Hangul | The Korean Alphabet

Discover Hangul ( 한글 ), a fantastically simple writing system often praised as the most effective alphabet for language learners.

Prior to the creation of Hangul, the main script used in Korea relied on Chinese characters. Literacy was primarily confined to the upper class, since the multitude of complex Chinese characters were not easily mastered by the general population.

King Sejong, the fourth monarch of the Joseon Dynasty, initiated the project to develop a more accessible native script. The Hangul alphabet (initially called 훈민정음) was the result of collaboration among the most brilliant scholars of the era.

Today, centuries after its invention, Hangul continues to be admired and widely used by both native Koreans and students of the language.

Consonants

The Korean term for consonants is 자음. Fortunately, many of them have similarities to letters in the English alphabet.

Basic Consonants

In all, there are 14 basic consonants. Below, you'll see the consonant, its name in parentheses, and its closest equivalent sound in English.

ㄱ (giyeok) – G This consonant, shaped like a gun, is very similar to the English G.

ㄴ (ni-eun) – N It resembles an upside-down ㄱ, yet its sound is the same as the English N.

ㄷ (di-geut) – D It produces a softer English D sound. When pronouncing it, your tongue should gently tap the back of your upper teeth.

ㄹ (ri-eul) – R / L This curvy letter is a blend of the English R and L sounds. Your tongue should flick quickly against the roof of your mouth.

ㅁ (mi-eum) – M It sounds like the English M. Fittingly, this consonant's shape looks like an open mouth.

ㅂ (bi-eup) – B It appears similar to a ㅁ with raised arms! It produces a B sound, not unlike the lowercase English "b."

ㅅ (shi-ot) – S This consonant can be tricky because its sound varies between a standard English S and SH. This depends on its position in a syllable and the vowel that comes after it. If it's the final consonant in a syllable, it can even sound like a soft T.

ㅇ (i-eung) – Placeholder / NG This is a unique consonant because it often has no sound of its own (its circular shape is quite fitting). It acts as a silent placeholder before a vowel. However, it makes an NG sound when it ends a syllable.

ㅈ (ji-eut) – J It sounds like an English J, and its shape is somewhat reminiscent of a person doing a split!

ㅊ (chi-eut) – CH It is frequently mixed up with ㅈ, so pay close attention to the extra horizontal line on top.

ㅋ (ki-euk) – K It looks like a ㄱ with an added line, hinting that it should be pronounced with more force, turning the G into a sharp K.

ㅌ (ti-eut) – T It resembles a ㄷ with a line on top. Like ㅋ, this indicates a stronger pronunciation, changing the D into a hard T. Use your teeth to articulate it.

ㅍ (pi-eup) – P Its form is a bit like a classical pillar, which can serve as a visual reminder for its P sound.

ㅎ (hi-eut) – H It looks like a person wearing a small hat (specifically, one that brings to mind the traditional Korean hat known as 갓).

Double Consonants

These are precisely what the name implies: a pair of the same consonant. However, they function as a single consonant within a syllable.

Five basic consonants have double forms:

• ㄱ → ㄲ (gg or kk)
• ㄷ → ㄸ (dd or tt)
• ㅅ→ ㅆ (ss)
• ㅈ → ㅉ (jj)
• ㅂ → ㅃ (bb or pp)

The sound of these double consonants is essentially a more intense, aspirated version of the basic consonant.

The Articulation of Korean Consonants

If you've practiced saying these consonants aloud, you might have observed something interesting. The shape of the consonant often feels intuitively connected to its sound.

Many linguists believe this is intentional. The way Korean consonants are articulated phonetically is somewhat mirrored in their written form.

Here are five categories of phonemic vocalization:

• Velar: the back of the tongue touches the soft palate at the back of the mouth
• Alveolar: the tongue makes contact with the ridge behind your upper front teeth
• Bilabial: the two lips come together
• Dental: the tongue touches the back of the upper front teeth
• Glottal: the space between the vocal cords opens and closes

Here are the Korean consonants, sorted by their corresponding vocalization category:

• Velar consonants: ㄱ and ㅋ. Notice how their shapes reflect the arch of the tongue against the palate.
• Alveolar consonants: ㄴ, ㄷ, ㅌ and ㄹ. They represent the flatness and curve of the tongue against the gum ridge.
• Bilabial consonants: ㅁ, ㅂ and ㅍ. They mimic the form of the mouth and lips.
• Dental consonants: ㅅ, ㅈ, ㅊ. They have a shape that suggests a tooth.
• Glottal consonants: ㅇ and ㅎ. Their circular form is like the opening between the vocal folds.

How clever! While knowing these categories isn't essential, it provides useful insight for correct pronunciation.

