This study examines the status of language identity among Korean-Chinese living in Korea. The questionnaire was divided into two parts: Language use and identity in China and Korea. First, five factors were recognized to affect their Language identity in China. Furthermore, regression analysis was conducted to identify the relationship among each factor and the importance of speaking two languages to the respondents. As a result, a regression model shows about 47% relation. Next, seven factors were found to affect their language identity in Korea. Then regression analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between the importance of bilingualism and each factor. However, it was found that all of the variables except for academic background had no relationship with the importance of bilingualism. This suggests that Korean society is still at the beginning stage of multicultural society and shows a lack of research frame on the identity and language use of Korean-Chinese and other groups with multicultural backgrounds. In conclusion, this study clarified the components of which the language identity of Korean-Chinese residing in Korea consists. However, a further qualitative research, including in-depth interviews, is still needed to make the significance of Korean-Chinese bilingualism better recognized.
(Kyung Hee University)