ARMY. Love you ARMY!!💜#방탄때문에_한글배웠다
I love you more than yesterday, but less than tomorrow. 💜
#한글날 #HangulDay pic.twitter.com/aqbvxFtPIs

— Lovely Namu (@kim_nams) October 9, 2019

It seems like the best way to explore an international language is through a song, made easier with tech. With Shazam, YouTube, Google Translate and a Twitter army, its easy to feel part of a global clan that doesn’t speak the same language as you. 

Now I know I didn’t end up learning a language because of these songs. (I do, however, remember some Spanish words after watching Narcos.) But there is research that music can be used as a tool to learn a new language- it helps us jog our memory, opens us up to different accents and enriches our vocabulary in general. 

What songs have you learnt which are in a different language? Here’s my list, playable on Spotify: