Dr Hamid Choi Yong became the first Korean Muslim to translate the Holy Quran and Sahih Al-Bukhari into the Korean Language. The translation took about 7 years to complete.
This comes at a time when Muslims are in a minority in South Korea. The number of Muslims in Korea currently stands at about 200,000. That is only 0.38 percent of the total population. However, tourism has contributed to a noticeable growth in the spread of Islam over the past decade. The majority of the Muslims in Korea are students and workers that have come from Uzbekistan, Pakistan, and Turkey, and claim Korean citizenship.
Dr Yong works as a lecturer in Arabic and Islamic Studies at a University in South Korea. He received his education at the Islamic University of Medina, Saudi Arabia. Besides, Yong is also an Islamic Preacher. Choi has written more than 90 Islamic books, some of which are his independent works while others are translations.