Olga Min.

Food is one of the most important elements of culture in many cultures. We eat 365 days a year, three times a day... We can't imagine life without food. Many of us enjoy trying the national dishes of other nations, while for others, "foreign" food is a major challenge when traveling abroad. It's therefore not surprising that in international families, daily discussions about "What are we going to eat today?" often escalate into heated debates.

…On Friday it's pilaf, but then on Saturday it's kimchi pokimbap. Pilaf is a strange dish for Korea, but in Central Asia it's the most popular and beloved. Pilaf is made with rice, carrots, meat, and a variety of other ingredients (garlic, beans, and various seasonings). Kimchi pokimbap is a Korean national dish, the ingredients of which are clear from its name: rice stewed with kimchi, the most popular Korean appetizer made from fermented Korean cabbage.

"Korean and Kazakh cuisines are very different. And it was very difficult to combine them at first," shares Marina Kim, a young woman from Kazakhstan who married a Korean man. Marina has been married for two years now. She has two adorable children – a girl and a boy who is not yet a year old. She spent a year and a half mastering the basics of Korean cuisine. She read numerous cookbooks and diligently learned practical skills from her husband's mother.

"Besides Korean food, I, of course, often cook Kazakh dishes. At first, my husband found them strange, even a bit too original. Now, however, he enjoys Kazakh food and even personally participates in its preparation. However, he usually "perfects" it in his own way – adding Korean spices, such as pepper or ginger, bringing the taste of Kazakh food closer to that of traditional Korean cuisine. This way, we get Kazakh pilaf with the flavor of Korean kimchi pokimbap . And this is our family's know-how." Although both pilaf and kimchi pokimbap are made with rice, they are completely different dishes. Pilaf is quite fatty and salty, while kimchi pokimbap is spicy and tangy.

Another important part of every culture is language. People speak to express their feelings, thoughts, and desires... What language do international families use for communication? "We speak Korean at home. My wife doesn't speak Uzbek at all. So I learned Korean and am still learning it. Korean and Uzbek belong to the same Altaic language group. I think Korean isn't difficult for Uzbeks to learn," shares Alisher Makhmudov. Alisher's wife is Korean. "When you don't know your loved one's native language and you have so much you want to say, it can be truly difficult, but the language barrier didn't stop me from reaching her heart or from starting our family."

Some families use a third, shared language to communicate. "I have a Russian friend. His Korean wife doesn't speak Russian. He doesn't speak Korean either. They communicate in English," says Alisher.

Language differences in international families certainly affect children. Every parent strives for their child to speak their native language. Marina Kim shares this: “Our daughter is three years old. I speak Russian with her, and my husband speaks Korean. So, our daughter is bilingual, and both are native to her. However, she sometimes confuses words and makes up some pretty funny expressions. For example, ‘I want (in Russian) uyu (milk in Korean)’ .” “I have many friends who have created international families. Their children tend to speak a ‘mixed’ language – often in a funny and unexpected way. They also often ‘mix’ dishes. They might eat spaghetti or Russian pirozhki with Korean kakdugi (a type of kimchi, a pickled radish)… It’s amazing ,” shares Gloria Lee, a Korean student and volunteer for an organization that helps foreigners adapt to Korea.

Of the 1,175,429 foreigners permanently residing in Korea (as of September 30, 2008), 120,705 (10.2%) were married to a Korean man or woman. As Haha Noh, a graduate of the Graduate School of Social Welfare at Ewha University, noted in her research, "Korean society should help international families create a healthy family atmosphere, while taking into account the diversity of traditions and forms of relationships conditioned by their internationality, and facilitating the realization of the skills, abilities, and competitive advantages of spouses acquired before arriving in Korea."

 "When people from different countries form a family, the first thing they encounter is the language barrier and cultural differences. However, tolerance and openness help them overcome these difficulties. And in this way, they contribute to achieving multiculturalism in our age of globalization," says Marina Kim.