Part 1

Introduction
한글 Hangeul – the Korean Alphabet
The Invention of Hangeul
한글 (meaning “the great writing”)
was created by King Sejong the Great
and his royal scholars in 1443. Before
한글 was created, Chinese characters
or Chinese character-derived letters had
been used, and the majority of ordinary
Korean people were not familiar with
Chinese characters or did not know
them well. King Sejong felt pity for his
people and created the Korean letters.
Koreans are truly proud of Hangeul, one
of the most scientific writing systems.
 The statue of King Sejong the Great
is located at the center of Gwanghwamun Square.

King Sejong the Great’s portrait

is on the 10,000 won bill of
South Korea’s currency.
 The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize

The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize was created in 1989

through the generosity of the Government of the Republic of
Korea. The Prize gives special consideration to the promotion of
mother-tongue languages in developing countries. The Prize
consists of two awards, and each award provides a sum of US
$20,000, a silver medal, and a certificate.
 Sept. 11 2009

South Korea's Latest Export:

Its Alphabet

An Indonesian tribe called

Cia-Cia adopted Hangeul
as their writing system.
 훈민정음 Hunmin jeonguem

훈민정음 (Hunmin jeongeum) is the specific name of 한글

invented in 1443. It means ‘the correct sounds to educate the
people’, and ‘sound’ means ‘a letter’ or ‘a writing’, that is, the
Korean alphabet, 한글 .
 집현전 Jibhyeonjeon

집현전 (the Academy of Worthies, or the Hall of Worthies) was

an academic research institute established at the beginning of the Joseon
Dynasty. The achievements accomplished here included various
academic researches, compiling works, and book publishing. 훈민정음
was also developed at 집현전 .
 한글 Hangeul

As shown above, the consonant sound h is represented by the Hangeul

letter ㅎ , the vowel sound by the letter ㅏ , and the consonant sound n
by the letter ㄴ . The three letters ㅎ , ㅏ , and ㄴ are combined as the
syllable block 한 to be pronounced han. Remember that a syllable must
contain one and only one vowel.
 Stroke order
Three basic rules of stroke order:
1. Left to right
2. Top to bottom
3. Counterclockwise
 Stroke order

Let’s write!

저는 한국어를 공부해요 .
대답해 보세요 . (Answer following questions)

1. Who created the Korean alphabet, Hangeul?

2. Where was it developed?
3. What was the main purpose of this invention?
4. What is Hunmin jeongeum?
 Part 2

Consonants
&
Simple Vowels
 Consonant letters
There are 19 consonant letters, and they originally depicted the
speech organs that produce consonant sounds: the lips, tooth,
tongue, and throat.

Five basic consonant letters

tongue tip tongue back

lips /m/ tooth /s/ throat /ng/
touching the touching the
gum ridge /n/ soft palate /k,g/
 The Speech Organs

1. Hard palate
2. Alveolar ridge
2
1 3 3. Velum (soft palate)
Nasal cavity
4. Uvula
Oral cavity
4
5. Epiglottis
Pha
rynx

5 6. Vocal cords
8 7. Glottis
6
8. Larynx
7
 Consonant letters

The remaining 14 consonants are produced in the same general

areas as the five places of articulation. Thus, the letters
representing the sounds related to the five sounds are derived
by adding extra strokes to the basic letters.

Basic letter Aspirated Tensed

 Lip sounds

ㅁ ㅂ ㅍ ㅃ
/m/ /p,b/ /ph/ /p’/
(pill) (speak)
Gum ridge (alveolar) sounds

ㄴ ㄷ ㅌ ㄸ ㄹ
/n/ /t,d/ /th/ /t’/ /r,l/
(tall) (steam)
 Hissing sounds

ㅅ ㅆ ㅈ ㅊ ㅉ
/s/ /s’/ /*/ /ch/ /**/
(sun) (church) (midget)
Soft-palate (velar) sounds

ㄱ ㅋ ㄲ
/k,g/ /kh/ /k’/
(king) (skill)
Throat sounds

ㅇ ㅎ
/ŋ/ /h/
(song) (hit)
(king) (hope)
 Vowel letters
All vowel letters are composed of one or more of three kinds of
strokes: a long vertical stroke ( ㅣ ), a long horizontal stroke
( ㅡ ), and a short horizontal or vertical stroke. The short stroke
was originally a round dot ().

