Korean pronouns
Encyclopedia
Korean pronouns pose some difficulty to speakers of English due to their complexity. The Korean language
makes extensive use of speech levels and honorifics
in its grammar, and Korean pronouns also change depending on the social distinction between the speaker and the person or persons spoken to.
In general, Koreans avoid using second person singular pronouns, especially when using honorific forms. This is done by either:
For each pronoun there is an informal and a humble/honorific form for first and second person. In the above table the first pronoun given is the humble one, which one would use when speaking to someone older or of high social status. Note that 당신 is also sometimes used as the Korean equivalent of "dear" as a form of address. Also, whereas uses of other humble forms are straightforward, 당신 must be used only in specific social contexts, such as between two married couples. In that way it can be used in an ironic sense when used between strangers, usually during arguments and confrontations. It is worth noting that 당신 is also a honorific third-person pronoun, used to refer to one's social superior who is not present.
There are two third person pronouns, male and female; however, the female form sounds awkward (due to its similarities with a bad word, 그년), and is mostly used when translating texts from other languages. Like Japanese, Korean originally had only one third person pronoun for both genders, 그, which literally means "it". However it has increasingly been interpreted as a "male" pronoun used for both genders. Although in recent years the pronoun 그녀 is slowly gaining ground as a female counterpart due to the influence of translations from European languages, it is almost restricted to specific styles of written language, because Korean generally uses subjectless or modifier+noun constructions.
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
makes extensive use of speech levels and honorifics
Korean honorifics
The Korean language reflects the important observance of a speaker or writer's relationships with both the subject of the sentence and the audience. Korean grammar uses an extensive system of honorifics to reflect the speaker's relationship to the subject of the sentence and speech levels to...
in its grammar, and Korean pronouns also change depending on the social distinction between the speaker and the person or persons spoken to.
In general, Koreans avoid using second person singular pronouns, especially when using honorific forms. This is done by either:
- Leaving out the subject of the sentence if it can be implied by the context. In English, sentences need explicit subjects, but this is not so in conversational Korean.
- Use the person's name. However this is only done when talking to someone younger than yourself. With people older than you, it is custom to use either a title or kinshipKinshipKinship is a relationship between any entities that share a genealogical origin, through either biological, cultural, or historical descent. And descent groups, lineages, etc. are treated in their own subsections....
term (see next point).
- Use one of the following: 언니 (eonni, "older sister" if speaker is female), 누나 (nuna, "older sister" if speaker is male), 오빠 (oppa, "older brother" if speaker is female), 형 (hyeong, "older brother" if speaker is male), 아줌마 (ajumma, "middle aged woman"), 아주머니 (ajumeoni, also "middle aged woman" but more polite), 아저씨 (ajeossi, "middle aged man"), 할머니 (halmeoni, "grandmother") of 할아버지 (harabeoji, "grandfather"). In Korea it is common to use kinship terms for people who are not family at all.
- The term 아가씨 (agassi, "young lady") is preferable when addressing a young girl of unknown age. It is mostly seen used in public places like restaurants. But it will also sometimes be used by men in pick-up linePick-up lineA pick-up line is a conversation opener with the intent of engaging an unfamiliar person for romance, or dating. Overt and sometimes humorous displays of romantic interest, pick-up lines advertise the wit of their speakers to their target listeners....
s. By definition, the actual difference between 아가씨 and 아줌마 reside in marriage status and not age.
- Use the appropriate title. For example, if you are talking to a teacher, you can use 선생님 (seonsaengnim, "teacher", although 선생님 is also often used as a general honorific term for other professions like managers etc.)
- Use the plural 여러분 (yeoreobun) where applicable.
Pronouns
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| First person | 저 (jeo), 나 (na) | 저희 (jeohui), 우리 (uri) |
| Second person | 당신 (dangsin), 너 (neo) | 당신들 (dangsindeul), 너희들 (neohuideul) |
| Third person | 그, 그녀(f) (geu/geunyeo) | 그들, 그녀들 (f) (geudeul/geunyeodeul) |
For each pronoun there is an informal and a humble/honorific form for first and second person. In the above table the first pronoun given is the humble one, which one would use when speaking to someone older or of high social status. Note that 당신 is also sometimes used as the Korean equivalent of "dear" as a form of address. Also, whereas uses of other humble forms are straightforward, 당신 must be used only in specific social contexts, such as between two married couples. In that way it can be used in an ironic sense when used between strangers, usually during arguments and confrontations. It is worth noting that 당신 is also a honorific third-person pronoun, used to refer to one's social superior who is not present.
There are two third person pronouns, male and female; however, the female form sounds awkward (due to its similarities with a bad word, 그년), and is mostly used when translating texts from other languages. Like Japanese, Korean originally had only one third person pronoun for both genders, 그, which literally means "it". However it has increasingly been interpreted as a "male" pronoun used for both genders. Although in recent years the pronoun 그녀 is slowly gaining ground as a female counterpart due to the influence of translations from European languages, it is almost restricted to specific styles of written language, because Korean generally uses subjectless or modifier+noun constructions.