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 Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 10:41 am
Update | 'Starting a Basic Conversation' editted. More words added under 'Simple Vocabulary'.Welcome. I'm K-Pop, your teacher who's going to teach you about Korea and it's beautiful language. Please do make up a shorter name for me if you please. xD
Fundamental features of Korean Language
The Korean language is spoken by more than 60 million people. It belongs to the group of Altaic languages together with Japanese, Ainu, and Mongolian, which were splitted one another several thousand years ago. Syntactically, Korean shares some common characteristics with these Altaic languages, while over 70% of its contemporary vocabulary came from Chinese.
1) SOV language
Korean is classified as an SOV language, which stands for word order. English on the other hand is an SVO language. A subject is the one who acts. An object is the one who receives the subjects action. For example:
Bob loves Jenny.
Who loves Jenny? Bob does. Who is loved by Bob? Jenny is. In Korean this sentence will be in the the word order:
Bob Jenny loves.
2) Topic-prominent language
Although we call it a subject, its position is not for subjects, the actor, only. A topic can also be in the position. A topic may not be an actor, but the one which the sentence is about. Let's take an example: You bumped into a friend after lunch. Your friend asks you, "Hey, how about a lunch?" You might want to say, "Lunch? I already had it. How about a cup of coffee?" The first part of this speech can be understood, 'As for (or, speaking of) lunch, I already ate it.' In Korean, this can be stated simply:
Lunch, I ate.
3) Agglutinating language
Now, you may have been confused, saying, "I don't get it. How come no one interprets it 'A lunch ate me.'?" This is where the powerful function of particles, endings, and conjugation comes in. By attaching these little grammatical devices, you label each words, so that your words come into places without causing misunderstanding.
4) Basic Sentence Formation:
{Subject/Topic+particle} + {Object+particle} + {Verb/Adjective+conjugation}
The Alphabet ;
The Korean plaphabet basically consists of 24 characters which includes 14 consonents and 10 vowels. Some of these are combined together to make 16 compound characters that include 5 compound consonents and 11 compound vowels. Below is a quick overview of the Korean alphabet and how each is suppose to be pronounced:
Writing ;
Korean is written by syllables. A syllable either consists of 1 consonent + 1 vowel or we can add 1 final consonent at the end. You should be able to write Korean correctly if you remember 3 major and 3 minor rules. But before these are reviewed, some introductory points may be helpful.
- There are three basic shape of the vowels which I'll call "horizontal vowels", "vertical vowels" and "w-vowel".
- Within a syllable, one muct be able to distinguish between an inital consonant (the one written before the vowel) and a final consonant (the one written after the vowel).
Major Rules :
1- A "vertical vowel" is always written at the right side of the inital consonant in a syllable. "Vertical vowels" are long and narrow(ㅏㅑㅓㅕㅣㅐㅒㅔㅖ). eg. "가"(ga)
2- A "horizontal vowel" is always written under the inital consonant in a syllable. "Horizontal vowels" are short and wide(ㅗㅛㅜㅠㅡ). eg. "노"(no)
3- If there is a final consonant in a syllable it always goes on the bottom. eg. "각"(gak), "녹"(nok)
Minor Rules :
the three minor rules are special case of the three major rules
1- In Korea, the first character is never ever a vowel. If the first sound is a vowel, you must use "ㅇ" as a silent place-folder first (in the position of the inital consonent). Thus either major rule 1 or 2 will apply, depending on the vowel for example "아"(a), "오"(o).
2- Each of the "w-vowels"(ㅘㅝㅚㅟㅢㅙ ㅞ) is in fact simply constructed by a "vertical vowel" and a "horizontal vowel". For examples notice that "ㅘ"(wa) is constructed from "ㅗ"(o) and "ㅏ"(a). As one might expect the horizontal component of a "w-vowel" (eg. the "ㅗ" part in "ㅘ") goes under the inital consonent while the horizontal part of a "w-vowel" (eg. the "ㅏ" part in "ㅘ") goes on the right of the inital consonant. The horizontal vowel is written first and then the vertical consonent follws. eg. "과"(gwa), "와"(wa)
3- The double consonants(ㄲ, ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅆ, ㅉ / ㄲ, ㄳ, ㄵ, ㄶ, ㄺ, ㄻ, ㄼ, ㄽ, ㄾ, ㄿ, ㅀ, ㅄ, ㅆ) are treated as single characters. This is true regardless of whether they are in the position of an inital consonant(ㄲ, ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅆ, ㅉ) or a final consonant(ㄲ, ㄳ, ㄵ, ㄶ, ㄺ, ㄻ, ㄼ, ㄽ, ㄾ, ㄿ, ㅀ, ㅄ, ㅆ).
As you may have noticed in the examples, each character changes it's shape to "fit well" with the other characters in a syllable. The overall shape of the syllable should be such that squares can be drawn around them of approximately the equal size.
Below is a sumarization of the 3 major and 3 minor rules:
Major Rules
no final consonant - ver. 가(ga) / hor. 노(no)
final consonant - ver. 각(gak) / hor. 녹(nok)
Minor Rules
no final consonant - ver. 아(a), 까(kka) / hor. 오(o) / w-vowel. 과(gwa), 와(wa)
final consonant - ver. 앙(ang), 삶(sham) / hor. 온(on) / w-vowel. 곽(gwak), 왔(watt)
Remeber that "ㅇ" sounds like "ng"(eg. ring) when it is a final consonant but is silent when it's a inital consonant.
Click HERE to learn how to write the Korean consonants.
Click HERE to learn how to write the Korean vowels.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 11:07 am
Linguistic and Philosophical Origins of the Korean Alphabet (Hangul)
Unlike almost every other alphabet in the world, the Korean alphabet did not evolve. It was invented in 1443 (promulgated in 1446) by a team of linguists and intellectuals commissioned by King Sejong the Great.
Consonants
In the diagram below, the Korean consonants are arranged into five main linguistic groups (one per row), depending on where in the mouth contact is made. Notice that there is a graphic element common to all the consonants in a particular row. The first consonant in each row is the most basic and is graphically the simplest; this representative consonant for each group is the building block for the other characters in that group. Certain of these modifications are systematic, and yield similarly modified characters in several groups, such as adding a horizontal line to a simple consonant (a "stop" consonant–such as t/d or p/b–rather than a nasal consonant) to form the aspirated consonants (those made with extra air) and doubling simple consonants to form "tense" consonants (no real equivalent in English). Notice that the five representative consonants (the ones in the first column in the upper part of the diagram) are also depicted in the drawings that make up the lower part of the diagram showing the relevant part of the mouth involved. Ingeniously, each of these representative consonants is a kind of simplified schematic diagram showing the position of the mouth in forming those consonants.
The diagram above uses several specialized linguistic terms. Velars (variations of k and "hard g") are formed when the back of the tongue meets the upper back of the throat. Alveolar consonants (n, d, t, "flap r," l) are formed when the tip of the tongue meets the alveolar ridge, on the roof of the mouth toward the front. Dental consonants (to simplify: s, sh, j, ch, and similar consonants) involve friction between the tongue and the upper part of the top teeth. "Bilabial" (p, b, m) means two-lipped; the lips come together and are released. Vowels and glottal consonants (h is the only glottal consonant in modern Korean) are formed with an open throat.
The diagram that follows reproduces the upper portion of the diagram above, using simpler language for the linguistic groups as well as rough and simplified English equivalents for the Korean characters.
back of the mouth : g(ㄱ) k(ㅋ) gg(ㄲ)
front of the mouth : n(ㄴ) d(ㄷ) t(ㅌ) dd(ㄸ)
two-lipped : m(ㅁ) p(ㅍ) b(ㅂ) bb(ㅃ)
behind the teeth : s(ㅅ) j(ㅈ) ch(ㅊ) ss(ㅆ) jj(ㅉ)
in the throat : -(ㅇ) h(ㅎ)
The Korean consonants listed in the diagram as "g," "gg," "d," "dd," "b," "bb," "j," and "jj" are not voiced in Korean (except between vowels), as "g," "d," "b," and "j" would be in English. The Korean consonants listed here simply as "k," "t," "p," and "ch" are more aspirated than their English counterparts, and are normally written with an apostrophe immediately afterward to indicate this. There are other qualifications that could be described, but the purpose of the diagram is simply to clarify the remarkable relationships between the Korean consonants and the underlying linguistic principles. In English (and in other languages using the Roman alphabet), "p" and "b," which are linguistically related (the main difference being that "p" is unvoiced, whereas "b" is voiced), are also graphically very similar. A graphical similarity can also be seen in the nasal consonants "n" and "m." One might argue that the voiced/unvoiced pair "z"/"s" also shows graphic similarity, though not as closely as "b"/"p," and not using the same principle for graphic transformation (changing the symbol "p" into a the symbol "b" involves a very different transformation that of changing the symbol "s" into a the symbol "z"). Identifying many more graphic similarities (much less identifying systematic transformations based on linguistic principles) of linguistically related Roman alphabetical characters is a bit of a stretch. Rather than evolving, the Korean alphabet was designed, so the linguistic elements and relationships were built into the system.
Vowels
Korean vowels were also designed with a linguistic component, and graphic features of the vowel characters are related to the place in the mouth where the vowel is formed (high/low, front/back), but a detailed discussion is beyond the scope of this article.
The diagram below shows another feature that went into the design of the Korean vowel characters, certain philosophical underpinnings reflecting views of the basic nature of the universe. Like yin and yang, the vowels are either bright or dark, with a few neutrals. The original vowel characters were written with straight lines and circular dots only, as pictured below. The ten vowels considered to be the basic ones are those with only one straight line. If the dot is to the right of the straight line (to simplify, the "a" vowels) or above it (the "o" vowels), the vowel is one of the "bright" vowels. If the dot is to the left of the straight line (to simplify, the "e" vowels) or below it (the "u" vowels), the vowel is one of the "dark" vowels. If there is no dot (to simplify, the "i" vowels), the vowel is neutral (neither "bright" nor "dark").
Adding a second dot to a vowel adds a "y" ("a" becomes "ya"). A horizontal vowel (simply, "o" or "u") can be paired with a vertical vowel (simply, "a," "e," or "i") to form a complex vowel (a dipthong). The horizontal vowel always comes first in the pairing, and gets shortened into some form of a "w" sound, e.g., "wa," "we," "wi," etc.
In the diagram above, the location of the vowels with two dots, or of those with combined vertical and horizontal components, should be clear to readers even if they have no knowledge of Korean. So rather than create another diagram to show equivalent sounds in English (as with the consonants above), simplifying the matter within the text seemed more appropriate.
Philosophical themes such as the human position in relation to heaven and earth are reflected in both the vowel and consonant characters. The circular dot is a symbol of the half-dome of the heavens, the horizontal line represents the flat earth, and the vertical line symbolizes man standing between the two (see the lower portion of the diagram above).
In the case of the consonant characters, they were originally composed of straight lines and round circles only. As was mentioned earlier, the first character in each row of the first diagram above is a kind of representative consonant for that row (and thus of that linguistic group). These five were called the "First Sounds," and also symbolically represent the five elements. They fit together nicely into the diagram of the First Sounds below, having essentially the same symbolism as explained in the previous paragraph.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 11:44 am
Now that we've finished learning about the Korean language, it's grammar time.>=D
Honorifics
The Korean language has various expressions according to specific situations and age and status of the people one is addressing to.
The honorifics of the Korean language can be categorized into four groups according to the level of politeness.
1. 어서오십시오. (eoseooshibsio)
2. 어서 오세요. (eoseo oseyo)
3. 어서 와요. (eoseo wayo)
4. 어서 와. (eoseo wa)
The ending of the Korean honorifics consists of
`-습니다,' `-ㅂ 니다' and `-여요,' `-아요,' `-어요.'
Subject Markers
Korean is an agglutinating language. It means that Korean uses little grammatical devices attached to words to specify their roles in a sentence. English is not an agglutinating language, employing rather a fixed word order and prepositions in order to specify the role of each part.
A subject of a sentence is the agent (doer) of the action described by the sentence. Assuming that a state of being can also be treated as an action, a subject can take any kind of predicate, i.e., a verbal, an adjectival, or a nominal predicate. Think of "S goes," "S is bad," and "S is a man." In each case, S is the subject. To mark this subject, Korean attaches either 이 or 가 to it. -이 is used when the subject word ends without a final consonant (patch'im), whereas -가 is for those ending without a final consonant.
Only nouns can be subjects in Korean, such is the case in English. In other words, when you see a part of a sentence attached with -이 or -가, you will know that it must be a noun. However, you might hear sometimes people say sentences without using subject markers -이/가 for subjects. It is because the sentences were simple and a conversational reality is presumed. For these sentences, subject markers can be replaced by a short pause. In sentences the structure of which is complex, or in written forms, the markers should be specified.
대사관이 멀어요. In this sentence, 대사관(daesagwan) or "the embassy" is the object, 멀어요(meoloyo) or "to be far" is the adjective predicate and "이" is the object marker. And thus we get a sentence meaning "The embassy is far."
More examples [key: bold-object/underlined-object marker/italics-predicate
이 바지 가 편안해요. These pants are comfortable.
기차 가 와요. The train is coming.
선생님 이 웃으세요. The teacher is laughing.
저것 이 학교이에요. That (over there) is a school.
이것 이 곰이예요. This is a bear.
Object Markers
An object in a sentence is the thing or a person that receives the action (described by the verb) from the subject. As we know, the subject is the doer (agent) of the action that the verb describes.
친구가 점심을 먹어요. In this sentence, 친구(chingoo) or 'friend' is the subject, "가" is the subject marker, 점심(jeomshim) or 'lunch' is the object, "을" is the object marker and 먹어요 or 'eat' is the verb predicate.
In this sentence, the doer of eating is "friend ('my' is assumed)," and the recipient of the action ("eating") is "lunch." As you might have noticed already, not every sentence will have both subject and object. Only those sentences containing verbs that take objects will. Let us think about English for a moment, in order to understand this grammatical terminology. In English grammar, the verbs that take objects are called 'transitive verbs.' For example, "to eat" is a transitive verb, since there must be something that is eaten (that is, receives the action). Similarly, you have a group of verbs that are transitive and another that are intransitive. Such verbs as "love, buy, drink, see, understand, choose, find..." are transitive. (What these verbs have in common is that you can say "to [verb] something / someone.") Such verbs as "go, sit, stay, die, come..." are intransitive. You handle an object in an English sentence simply by placing it AFTER the verb.
A dog(subject) bites(verb predicate) a person(object).
If you switch the positions of the subject and the object you get a completely different meaning.
A person(subject) bites(verb predicate) a dog(object).
Now, let's go back to Korean. We know that the predicate must be placed at the of a sentence. Thus, both subject and object should come before the verb (predicate), and such change of meaning depending on the word order is less likely to happen. A subject does not necessarily come before the object in a Korean sentence. What clarifies the meaning, therefore, is the particle, i.e., subject/object markers. (Linguists usually call them Case markers.)
사람이(subject 'a person') 개를(object 'a dog') 물어요(verb predicate 'bite').
-이 and -를 are subject and object markers, respectively. Since the subject and object are labeled with markers, there is no possibility of confusion, as long as you keep them together.
개를(object 'a dog') 사람이(subject 'a person') 물어요(verb predicate 'bite')
The meaning can only change when you switch the markers.
사람을(object 'a person') 개가(subject 'a dog') 물어요(verb predicated 'bite')
Oftentimes, a subject is simply not said in Korean when it is understood.
A: 개가 누구를 물어요? (gaega nugureul muleoyo 'Who does the dog bite?')
B: 사람을 물어요. (sharameul muleoyo '[It] bites a person.')
As you might have noticed, the difference between -을 and -를 is purely phonological: when the previous syllable ends with a consonant (patch'im), use -을; with a vowel (no patch'im), use -를.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 12:09 pm
Who, What, Where?
Q: 누구 세요? (nugu seyo 'Who is it?')
A: 애니이에요. (aeniieyo 'It's Anni.')
Q: 누구를 만나요? (nugureul mannayo 'Whom are you meeting?')
A: 애니를 만나요. (aenireul mannayo 'I meet Anni')
Q: 무엇이에요? (mueossieyo 'What is it?')
A: 사과이에요. (sagwaieyo 'It is an apple.')
Q: 무엇을 좋아하세요? (mueosseul johahaseyo 'What do you like?')
A: 사과를 좋아해요. (sagwareul johahaeyo 'I like apples.')
Q: 어디에 있어요? (eodie isseoyo 'Where is it?')
A: 서울에 있어요. (seoule isseoyo 'It is in Seoul.')
Q: 어디에 가요? (eodie gayo 'Where are you going?')
A: 서울에 가요. (seoule gayo 'I go to Seoul.')
Q: 언제 가요? (eonje gayo 'When are you going?')
A: 내일 가요. (naeil gayo 'I go tomorrow.')
These words are pronouns. They need particles to be specified for their functions, such as subject, object, adverbial, etc. Although we have not discussed it in detail, let us learn -을 and -를, object markers. -을 is used when there is a final consonant (patch'im) preceding; whereas 를 is for elsewhere. Note that 어디 (where) is also a noun (pronoun), while "where" in English is not.