Three basic components

Heaven Earth Human being

 8 Simple Vowel Sounds
There are six simple letters and two compound letters to represent
eight simple vowel sounds.

Six simple letters

ㅏ ㅓ ㅗ ㅜ ㅡ ㅣ
/a/ /ə/ /o/ /u/ /**/ /i/

Two compound letters

The difference is maintained
ㅐ ㅔ only in writing.
/æ/ /æ/
 Vowels of Korean & English
Korean English

front central back front central back

ㅣ ㅡ ㅜ i u
high ɪ
high ʊ
ㅔ ㅗ o
mid e ə
ㅐ ㅓ ɛ ʌ ɔ
mid
low ㅏ a
low æ

* The qualities of Korean vowels are not the same as those of English
vowels, although they can be approximated as the above.
 8 Simple Vowel Sounds

FRONT BACK

HIGH ㅣ ㅡ ㅜ
MID ㅓ ㅗ
ㅔ/ㅐ
LOW ㅏ
Pronounced with the lips rounded
 Bright/Dark Vowels

Bright Vowels ㅏ ㅗ
Dark Vowels ㅓ ㅜ
Neutral Vowels ㅡ ㅣ
The vowel sounds with a short stroke on the right or above a
long stroke are called “bright” vowels, whereas the vowels with a short
stroke on the left or below a long stroke are called “dark” vowels. The
vowels represented by ㅡ and ㅣ are neutral.
Remember, a bright vowel and dark vowel are not combined in
a single syllable lock in making a diphthong (vowel harmony).
 듣기 연습

잘 듣고 알맞은 것을 고르세요 .
(Listen carefully and choose the
correct sound or word.)
 듣기 (Listening)

기 키 끼
flag height talent

달 탈 딸
moon mask daughter
 듣기 (Listening)

자 차 짜
ruler tea be salty

불 풀 뿔
fire grass horn
 듣기 (Listening)

살 쌀
flesh/skin rice

고기 거기
meat there

우리 오리
we duck
 듣기 (Listening)

달기 탈기 딸기

극기 크기 끌기
 빙고 (Bingo)
반 친구들하고 빙고를 해요 .
3 줄이 완성되면 빙고를 외쳐요 !

BINGO (Let’s play bingo in class! Choose one

Korean syllable before we start. Each one of
you pronounces the letter in class. Listen
carefully and fill in your bingo card.

Each one of you takes a turn

being the caller. Call out
“bingo!” if and when you fill
three straight lines of four
spaces, either horizontally,
vertically, or diagonally.)
 Part 3

Diphthongs
&
Syllable
Blocks
 Diphthongs with /y/
A diphthong is a vowel which has two vowel sound qualities in one
syllable. Two semivowels, /y/ and /w/ are used for Korean diphthong vowels.
They always precede the simple vowels (on-glide). Diphthongs with /y/ is made
by adding one extra stroke to each of the six simple vowels.

Simple Vowels

ㅏ ㅓ ㅗ ㅜ ㅐ ㅔ
Diphthongs with [y]

ㅑ ㅕ ㅛ ㅠ ㅒ ㅖ
/ya/ /yə/ /yo/ /yu/ **/yae,ye/
 Diphthongs with /w/
There are six diphthongs beginning with the sound /w/. The Korean
vowel letters ㅗ and ㅜ are used to represent the semivowel sound /w/.

Simple vowel + Simple vowel = Diphthong

ㅗ + ㅏ = ㅘ wa

ㅗ + ㅐ = ㅙ we

ㅗ + ㅣ = ㅚ we

ㅜ + ㅓ = ㅝ wə

ㅜ + ㅔ = ㅞ we

ㅜ + ㅣ = ㅟ wi

ㅡ + ㅣ = ㅢ **
 Diphthongs with /w/

1. Combinations of ㅗ + ㅓ , ㅗ + ㅔ , ㅜ + ㅏ , and ㅜ +
ㅐ are not permitted due to vowel harmony principle in Korean, which
does not allow a bright vowel to be combined with a dark vowel within
a syllable, although either may combine with the neutral vowel ㅣ .

2. The letters ㅙ , ㅚ , and ㅞ , which used to be pronounced

differently, are now pronounced identically, although the distinction is
kept in writing.

3. The diphthong ㅢ is unstable and is pronounced as ㅡ or

ㅢ (in word-initial position not preceded by a consonant) and ㅣ (in
non-initial position and after a consonant in initial position).
 듣기 연습

잘 듣고 알맞은 것을 고르세요 .
(Listen carefully and choose the correct
sound or word.)
듣기 (Listening)

새 쇠

간 강

회 최

앞 옆
 듣기 (Listening)

가구 가수
사과 사자
의자 의사
지게 시계
사이 사위
 듣기 (Listening)

가위 거위 거의

야자 여자 야수

겨울 거울 가을

간장 공장 곤장
 Syllable-block building
한 글 letters are combined into syllable blocks. A square
syllable block has one initial consonant position (C) followed by one
vowel or diphthong position. In the final consonant position, one or
two consonants may occur.

