A lot of people think that the Korean language is phonetic, meaning that words are pronounced exactly as they are written. This is true to some extent, but there are cases where there is a discrepancy between the way Korean is read and the way it’s written.<\/p>\n
When a riul (\ub9ac\uc728<\/strong>) or \u3139<\/strong>is placed next to a \u3134<\/strong>or niun (\ub2c8\uc740<\/strong>) the \u3139<\/strong>is pronounced as a \u3134<\/strong>. This means that a word like \uc804\ub77c\ub3c4 <\/strong>(Jonlado is a province in Korea) is pronounced as \uc808\ub77c\ub3c4<\/strong> (Jollado), even though it’s written as \uc804\ub77c\ub3c4<\/strong>. \uc5f0\ub77d<\/strong>\u00a0(yonlak) or contact is pronounced as yolak (\uc5f4\ub77d<\/strong>) even though it’s written as\u00a0\uc5f0\ub77d<\/strong>.\u00a0The same goes for \ud3b8\ub9ac<\/strong> (punli) or convenience. It’s written as \ud3b8\ub9ac<\/strong> but pronounced as \ud3bc\ub9ac<\/strong> (pulli).<\/p>\n When mium (\ubbf8\uc74c<\/strong>) or \u3141<\/strong> is next to a niun (\ub2c8\uc740<\/strong>) \u3134<\/strong> the \u3134<\/strong> will sound like a \u3141<\/strong>. A word like shinmun (\uc2e0\ubb38<\/strong>) or newspaper, is pronounced as shimmun (\uc2ec\ubb38<\/strong>), even though it’s written as shinmun (\uc2e0\ubb38<\/strong>). The same goes for anma (\uc548\ub9c8<\/strong>) or massage. It’s written as anma (\uc548\ub9c8<\/strong>) but it’s pronounced as amma (\uc554\ub9c8<\/strong>).<\/p>\n When biup (\ube44\uc6c1<\/strong>) or \u3142<\/strong> is next to a niun (\ub2c8\uc740<\/strong>) or \u3134<\/strong> the \u3142<\/strong> will make a mium (\ubbf8\uc74c<\/strong>) or\u00a0\u3141<\/strong> sound.\u00a0With a word like kamsahapnida (\uac10\uc0ac\ud569\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>) or “thank you”, the p turns into an m sound, making the word into kamsahamnida (\uac10\uc0ac\ud568\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>), even though it’s written as kamsahapnida (\uac11\uc0ac\ud569\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>). The same thing happens to a word like komapsupnida (\uace0\ub9d9\uc2b5\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>) which also means “thank you”. Even though it’s written as komapsupnida (\uace0\ub9d9\uc2b5\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>) it’s pronounced as komapsumnida (\uace0\ub9d9\uc2b4\ub2c8\ub2e4<\/strong>).<\/p>\n When kiyok (\uae30\uc5ed<\/strong>) or \u3131<\/strong> is next to a mium (\ubbf8\uc74c<\/strong>) or \u3141<\/strong>\u00a0 the \u3131<\/strong> will make a iung (\uc774\uc751<\/strong>) or \u3147<\/strong> sound. Kukmul (\uad6d\ubb3c<\/strong>) or soup is pronounced as kungmul (\uad81\ubb3c<\/strong>) and kukmo (\uad6d\ubaa8<\/strong>) or queen is called kungmo (\uad81\ubaa8<\/strong>).<\/p>\n \u00a0When kiyok (\uae30\uc5ed<\/strong><\/span>) or \u3131<\/strong> <\/span>is next to a hiut (\ud788\uc74f<\/strong><\/span>) or \u314e<\/strong> <\/span>the \u314e<\/strong> <\/span>will make a \u314b<\/strong> <\/span>or kiuk (\ud0a4\uc73d<\/strong><\/span>) sound. Bukhan (\ubd81\ud55c<\/strong><\/span>) or North Korea\u00a0is pronounced as bukkan (\ubd80\uce78<\/strong><\/span>). Chakhan (\ucc29\ud55c<\/strong><\/span>) which means “kind” or “good-hearted” is pronounced as chakkan (\ucc28\uce78<\/strong><\/span>).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A lot of people think that the Korean language is phonetic, meaning that words are pronounced exactly as they are written. This is true to some extent, but there are cases where there is a discrepancy between the way Korean is read and the way it’s written. When a riul (\ub9ac\uc728) or \u3139is placed next…<\/p>\n