________sub._____________obj.
what___무엇이 (= 뭐가 )_____무엇을 (=뭐를)
who____누구가 (>누가)______누구를
where___어디가____________어디를
For similar reasons, -에 is needed after 어디 in the above dialogues. -에 is a marker that functions like the preposition ('in' or 'to') in English, though they are placed after the noun they work with.
__________
in Seoul______= ______서울 에 (Seoul + in)
This and That, Here and There
이(i), 그(geu), and 저(jeo) are demonstrative modifiers for nouns.
When the referent (an object or a person) is close to the speaker, it is referred to as 이--. When it is closer to the listener than to the speaker, it is referred to as 그--. If it is rather distant from both parties, it is referred to 저--. The only thing that is different from the case in English would be that what is referred to with 저-- should be in the sight of the speaker.
Also, using 사람 (sharam 'person') is not polite enough to refer to an older person. You replace 사람
with 분 (bun) in such cases. Then, the predicate will have to change accordingly into high-polite
(with honorific infix -시-) style.
The Tense
The tense of the Korean language is basically divided into past, present and future.
The past tense is made by placing `았' `었' `였' in between the present predicate.
The future tense is made by placing `겠' `을 것' `을 거' `ㄹ 거' in between the present predicate.
Locative Markers
So far, we have used - 에 as a marker indicating a place. We now have a new location marker: - 에서 . The meaning of - 에서 is 'in', used after a noun, like a postposition (the opposite concept to English 'preposition'). For example:
나는 은행에서 일해요 . I work at a bank.
Now it becomes quite puzzling how - 에 and - 에서 are different.
(1) Meaning of 'in (or at/on)'
- 에 indicates the place of a state of being (있다, 없다, 계시다, etc.)
- 에서 indicates the place of an action (하다, 일하다, 공부하다, 먹다, etc.)
NB) 살다 is rather peculiar, being used with both - 에 and - 에서 . No apparent semantic difference is noticed, except that - 에서 with 살다 induces more vivid image of 'life' than simple 'dwelling'.
(2) With directional predicates (가다, 오다, 다니다, etc.)
- 에 means 'to'.
- 에서 means 'from'.
NB) 넣다 (to put) and 앉다 (to sit) also use - 에 because these verbs are recognized to be directional.
김 선생님은 한국에서 오셨어요 . Mr. Kim came from Korea.
We may understand that - 에서 still keeps the meaning of 'in' and that it is the directionality implied by the predicate that produces the sense of 'from'. In the above example, although Mr. Kim may not be in Korea at the time that the sentence is spoken, his action of 'coming' must have started in Korea.
The following table summarizes what we have discussed above.
x indicates that the respective marker is not used with the predicates.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 5:18 pm
Styles of Speech
1. 존댓말 or Polite speech
반말(non-polite style): the style of speech in which you speak to your friends (of your age) or to people younger than you are.
존댓말 (polite style): the style in which you speak to your superiors or seniors. Politeness of style can be demarcated into two criteria:
(1) whom you talk to -- Politeness is achieved by -아요/-어요 or -ㅂ니다
(2) whom you talk about -- Politeness is achieved by infix -시-.
When you talk to someone, that person you are talking to could be older or younger than you are; when you talk about a person to someone (of course, they can either be different or identical), that person you are talking about can also be older or younger than you are. Chon-dae mal concerns the proper handling of both these criteria in speech. In addition to age, rank in various social relations also dictates proper use of these speech styles.
Throughout these categories applies a supervening category of formality. This category concerns the occasion where the conversation occurs. For example, the formal style will be adopted more in work place, public speech, army, etc. ; whereas the informal would better be used among close friends, family members, and people in private relationship. However, in many cases, the consistency of formal/informal speech style is not really strict. In other words, you may feel free switch back and forth between formal and informal style within a conversation, as long as you keep the consistency of politeness.
We can summarize the above:
This is a simple outline of endings. As we will learn later, there are other grammatical details that may be needed according to tense, verb/adjective differentiation, etc. There are also other supplementary devices, such as self-effacing pronoun for the first person (저 instead of plain 나 for 'I'), lexically honorific words (말씀 instead of 말 for 'speech, words'), etc. , which will also be discussed later.
Now let us see how we can make variation for same sentences. The following is in informal style.
(Talking to my friend) The teacher is coming to our house.
선생님이 우리 집에 오셔.
(Talking to my mother) The teacher is coming to our house.
선생님이 우리 집에 오세요.
(Talking to my younger sister) My friend is coming to our house.
친구가 우리 집에 와.
(Talking to my mother) My friend is coming to our house.
친구가 우리 집에 와요.
Extensive variety in speech style is often the most overwhelming part when a foreigner begins to learn Korean. It is known to be more complicated than in Japanese. However, as much as it is hard to foreigners, it is not an easy matter to native speaker. People in younger generations in Korea also experience difficulty with proper use of speech style. (In fact, this is somehow related to the shifts that happened in the Korean social structure. Speech style is a product of layers of social/kinship relationship. Compared to traditional families where more than three generations lived in one house or neighbourhood, modern 'nuclear' families offer very few opportunities for the children to practice different speech styles.)
2. 문어체 or written style
문어체 literally means "written-language style," in which you write formal documents, articles, papers in classes, and so on. As there are polite and non-polite styles, we have polite formal style and non-polite formal style. They both have -다 at the end.
polite formal ending -- -ㅂ니다/습니다
non-polite formal ending -- -ㄴ다/는다 (present-tense verb) or -다 (elsewhere)
Newspaper articles, academic papers, public announcement, and so forth, are written in these styles. In fact, the non-polite is preferred in most written documents over the polite, unless the document is by nature a dialogue (i. e. , announcement) aiming at actual readers.
The non-polite formal, from a native speaker's intuition, gives the impression of self-addressing, which may explain why it is also used in diaries--something that can be most informal. The style is also used frequently by a speaker toward others in the same or younger age, as we saw in the chart above, and therefore we can call it 반말.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 6:09 pm
Numbers
Les nombres. Une, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix...