CV Examples: 나 이 해 계 따

Remember, if a syllable does not have an initial consonant, the

syllable block must have the letter ㅇ in the initial consonant
position because ㅇ is silent and functions as a zero consonant.
 Syllable-block building
If the vowel letter in the syllable block contains only a long
horizontal stroke, the vowel letter is written below the initial
consonant letter.

C Examples: 드 무 토 유 쑤

V
 Syllable-block building
If a diphthong letter contains a long horizontal stroke and a
long vertical stroke, the initial consonant letter occurs in the upper left
corner.

CV Examples: 뫼 왜 희 꿰 쉬

V1 2
 Syllable-block building
When a syllable has one or two final consonants, they follow
one of the following three models.

Examples: 흰
김
돈 뵙
깍
꼭 값
볶
꿩
젊
흙
봤 많
굶
 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㄱ)

‘a dog’ /kæ/ ‘study’ /koŋbu/

‘fruits’ /kwail/ ‘school’ /hakkyo/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㄴ)

‘I, me’ /na/ ‘basketball’ /noŋgu/

‘evening’ /jɔnyək/ ‘exercise’ /undoŋ/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㄷ)

‘tofu’ /tubu/ ‘money’ /ton/

‘a pig’ /twæji/ ‘to walk’ /gətta/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㄹ)

‘ramen’ /ramyən/ ‘London’ /lʌndən/

‘two’ /tul/ ‘calendar’ /tallyək/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅁ)

‘a hat’ /moja/ ‘water’ /mul/

‘what’ /mwɔ/ ‘a bear’ /kom/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅂ)

‘sea’ /bada/ ‘fire’ /bul/

‘stars’ /byəl/ ‘to be hot’ /dɔpta/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅅ)

‘an apple’ /sagwa/ ‘shoes’ /ʃinbal/

‘iron’ /swe/ ‘taste’ /mat/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅇ)

‘a baby’ /agi/ ‘when’ /ɔnje/

‘medicine’ /yak/ ‘a ball’ /goŋ/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅈ)

‘weekend’ /jumal/ ‘China’ /juŋguk/

‘a mouse’ /jwi/ ‘afternoon’ /nat/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅊ)

‘a car’ /tʃa/ ‘dance’ /tʃum/

‘the best’ /tʃwego/ ‘how many’ /myət/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅋ)

‘a nose’ /ko/ ‘a cup’ /kʌp/

‘quiz’ /kwij*/ ‘kitchen’ /buək/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅌ)

‘Saturday’ /toyoil/ ‘fur, hair’ /təl/

‘deep fries’ /twigim/ ‘farm, field’ /bat/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(ㅍ)

‘blood’ /pi/ ‘an arm’ /pal/

‘a letter’ /pyənji/ ‘front’ /ap/

 Syllable Blocks Examples ( ㅎ )

‘Australia’ /hoju/ ‘Korea’ /haŋkuk/

‘an older brother /hyəŋ/ ‘to be good’ /jota/

(of a male)’
 Syllable Blocks Examples ( ㄲ ,
ㄸ)

‘a tail’ /k*ori/ ‘fishing’ /nakshi/

‘again’ /d*o/ ‘to run’ /t*wida/

 Syllable Blocks Examples ( ㅃ , ㅆ ,
ㅉ)

‘bread’ /p*aŋ/ ‘to write’ /s*da/

‘to be tasty’ /mashit*a/ ‘soup’ /j*igæ/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(Double Consonants)

‘a portion’ /mok/ ‘to sit’ /ant*a/

‘many, much’ /manta/ ‘a chicken’ /dak/

 Syllable Blocks Examples
(Double Consonants)

‘to be young’ /jɔmt*a/ ‘to be short’ /j*alt*a/

‘to lose’ /ilta/ ‘to not have’ /ɔpt*a/

 쓰기 연습

Let’s compose 한글 syllable blocks. Copy the followings and

compare your handwriting with 선생님’ s handwriting.
Remember, in writing, the shape and size of the letters should
be balanced to fill the space.

1. 귀 잣 뺨 손 꽤
2. 안녕하세요 .

3. 반갑습니다 .
 읽기 연습

한글을 읽고 무엇인지 맞춰 보세요 .

(Read Hangeul and guess what it is.)
 무엇일까요 ?

주스
 무엇일까요 ?

커피
 무엇일까요 ?

