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Key Points
- Cooper Burnham teaches Australian slang in Korean, gaining popularity among Korean working holiday takers.
- The jiu-jitsu athlete spent a year in Daegu, South Korea, on a working holiday program in 2023.
- He now creates videos to help Koreans better understand and connect with Australian life.
His videos range from unpacking everyday expressions like snag (sausage), arvo (afternoon), fair dinkum (genuine/real), and good on ya (well done), to more colourful Aussie lingo such as chockers (very crowded), woop-woop (middle of nowhere), and Harold Holt (salt — a cheeky nod to the prime minister who famously disappeared at sea).
His main audience are young Koreans on working holiday visas in Australia.
Hooked at first sight
“I saw a guy recommending snacks that are available at an Australian supermarket. It was strange — he obviously looked Australian but spoke fluent Korean. I couldn’t stop watching,” she recalled.
Hojucooper is wearing a t-shirt printed with “foreigner” in Korean. Source: Supplied / Hojucooper
After watching more of his content, she was surprised to learn that Hojucooper had actually experienced a working holiday program in Korea himself.
“He wasn’t just some random Aussie talking about his culture. He had lived in Korea, and that made what he said feel more relatable and genuine to me,” she said.
Life-changing injury
“After the surgery, I had to take a break from training to fully recover. Around that time, I had a Korean girlfriend and thought it would be a great chance to meet her parents and experience Korean culture,” he explained.
Cooper Burnham won a bronze medal in the blackbelt middleweight division at the 2024 Asian Jiu-Jitsu Championship, which was held in Tokyo, Japan. Source: Supplied / Hojucooper
He travelled to Daegu, his girlfriend’s hometown — South Korea’s fourth-largest city, home to over 2.3 million people.
“But the coach kindly gave me a chance. I just remembered a few body part names in Korean and taught kids using simple phrases like ‘gaseum (chest) and mileo (push)’ or ‘sonmok (wrist) danggye (pull)’.”
Cooper Burnham in the snow in Daegu, South Korea. Source: Supplied / Hojucooper
The jiu-jitsu studio became the perfect place for him to immerse himself in Korean life, make friends, and improve his language skills.
“Everyone helped me so much in Korea. I’m really grateful for all the support and had a truly wonderful experience,” he said.
‘Not easy to meet Australians’
“I even went to meet-up events to make friends, but it was not easy.”
Hyejin Lee, who has been in Australia for the last three years on a working holiday visa, said it has been hard to make Australian friends. Source: Supplied / Hyejin Lee
For people like Lee, Burnham offers advice drawn from his own experience.
“I really encourage people to join a gym, fitness class, or learn a sport like jiu-jitsu or tennis. That way, you’re forced to speak English and meet Australians,” he said.
Signature mullet
“I’ve got a mullet, and I want to show people that even people with a mullet can learn another language and welcome people to Australia,” he said.
Cooper Burnham visited the SBS studio to speak with the SBS Korean program. Source: SBS / Korean program
“I want to keep my Australian look while breaking stereotypes. When people see me, they think I’m a very stereotypical Australian guy, but I’m not at all. And I want to break that stereotype and show just how welcoming and good Australia is.”
“I think if more Australians learned a second language, they would be less racist because they would understand how hard it is to speak another language,” he said.