Two Sets of numbers
Two sets of numbers are in use in Korean: native Korean and Chinese-based sets. The Chinese-based set transmitted to Korea long time ago, probably with Chinese writing system, to settle in the language. It is also the case in Japanese, and we see certain phonological similarity among Chinese numbers and Chinese-based sets of Japanese and Korean numbers.
In fact, the Japanese and Korean sounds of Chinese numbers are quite similar to those in many modern Chinese dialects, sometimes even more similar than modern Mandarin to them. The Chinese remnants in Japanese and Korean, along with other Chinese dialects, reflect old phases of Chinese language.
For the sake of our convenience, let us call these two sets 'Korean numbers' and 'Chinese numbers.' Here are the two sets of 1 to 10.
[# / Korean Numbers{another way if there is any} (romaji) / Chinese Numbers{another way if there is any} (romaji)]
1 / 하나 (hana) / 일 (il)
2 / 둘 (dul) / 이 (ii)
3 / 셋 (shet) / 삼 (sham)
4 / 넷 (net) / 사 (sha)
5 / 다섯 (daseot) / 오 (o)
6 / 여섯 (yeoseot) / 육{륙} (yuk)
7 / 일곱 (ilgob) / 칠 (chil)
8 / 여덟 (yeodeolb) / 팔 (pal)
9 / 아홉 (ahob) / 구 (gu)
10 / 열 (yeol) / 십 (shib)
There is no semantic difference between the two sets. Both '하나' and '일' means one. They differ according to when and how they are used. We will discuss this in the next lesson.
First, let us learn more about the Chinese numbers. Counting more than ten observes the arithmetic principles. Take "12" and "20" for example. 12 is made of 10 and 2--there are other ways of making it, but this is what the number stands for--. On the other hand, 20 stands for two tens. Thus, the Chinese number has them:
12 = 10 + 2 십 이
20 = 2 x 10 이 십
Notice that 'one hundred', 'one thousand', etc. are not '일백', '일천', etc.
Now, let us see how these work.
168: 백 육십 팔
250: 이백 오십
7,892: 칠천 팔백 구십 이
980,768,543: 구억 팔천 칠십 육만 팔천 오백 사십 삼
Some examples in the usage of Chinese numbers.
Money: 만 이천 원 (12,000 won), 삼천 오백 달러 (3,500 dollar)
Phone number: 238-7834 (이삼팔에 칠팔삼사)
Room/APT Number: Room 305 (삼백오 호)
Native Korean Numbers
Another set of numbers are of native Korean numbers. They are indigenous in Korean, possibly stemmed through a different route from that of the Chinese-based set. Although they used to have a complete system of native numbers that can go up to three digits (or more), they now only use the numbers up to two digits (99). The formation of numbers is quite similar to that of English numbers in the sense that you have a set of numbers for single digits (1-10) and another set for tens (10-90).
Numbers and Formation
1 to 10. [# / Korean (romaji)]
1 / 하나 (hana)
2 / 둘 (dul)
3 / 셋 (shet)
4 / 넷 (net)
5 / 다섯 (daseot)
6 / 여섯 (yeoseot)
7 / 일곱 (ilgob)
8 / 여덟 (yeodeolb)
9 / 아홉 (ahob)
10 / 열 (yeol)
10, 20, 30...
10 / 열 (yeol)
20 / 스물 (seumul)
30 / 서른 (seoreun)
40 / 마흔(maheun)
50 / 쉰 (shwin)
60 / 예순 (yesun)
70 / 일은 (ileun)
80 / 여든 (yeodeun)
90 / 아흔 (aheun)
The formation is quite simple:
15 = 10+5 열 다섯
21 = 20+1 스물 하나
87 = 80+7 여든 일곱
Using with counters and measure words
Such formation as "five birds," however, is not directly applicable in Korean. When you speak of a thing with its amount, the proper formation should be the following:
새 (shae (bird) (noun)) + 세 (se (three) (number)) + 마리 (mari (counter for birds) (counter)
Thus, an expression like "다섯 새" is not used in Korean. It may remind you of such expressions as "two bottles of wine" in English. It is necessary in English to specify the measure unit when it comes to uncountable nouns, such as 'water,' 'coffee,' etc. In Korean, this is applied to all nouns. Does this mean that they have different counters for all nouns and that you have to memorize all of them? Probably. Do not panic, though, for there are a certain number of counters that are more frequent and common than the others, and you could strat by learning them and then move on to the rest.
Also, when before counters, numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and 20, change their shape slightly, for the ease of pronunciation.
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Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2006 6:13 pm
Basic Conversation
Here are a few simple phrases that you should know before getting into anything else. But before that remember these keys.
네 (예)
[ne (ye)]
Yes (parenthesis-more polite)
아니오
[anio]
No
여보세요
[yeoboseyo]
Hello (when picking up the phone / can also be used to call someone on the streets when spoken in a higher tone)
litrally means, look here
안녕하세요
[annyeonghaseyo]
Hello
litrally means, be peaceful
안녕히 계세요
[annyonghi gyeseyo]
Good bye (when you, the guest, are leaving)
litrally means, be/stay peaceful
안녕히 가세요
[annyeonghi gaseyo]
Good bye (when you, the host, are bidding your guests good bye)
litrally means, go peaceful
어서 오세요
[eoseo oseyo]
Welcome
litrally means, do come in
고맙습니다 (감사합니다)
[gomapseubnida (gamsahabnida)]
Thank you (parenthesis-more polite)
천만에요
[cheonmaneyo]
You're welcome (can also be considered an insult if pronounciation tone isn't proper or somewhat sarcastic)
litrally means, in a thounsand, million years (me thinks)
미안합니다 (죄송합니다)
[mianhabnida (jwoesonghabnida)]
Sorry (parenthesis-more polite)
괜찮습니다 (괜찮아요)
[gwaenchansseubnida]
It's all right (parenthesis-less polite)
실례합니다
[sillyehabnida]
Excuse me
Greeting
When Koreans meet each other they use a greeting;
안녕하세요. [annyeonghaseyo] (semi-polite)
or
안녕하십니까? [annyeonghasibnikka?] (very polite)
or
안녕. [annyeong] (very casual and to be used to close friends only. can be considered very rude if not used properly)
Unlike English, Korean dosn't have any 'Good morning', 'Good evening' or 'Good afternoon'. All those three are replaced by '안녕하세요', '안녕하십니까?' or '안녕'.