Vowels

Vowels in Korean are known as 모음. They are typically categorized by their form and the way they are written.

Remember that Korean vowels are more like blended English vowel sounds. They cannot be strictly defined as just A, E, I, O, or U.

For each vowel, you'll see its romanized pronunciation in parentheses, followed by a short description of its sound.

Vertical Vowels

ㅏ (a) Sounds like the AH in "f a ther."

ㅑ (ya) Sounds like the YA in " ya cht."

ㅓ (eo) Sounds like the UH in " o ther", though it's written as eo.

ㅕ (yeo) Sounds like the YUH in " yu ck," but it's romanized as yeo.

ㅣ (i) Sounds like the EE in "t ee th." It is sometimes written as ee instead of i.

Horizontal Vowels

ㅗ (o) Sounds like the OH in "oh."

ㅛ (yo) Sounds like the YO in " yo gurt."

ㅜ (u) Sounds like the OO in "b oo t."

ㅠ (yu) Sounds just like the English word "you."

ㅡ (eu) There's no direct English equivalent, but it's essentially a flatter version of the ㅜ sound. Try saying ㅜ, but pull your bottom lip down and back to expose your bottom teeth slightly.

Double or Complex Vowels

Indeed, consonants aren't the only ones that get to be doubled!

Double Korean vowels, or complex vowels, are so named because they combine two vowel symbols and blend two vowel sounds. Like double consonants, they are treated as a single vowel when written.

You might find that some of these vowels sound very similar. In fact, even native Korean speakers can find it hard to tell them apart, and often do not distinguish them in everyday conversation or writing.

ㅐ (ae) A blend ofㅏ and ㅣ. Pronounced EH as in " e gg."

ㅒ (yae) A blend of ㅑ and ㅣ. Pronounced YEH as the Y in " y es."

ㅔ (e) A blend ofㅓandㅣ, but it sounds identical toㅐ.

ㅖ (ye) A blend of ㅕ andㅣ. Sounds the same asㅒ.

ㅚ (oe) A blend of ㅗ andㅣ. Pronounced WEH as the "we" in " we t."

ㅟ (wi) A blend of ㅜ and ㅣ. Pronounced OO-EE like the "ewie" in "St ewie."

ㅢ (ui) A blend of ㅡ and ㅣ. It sounds somewhat like ㅟ, but more flattened. As with the vowel ㅡ, ensure your bottom lip pulls down during pronunciation, similar to a slight grimace.

ㅘ (wa) A blend of ㅗ and ㅏ. Pronounced WAH as in " wa ter."

ㅝ (wo or weo) A blend of ㅜ and ㅓ. Pronounced WO as in " wo nder."

ㅙ (wae) A blend of ㅗ and ㅐ. Sounds like ㅚ.

ㅞ (we) A blend of ㅜ and ㅔ. Sounds like ㅚ and ㅙ.

A good method to get comfortable with these letters and sounds is to watch videos with subtitles, allowing you to read along while hearing the correct pronunciation. YouTube or Netflix are great for this, but for additional learning support, you might consider a tool like Lingflix.

How to Make Korean Syllables out of Hangul Characters

Hangul characters are not only simple to write on their own. Combining them into complete syllables is also a very straightforward process.

You can find our specific lesson on Korean syllables here:

For a quick overview, here are the three fundamental rules.

1. A syllable must have a consonant and a vowel

Every Korean syllable requires at least one consonant and one vowel. The vowel always comes after the consonant. A syllable cannot be made of consonants alone.

However, syllables can be made from a single vowel sound. In these instances, the silent consonant ㅇ acts as the placeholder consonant.

2. A syllable must have two to four characters

A Korean syllable is built from a minimum of two and a maximum of four Hangul letters. Most syllables use two or three letters. Keep in mind that a double consonant and a double vowel each count as a single letter.

3. Korean syllables are written out as blocks

Unlike English, where letters are written sequentially from left to right, Hangul letters within a syllable are arranged in a square block, and all syllables should occupy the same amount of space. Consider these examples:

• Two characters: 호 and 하
• Three characters: 븐 and 박
• Four characters: 묶 and 닭

Notice how the third and fourth letters are compressed to fit into the square block.

You can also observe that the orientation of the syllable's vowel—whether it's horizontal or vertical—influences the placement of the consonants.

This is just a basic introduction to forming Korean syllables with Hangul letters. For a more detailed explanation of their structure, refer to this post.

There's a good explanation for why Hangul is so popular among language learners. Hopefully, this guide has illuminated the reasons.

Many students manage to master this Korean alphabet very fast, and you likely will too!

Well done on taking these initial steps to learn Korean. From here, the journey becomes even more exciting!