치즈
 무엇일까요 ?

토마토
 무엇일까요 ?

바나나
 무엇일까요 ?

라디오
 무엇일까요 ?

케이크
 무엇일까요 ?

무수비
 무엇일까요 ?

마우스
 무엇일까요 ?

피아노
 무엇일까요 ?

스파게티
 무엇일까요 ?

텔레비전
 무엇일까요 ?

다이아몬드
 무엇일까요 ?

산타클로스
 쓰기 연습

보기와 같이 한국어로 바꿔보세요 .

(Translate English into Korean as in example.)

피자헛
 쓰기 (Writing)

나이키 아디다스
 쓰기 (Writing)

코카콜라 스프라이트
 쓰기 (Writing)

스타벅스 커피빈
 쓰기 (Writing)

맥도날드 버거킹
 쓰기 (Writing)

타코벨 도미노 피자
 쓰기

보기와 같이 영화 제목을 한국어로 쓰세요 .

(Write the following movie titles in Korean as in example.)

인턴
아바타
킹스맨
인셉션
엑스맨
어벤져스
어바웃 타임
인터스텔라
트랜스포머
비긴 어게인
인사이드 아웃
미션 임파서블
 Part 4

Appendix
&
References
 The names of the letters

Consonant letters

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ
기역 니은 디귿 리을 미음 비읍 시옷

ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ
이응 지읒 치읓 키읔 티읕 피읖 히읗

Notice that the name of each consonant letter

begins and ends with the sound in question. 은
 The names of the letters

Double consonant letters

ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ
쌍기역 쌍디귿 쌍비읍 쌍시옷 쌍지읒

The term 쌍 means ‘twin’. This is to indicate that the same letter
is doubled to represent tenseness.
Alphabetic Order - Cons

ㄲ ㄸ ㅃㅆ
ㄱㄴㄷㄹㅁㅂㅅ

ㅇㅈㅊㅋㅌㅍㅎ
ㅉ
 Alphabetic Order - Vowels

Vowel and diphthong letters

Order ㅏ ㅐ ㅑ ㅒ ㅓ ㅔ ㅕ
Name 아 애 야 얘 어 에 여

Order ㅖ ㅗ ㅘ ㅙ ㅚ ㅛ ㅜ
Name 예 오 와 왜 외 요 우

Order ㅝ ㅞ ㅟ ㅠ ㅡ ㅢ ㅣ
Name 워 웨 위 유 으 의 이
 철자 표기법 (Romanization)
Consonant letters

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ
g/k n d/t r/l m b/p s

ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ
ng j ch k t p h

ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ
kk tt pp ss jj
 철자 표기법 (Romanization)

Vowel and diphthong letters

ㅏ ㅐ ㅑ ㅒ ㅓ ㅔ ㅕ
a ae ya yae eo e yeo

ㅖ ㅗ ㅘ ㅙ ㅚ ㅛ ㅜ
ye o wa wae oe yo u

ㅝ ㅞ ㅟ ㅠ ㅡ ㅢ ㅣ
wo we w yu eu ui i
 발음 표기법 (Sound transcription)
Consonant letters

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ
g/k n d/t r/l m b/p s

ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ
ŋ ** ch kh th ph h

ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ
k’ t’ p’ s’ **
 발음 표기법 (Sound transcription)

Vowel and diphthong letters

ㅏ ㅐ ㅑ ㅒ ㅓ ㅔ ㅕ
a ae ya ** ə ae yə

ㅖ ㅗ ㅘ ㅙ ㅚ ㅛ ㅜ
** o wa we we yo u

ㅝ ㅞ ㅟ ㅠ ㅡ ㅢ ㅣ
wə we wi yu ** ** i
 References - images
Slide 2: King Sejong the Great (background) [image]. Retrieved from
https://brunch.co.kr/@5345341/48

Slide 3: King Sejong the Great [image]. (2016). https://namu.wiki/w/ 세종대왕

Slide 4: The statue of King Sejong the Great [image]. (2009). Retrieved from
http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?
mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=101&oid=018&aid=0002096732

Slide 7: Hunmin jeongeum [image]. Retrieved from http://study.zum.com/book/14122

Slide 8: the Academy of Worthies [Photograph]. (2012). Retrieved from

http://blog.daum.net/_blog/BlogTypeView.do?blogid=05bR6&articleno=15961743
the Academy of Worthies [image]. Retrieved from
http://www.hangeulmuseum.org/sub/eng_new/hangeul/jiphyeon.jsp

Slide 10-11: Stroke order images courtesy of Korea Tourism Organization and Cultural
Heritage Administration of Korea.