In Korean culture, the relationship of being senior or junior is very important and determines how people address each other. When a junior greets a senior, he/she will bow towards the senior as a mark of respect and the senior will bow slightly in return. Seniority can involve position in an organisation, social status, age and/or degree of intimacy. Among university students, even the different years of enrolment in the university create a seniority system with senior students known as 선배(soenbae) and juniors as 후배 (hubae). In the West we tend to think of all fellow students as friends but in Korea, apart from very close friends, other students are thought of as 선배, 후배 or 동기(donggi) "equals".
Examplese of greetings in different relationships:
A) When a student meets a teacher.
학생: 선생님, 안녕하십니까?
[haksaeng : seonsaengnim, annyeonghasibnikka?]
(Student: Teacher, how are you?)
선생: 안녕하세요.
[seonsaeng: annyeonghaseyo]
(Teacher: Hello.)
B) When two students who slightly know each other and are about the same age meet.
미라: 안녕하세요, 민우씨.
[mira: annyeonghaseyo, minwoo-ssi]
(Mira: Hello, Minwoo.)
민우: 안녕하세요, 미라씨.
[minwoo: annyeonghaseyo, mira-ssi]
(Minwoo: Hello, Mira.)
**Equals use the term 씨(ssi) which is neutral and can translate as Mr. or Ms. but should not usually be used to seniors. It's quite like the Japanese '-kun' or '-san' which I'm sure most of you are quite familiar with.
C) Two students who are close meet.
선미: 연아야, 안녕. 어디가?
[seonmi: yeonaya, annyeong. eodiga?]
(Seonmi: Hey Yeona, hi! Are you going somewhere?]
연아: 오 선미야. 저기 가댔어.
[yeona: o seonmiya. jeogi gadaetseo.]
(Yeona: Hey Seonmi. I was going (over) there.)
This litteraly means 'where are you going? / i'm going over there' but often is used as a greeting. However, just as often, close friends will omit any greeting and just begin a conversation.
Being socialised as a Korean involves undestanding how you use these different forms in various situations. In this course you will concentrate on learning only one form of polite speech. As a foreigner (I assume), speaking to Koreans you can use this all the time and Koreans will make allowances. However as you develop a fluency in Korean, you will be expected to use the different forms correctly or else you can easily offend people.
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 3:26 pm
Introducing Yourself
You can first start by saying "안녕하세요?" or "안녕하십니까?" and then move onto:
만나서 반갑습니다
[mannaseo bangabseubnida]
(Nice to meet you)
or
처음 뵙겠습니다
[cheoeum bwoebgetseubnida]
(Pleased to meet you)
literally means, first time learning you(r face)
And then you may say your name.
미아입니다.
[miaibnida]
((I) am Mia.)
or
미아라고 합니다.
[miarago habnida.]
(I am called Mia.)
As you may have noticed, 'I', 'he/she', 'it' and 'they' are usually omitted in Korea. You would not say "저는 미아입니다. (jeoneun miaibnida.)" with the pronoun '저 (I)' and '는 (topic marker)'. In general, Korea uses personal pronouns less than English does, although they do exist. If the subject of the sentence is obvious, it isn't necessary to mention it.
When referring to the person you are addressing, the Korean pronoun for 'you' is almost never used. The most common strategy is to use the person's name instead. For example:
미아씨는 학생이에요?
[mia-ssineun haksaengieyo?]
(Are you a student, Mia?)
Now I'm going to introduce myself to you.
안녕하세요.
만나서 반갑습니다.
영미라고 합니다. ^ㅇ^
Korean Names
A famous Korean name is 김영삼 (Kim Young Sam), who became President of Korea in 1992. In Korean names, the family name comes first, followed by the given names (or name). Most Korean have 2 given names but some only have one. The three most common family names in Korea are 김 (Kim), 이/리 (Lee), 박 (Park), three together making up 45% of the population in the 1985 census. Groups with the same family name are divided by ancestry into branches (the Kim family name has about 280 branches) and people with the same family name and branch cannot inter-marry. Branches are usually identified by a place name, rather like the 'Melbourne Smith', the 'Sydney Smith', etc.
Examples: 김 이/리 박 최 정 조 장 윤 신 한 홍 유 강 송 노
In Korea the use of personal names for address is usually restricted to members of the same family and close friends.
These days among younger generation, it becomes popular to give their next generation pure-Korean given names which can not be written in Chinese. However, the majority still have a name which can be written in Chinese. Since Chinese character has meaning, it is possible to distingish the sex of people through their names. A preferred male names includes 식 (sik), 철 (cheol), 준 (jun), 호 (ho), while a preferred female names includes 숙 (suk), 영 (yoeng), 희 (hui), 자 (ja) etc.
Examples :
Male: 영식, 성철, 영준, 성호
Female: 영숙, 선영, 정희, 미자
Your Name in Korean
How would you write your name in Korean? Here are a few examples of foreign names which will be followed by an explanation;
Fiona --> 피오나 (pronounced piona)
Henry --> 헨리 (pronouned henri
Robert --> 로버트 (pronounced robeoteu)
Valerie --> 발레리 (pronounced baleri)
Jack --> 쟈크 (pronounced jyakeu)
As you may have noticed in the for example, 'Fiona', When a name starts with the english 'f' sound the 'f' sound changes into 'p'. Although if the letter 'ㅎ' and a particular "w-vowel" can make the correct 'f' sound. The letter 'F' in english if written in Korea is '에프' pronounced 'epeu'. Thus all foreign names that have the 'f' sound, when written and spoken in Korean changes to 'p' sound.
