Paiting
Paiting! or Hwaiting! is a Korean word of support or encouragement. It is frequently used in sports or whenever a challenge such as a difficult test or unpleasant assignment is met. It derives from a Konglish borrowing of the English word "Fighting!"
Description
Paiting as used in Korean has undergone the process of translanguaging, causing it to have different meanings in English and Korean. In English, "fighting" is a verb whereas cheers and exclamations of support usually take the form of imperative verbs. Paiting!’s Japanese equivalent, for example, is the more grammatically standard Faito!. For that reason, paiting! is often translated in English as "Come on!" or "Let's go!" Daehan Minguk Paiting! might be glossed as "Go, Korea!" English does sometimes use adjectives and nouns as words of support but the original meaning of fighting simply implies some conflict exists; it doesn't imply either side will be victorious and offers no support.Paiting! is often accompanied by the expression Aja aja!, which has a similar meaning. The pronunciation Hwaiting, despite often being used colloquially, is not included in important Korean dictionaries such as Standard Korean Language Dictionary.
Due to the global popularization of Korean pop culture, paiting! has returned to the English language. In September 2021 the interjection was added to the Oxford English Dictionary under the entry "fighting, int", distinguishing it from the native English usage of the word.
Paiting! is limited to only South Korean dialects of the Korean language. North Korean dialects do not include paiting!'' due to the limited contact with the English world and general tendency to translate loanwords into 'pure' Korean.