Nationalist Chinese army interpreters during the Korean War

[bhchao]

Few historical sources mention the usage of Nationalist Chinese interpreters for UN/US army intelligence during the Korean War. During the war, the Nationalist government in Taiwan sent numerous interpreters to Korea to aid US Army intelligence in deciphering radio traffic from the communists.

Although the KMT did not engage in a combat role in Korea, they indirectly contributed to the UN war effort by sending interpreters who can listen to Communist radio conversations and tap into the enemy's mindset. These interpreters were very valuable for UN forces since they were the only people in the world with a mastery of the Chinese language, and who understood the style spoken by the Chinese communists.

Many of these interpreters were stationed in North Korea behind enemy lines with the protection of US Army soldiers. During the war, a lot of these Nationalist interpreters married Korean women and took their new wives to Taiwan after the war ended. Most of these Korean wives settled in Taipei and started families there. All of those who arrived in Taiwan had to learn Mandarin since their destinies were intertwined with their Chinese husbands.

Although most of these Korean women learned Mandarin in Taipei, some even learned both Shanghainese and Mandarin. Their Chinese husbands became partially or fully fluent in the Korean language due to their service in Korea.

Yesterday I had an interesting conversation with a 韓國华侨 restaurant owner who had to learn Mandarin after she arrived in Taipei's 天母. I had always been a customer at her Chinese restaurant, and always thought she looked somewhat Korean. But I never asked and we never had a long detailed conversation. For a long time I did not visit her restaurant. Then yesterday I returned and found the whole place transformed into a Korean tofu and barbecue restaurant with her at the front cashier desk! We then had a long, fun conversation, spoke a few Korean with each other, and found that both of us had similar backgrounds. She is one of those many Korean wives who married Nationalist intelligence officers, raised a family in Taipei, and learned a completely foreign language from scratch.

Without the aid of these linguists, UN forces would have had a much difficult time preserving South Korea's freedom.