Names that have the 'æ' sound, the 'æ' sound will change into a 'əˈ' sound.
All 'v's change to 'b(ㅂ)' as the Korean alphabet does not have the letter 'v' in it.
Names that end with an almost-silent last letter are to be added an '―' at the end and are all pronounced a bit strongly in Korean. As Korean is a language that is a bit dificult to understand if the words aren't pronounced strongly and properly, all the vowels are quite stressed on.
Titles
The most common title is "씨 (ssi)" which means "Mr/Ms". However it is rude to address someone by their surname with the title "씨 (ssi)" such as "김씨 (ssi)". You can use it after someone's full name such as "김영준- 씨 (kim yeongjun-ssi)" if there is no particular personal relationship with the person being addressed or after first name such as "영준씨(yeongjun-ssi)" if there is an equal status but no particularly close personal relationship with the person being addressed. This is especially common when talking to someone of the opposite sex.
A) 서기: 김영준씨 계세요?
B) Co-worker addressing Young-jun (who is a male)
영준- 씨, 어디 가세요?
The title "님 (nim)" is widely used but this title is more polite than "씨 (ssi)", and is added after a person's position title, eg "선생님" (seonsaengnim) Listen. By adding the term 님 (nim) to the word for teacher 선생 (so'n-saeng) it is possible to create a very respectful form of addressing someone. So the title 선생님 (seonsaengnim) has come to have two different usages, one where you are actually speaking to a teacher, and a more general one where you are respectfully addressing a stranger.
A) A student speaking to his teacher Mr. Park.
박 선생님 앉으세요.
B) Policeman addressing a well-dressed older man.
선생님, 저쪽으로 가십시오.
This title shouldn't be used together with "씨" (ssi), ie. you do not say "선생님 씨" (seonsaengnim ssi).
The respect term 님 (nim) is only added to titles for important positions such as professor, company president, director etc. and if we know a person's title, it is best to address him/her with their surname + position title + 님 (nim), for example, Smith 교수님 (Smith gyosunim) "Professor Smith", 김 사장님 (Kim sajangnim) "(company) President Kim".
Other Titles
These titles, you wouldn't need to add their name in front or end of it.
아버지 (abeoji) / 아빠 (apppa) - Father / Dad
어머니 (eomeoni) / 엄마 (eomma) - Mother / Mom
*note: first ones are more respectful
할아버지 (halabeoji) - Grandfather used to address, obviously grandfathers or really old people who look like a grandfather to you xD
할머니 (halmeoni) - Grandmother used to address grandmothers, obviously or really old people to look like a grandmother to you xD
형 (hyeong) - older Brother used by males to address older males that aren't married
오빠 (opppa) - older Brother used by females to address older males that aren't married
누나 (nuna) - older Sister used by males to address older females that aren't married
언니 (eonni) - older Sister used by females to address older females that aren't married
*note: all those are in cases of complete strangers. if you have (a) brother(s)/sister(s) in your family or you know very well, you can also used those titles to address them but the 'married' thing wouldn't count. theses titles are mostly used by younger people to address their elders that are slightly older than them, usually 1yrs~25yrs OR by really small youngsters who are still in kindergarden or school.
아저씨 (ajeossi) - Mister used by young people to address married or old men
아줌마 (ajumma) - Mistress/Mrs used by young people to address married or old women
*note: mostly used by young people to address married men/women, only. can be taken in as an insult if not used properly, mostly the women take those kind of stuff seriously. also used by married women to address other married strangers.
선배 (seonbae) - Senior used to address slight elders in school or at work. just like english's 'senior', means someone who has more experience in something
후배 (hubae) - Junior used to address younger pepople by the seniors. not used very often but yeah
저기여 (jeogiyeo) - Hey there basically means, 'hey you'. used to address strangers, mostly when you want to ask for something like directions, etc.
여보 (yeobo) - Honey, darling, etc. mostly used to married couples to address each other
자기야 (jagiya) - Honey, darling, etc. used by couples mostly females to address their boyfriend, fiance, husband
Starting a Basic Conversation
A bit of cultural talk here. xD Unlike most Western culture where everyone is considered a friend, Korean culture is rather the opposite. Koreans stick very strongly to the word 'we', which means that they are friendly to people they know and aren't to strangers. Thus, you might find it rather difficult to make friends in Korea. It's how Koreans are and Korea's social culture thing. xP Saw 'Super Junior Full House Ep7'? Yeah. That's what happens in Korea most of the time. xD
Anyway.
Basic conversations in Korea start with a '저기여' which means 'hey there' or 'you there'. '저기' means 'there' while '여' means 'hey'.
That might be followed by '실례하지만' or '미안하지만'. '실례하다' means 'to excuse' someone/something. '미안하다' means 'to be sorry'. '하지만' means 'but'. Now take out 'to (be)' part, '하다', and you have 'excuse' and 'sorry'. Add 'but' to it and you've got 'Excuse (me) but..' ('me' is assumed) and 'Sorry but..'.
So. 'Hey there. Sorry but..'
You can also add a 'by chance' here. 'By chance' in Korean is '혹시' or the shortened version is '혹'. This 'by chance' means 'do you have something by chance' and not 'i met someone by chance'. Same 'by chance' used in both cases for English but not in Korean. I'll teach that later if someone asks. xD
So far. 'Hey there. Sorry but, by chance..'
Now add whatever question you have for that person whether is be asking their name, directions, for a certain item, etc. A few common examples:
'저기여! 미안하지만, 혹시..'
'..백화점이 어디인지 아세요?'
'..펜이 있으세요?'
