Korean For Dummies Cheat Sheet

The Korean language stands out globally as one of the rare languages with its creation story on record — who made it, for whom, why, and how. Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, was developed in 1443 by King Sejong, who is revered as Korea’s most respected king, pretty much an icon in Korean history. His motivation behind creating Hangeul was to devise a written system that the commoners could easily master. Thanks to King Sejong’s pragmatism and his determination to empower the people, Korean readers and writers have a readily learnable language.

Korean greetings and introductions

Here is a quick guide to common Korean greetings:

• 안녕하세요? (ahn-nyuhng-hah-seh-yoh) (hello/how are you): Initially a question about well-being, “Are you well?”, this phrase has evolved as a polite greeting used any time of the day.
• 처음 뵙겠습니다. (chuh-eum bwaep-kkeht-sseum-nee-dah) (It’s my first time to meet you; How do you do?): Great for first-time meeting in formal contexts.
• (만나서) 반갑습니다. ([mahn-nah-suh] bahn-gahp-sseum-nee-dah) (It’s nice to meet you.): For a slightly more casual tone, use 반가워요 (bahn-gah-wuh-yoh). Just repeat the phrase to respond.

To introduce your name formally, use one of these common phrases:

• 저는 [name]입니다. (juh-neun [name] eem-nee-dah) (I am [name].)
• 저는 [name](이)라고 합니다. ((juh-neun) [name](ee-)rah-goh hahm-nee-dah) (I’m [name].) (Literally, I’m called [name].)

In informal contexts, you might use these phrases:

• [name]이에요/예요 (ee-eh-yoh/yeh-yoh) * Informal politeExample: 톰이에요 (toh-mee-eh-yoh) (I’m Tom). 수예요 (soo-yeh-yoh) (I’m Sue)
• [name]이야/야 (ee-yah/yah) * 반말 (Intimate speech)Example: 톰이야 (I’m Tom). 수야 (I’m Sue).

When meeting someone new, the first piece of information you typically seek is their name. Here are some common phrases for asking, “What is your name?” with details on when to use each:

• 성함이 어떻게 되세요? (suhng-hah-mee uh-ttuh-keh dwae-seh-yoh): Highly respectful, used with elders, higher-ups, or strangers. Uses the honorific noun, 성함.
• 이름이 어떻게 되세요? (ee-reu-mee uh-ttuh-keh dwae-she-yoh): Honorific but less formal; suitable among young adults in casual settings.
• 이름이 뭐예요? (ee-reu-mee mwuh-yeh-yoh): Informal yet polite; common in daily converations among peers or with younger people.
• 이름이 뭐야? (ee-reu-mee mwuh-yah): * 반말 (Intimate speech); Most casual form, appropriate among close peers or toward younger individuals.

Korean consonants and vowels

One of the reasons so many linguists admire the Korean alphabet lies in the logical structure of the consonants and vowels. Similar to English, it consists of vowels and consonants. However, unlike English, where letters can have shifting pronunciations, Korean is a highly phonetic writing system where, for the most part, each letter corresponds to one sound.

Korean Vowels and Consonants

Korean Vowels

In the following table, each letter is presented first with how it looked historically, followed by how it is currently written. Pronunciation tips follow the nearest counterparts in American English.

Eight Basic Vowels

The table that follows shows the next group of vowels, all of which include the sound “y”. These are derived from the basic vowel letters (ㅏ, ㅓ, ㅗ, ㅜ, ㅐ, and ㅔ) by addition one short graphic stroke to them. This table shows how they were created and how they are pronounced.

Six y-Diphthong Vowels

To wrap up the vowel letters, the following table shows the remaining vowels, which are also diphthongs.

Seven Other Diphthong Vowels

Consonants

The Korean language has five basic consonant letters — ㄱ, ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅅ, and ㅇ — and the nine consonant letters derived from them. The following table displays the 14 simple consonant letters with pronunciation tips in the order they appear in most Korean dictionaries. Of these 14 consonant letters, the sounds of ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅇ, and ㅎ are exactly the same as English, n, m, ng, and h, respectively.

Fourteen Simple Consonants