'..명함이 어떻게 되세요?'
etc.
Asking for Directions
'..백화점이 어디인지 아세요?'
'백화점' is 'shopping mall'. You can replace '백화점' with any other place you like. You can't add a state, province, profecture, etc. in this kind of question. It sounds weird. =/ There is another type of question for that. I've put up a list of other places in the 'Vocabulary' section.
'이' is the subject marker. You'll be replacing '이' with '가' if the noun dosn't end with a final consonant.
eg. '..버스정류소가 어디인지 아세요?'
'어디인지' means 'where it resides'. '어디에' is 'where'. '인지' is the shortend form of '있는지'. '있다' is 'to be (there)'. '는지' basically means 'by chance where the mall might currently reside'. xP It plays an important role in the question except I seriously don't know what it does there but add sense to the question.
'아세요' means 'do (you) know' where 'you' is assumed. '알다' means 'to know'. '세요' is a question honorific.
Asking for Stuff
'..펜이 있으세요?'
'펜' is pen. xD You can replace '펜' with any other 'thing' you like. A few listed in the 'Vocabulary' section.
'이' is the subject marker. You'll be replacing '이' with '가' if the noun dosn't end with a final consonant.
eg. '..종이가 있으세요?'
'있으세요' means 'do (you) have' where 'you' is assumed. '있다' means 'to be available' and '세요' is a question honorific.
Literally means 'is a pen available'.
Asking for the Person's name
'..명함이 어떻게 되세요?'
'명함' means 'name'. There's also '이름' which also means 'name' but it's a less polite word than '명함' when spoken directly at the person you're asking the name of.
'이' is the subject marker.
'어떻게' means 'how'.
'되세요' means 'how it become'. '되다' means 'to become/happen'. '세요' is a question honorific.
Literally means 'how would your name happen to be'.
This is for asking the person's name of whom you're currently talking to. To ask someone else's name to the person you're talking to you can add '저 사람' in the front. '저' is '(over) there'. '사람' is 'person'. When you're adding '저 사람' in front, you can use '이름' instead of '명함'.
eg. '..저 사람 이름이 어떻게 되세요?'
If you want other questions or phrases added, please post it here. I'd be glad to add it.
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:02 pm
Simple Vocabulary
Very simple list of words, mainly nouns, that are commonly used in everyday lives.
Colours
Red ; 홍색 (hongsaek) / 적색 (jeoksaek) / 붉은색 (bulgeunsaek) / 빨강색 (bbalgansaek) / 피색 (pisaek)
* 피 is Korean for blood
Blue ; 청색 (cheongsaek) / 푸른색 (pureunsaek) / 파랑색 (paransaek) / 하늘색 (haneulsaek)
* 하늘 is Korean for sky
Green ; 초록색 (choroksaek) / 녹색 (noksaek) / 풀색 (pulsaek)
* 풀 is Korean for grass
Yellow ; 황색 (hwangsaek) / 노랑색 (noransaek)
Orange ; 귤색 (gyulsaek)
* 귤 is Korean Orange
Pink ; 분홍색 (bunhongsaek)
Purple/Violet ; 보라색 (borasaek) / 자주색 (jajusaek)
Brown ; 밤색 (bamsaek) / 갈색 (galsaek)
* 밤 is Korean for chestnuts
Black ; 흑색 (heuksaek / 검은색 (geomeunsaek)
White ; 흰색 (hwinsaek) / 하얀색 (hayansaek)
Grey ; 재빛색 (jaebitsaek) / 회색 (hwaesaek) / 쥐색 (jwisaek)
* 쥐 is Korean for mouse
Gold ; 금색 (geumsaek)
* 금 is Korean for gold
Silver ; 은색 (eunsaek)
* 은 is Korean for silver
색 or 색깔 (saekkkal / full form) means colour.
Days of the Week
The Korean days of the week have each got a meaning and I'll explain as I go on.
Monday ; 월요일 (weolyoil)
*월 means moon
Tuesday ; 화요일 (hwayoil)
*화 means fire
Wednesyday ; 수요일 (suyoil)
*수 means water
Thursday ; 목요일 (mokyoil)
*목 means wood
Friday ; 금요일 (geumyoil)
*금 means metal
Saturday ; 토요일 (toyoil)
*토 means the earth/soil
Sunday ; 일요일 (ilyoil)
*일 means the sun
요일 means weekday. Weekend means 주말 (jumal).
Places
Shopping Mall ; 백화점 (baekhwajeom)
Convenience Store ; 편의점 (pyeonneejeom)
Restaurant ; 식당 (sikdang)
Airport ; 비행장 (bihaengjang)
Bus Stop ; 버스정류소 (beoseujengyuso)
Car Park ; 카파크 (kapakeu)
Bathroom ; 화장실 (hwajangshil)
Things
Pen ; 펜 (pen)
Paper ; 종이 (jongi)
Lighter ; 라이터 (laiteo)
Watch ; 시계 (shigye)
Cell Phone ; 핸드폰 (haendeuphon)
Coin ; 동전 / 잔돈 (dongjeon / jandon)
Handkerchief ; 손수건 (shonsugeon)
Fruits
Apple ; 사과 (shagwa)
Banana ; 바나나 (banana)
Peach ; 복숭아 (boksunga)
Watermelon ; 수박 (subak)
Korean Melon ; 참외 (chamwe)
Melon ; 멜론 (mellon)
Cherry ; 양벗 (yangbeot)
Strawberry ; 딸기 (ddalgi)
Orange ; 귤 (gyul)
Kiwi ; 키위 (kiwi)
Mango ; 망고 (manggo)
Plum ; 추리 (churi)
Japanese Plum ; 매실 (maeshil)
Persimmon ; 감 (gam)
Please do suggest words to be on this list.
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:03 pm
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:04 pm
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:05 pm
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:07 pm
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:09 pm
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Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:10 pm
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