Korean Pronunciation Tips while Walking Through Gangnam

[@lizl8997]

Thanks so much Mike. My son will be in Seoul shortly and this video is very helpful.

[@MikeFromKorea]

I'm glad you find it helpful! I hope your son enjoys his stay.

[@jychoi4526]

Even I am a korean, your video is helpful and fun. And koreans sometimes pronounce wrongly when we pronounce 선릉.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you! Yeah, I know so many people who mispronounce it. It took me a long time to learn that it was wrong, and I still say it that way!

[@lostthenfound]

Hey Mike this was a great video! Really cool idea to walk to the different stations in Gangnam that coincidentally all have funny pronunciation! Haha. Korean is such a difficult language to pronounce as well. I've been studying it pretty steadily for 10 years now, and I still feel awkward making the sounds right (I don't know if that will go away). I think this will help people getting started just not to worry about sounding perfect, and to have fun with it! And as I'm sure you've noticed too, even just attempting to speak in Korean makes the people here feel closer to you, and it makes life all that much better. Thanks for the video!

[@MikeFromKorea]

When I first left the Army, a few people suggested I take a Korean course at Yonsei or Ewha. I really wish I'd done it. I just didn't need much Korean my first 8 years or so here. After I got married and took the plunge of giving up access to the US bases and moving away from Itaewon, I leveled up pretty fast, but *still* didn't study. The result is that my Korean ability is all over the place depending on the subject matter. I'm actively working on improving it these days, but it's a tough slog trying to break three decades of bad habits.

[@stefanik2725]

Great videos. Great pronunciation guide. I was stationed in Uijongbu (old romanization) when Park, Chung-hee's wife was assassinated on the opening day of the Seoul Subway in 1974. I was in Chejudo for Adventure Training with the 2ID at the time. A couple of days rappelling, rock climbing and knot tying then a few days off. An all-expenses-paid trip. I actually went there twice (the latter was during a tour at Camp Casey from 77-79) and just missed the assassination of President Park. I had the pleasure of meeting (more seeing than meeting) with President Park during a Team Spirit Briefing (I was the human pointer) by a ROK Colonel. I also met him when another guy and I were out for a ride near Chorwon when our vehicle (a black hardtop jeep) was suddenly pulled over to the side by ROK MPs leading a military convoy on the other side of the road. They were clearing the road for Park's motorcade. His vehicle pulled up next to ours, and he greeted us in English and thanked us for our service and our help during the Korean War!

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks! And thanks for sharing. Great story! That's not the first time I've heard of Park stopping to thank US soldiers. Seems he was genuine about it. And I'd forgotten about the site at Jeju. It was still around when I first got here. That was where they did the Australian rappelling, right? I have no idea if it's still a thing.

[@ELTExperiences]

I remember in 2007 going into a restaurant to order some lunch. I saw some Korean word and saw '치즈 돈까스' and thought to myself, "Wow! I have never seen this word with '돈까스' before" so decided to order it. Much to my amusement, I discovered how Koreans spell 'cheese' and loved the meal. Anyhow, the transliteration of English words in Korean are so confusing at times. Great video as usual.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks! Great story. I learned several dish names from going out to eat with Koreans, but there were times when I'd be in a restaurant able to read the menu but with no clue what any of it was. Many (most?) Korean restaurants back then had no pictures. I kind of miss that. It was always fun, but not always pleasant.

[@bohyunyoo5855]

한국에 오래 사셨네요. 유익한 영상이네요~^^ 첫 영상보고 구독하고 갑니다~

[@MikeFromKorea]

감사합니다!

[@teshi1424]

I really love how real your videos are. There is so much sensationalised content surrounding Korea, so it’s refreshing to see something objective.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you so much!!

[@Mudskipper9876]

Thank you!!! I have been wondering about Teheran-ro and now feel validated! Also agree about the pronunciation of Gangnam. You really share so much knowledge and we are lucky to tune into your channel.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks so much! I'm very happy that you and others are finding this stuff useful.

[@newharbor94]

로마자 표기법은 한국인에게도 무척 어렵습니다. 한국을 방문하는 외국인들에게 무척 도움이 되는 정보인거 같습니다.감사합니다.

[@helenkim6200]

I'm so impressed by your knowledge of korean history...especially the kings stuff...wow

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you! But really, the history in my head is just random bits of trivia gleaned from many different sources over the years. If I know I might talk about the history of something in a video, I always take the time to read up on it first, either to refresh my memory or because it's something I didn't know to begin with.

[@whereisjohnnow]

Just came back from a 2 week trip to Korea. I took a lot of subway and bus rides. Knowing to read and write in Korean definitely helped. Many station names written in English didn't match the actual Korean names. If I were to pronounce the name as written in English to a Korean, he/she would probably not understand what you said. I relied heavily on Naver Map to go places. Search works much better in Korean vs English.

[@MikeFromKorea]

I hope you enjoyed the trip! When I first got here, there was much less English around, so being able to read Hangul was even more helpful. The signs showing subway station names had English on them, but the subway maps only had it on the transfer points, and the bus route maps usually had no English at all. The voice recordings on both generally only announced the stops in Korean. I recall that Line 2 on the subway was the exception, since that was where most of the '88 Olympics venues were at.

[@whereisjohnnow]

@@MikeFromKorea Forgot to mention that not being able to read Korean should not be an issue as a foreigner when riding the train, subway and bus. Station names are announced in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese.

[@chaisepomme4070]

Another video full of information that other channels don’t have! I knew something of the fine dust problem in Seoul, but I don’t know what the source is… is it due to heavy industry in South Korea or China? The weather seems so pleasant but it’s a shame that the air quality is so bad. And the fine dust free zones are a good respite for older people and those with respiratory problems. Also I really like that artist’s sculpture you show in this video and the previous ones. There are many public sculptures (mostly in bronze) in any city but these ones are in vibrant colours and quite whimsical and just fun to look at in the middle of a stressful city. I’m really looking forward to seeing more of Seoul and more hidden stories about early companies, Park Chung Hee, and those kings and some of their deeds and misdeeds. One final thing on pronunciation, you say “Soul” for Seoul but the Korean Hangul spelling for the capital city is more like two syllables Soh-ool. So do a lot of Koreans just adopt the Western pronunciation just because it’s quicker/easier to say? I have a sister that loves Kdrama and she says there are a lot of English words and phrases that have entered the language (at least the spoken part).

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks for your comments and questions! I''ve read that when the air quality is at its worst, something like 60-80% of the pollution comes from China. On normal days it's 30-50%. On top of that, every spring we get what they call "yellow sand", which is dust blowing across from the Gobi desert. That's when it can be the most noticeable for the most people, even those without respiratory issues. Regarding Seoul, I often mispronounce it when I'm speaking English. I mispronounce many Korean words when I'm speaking English. I talked about Konkuk university, for example. Not only did I give it a hard "K" that it shouldn't have, I also mispronounced the "o". It's supposed to be "eo" like in Seoul or Yeoksam, but I said it, and often say it, as "oh". Konkuk would be "Geonguk" under the Revised Romanization of Korean system. You are correct that Seoul is two syllables. It's "seo ul", with the "u" pronounced similarly to the beginning of "uber". Koreans usually pronounce the two syllables distinctly. I usually pronounce it correctly when I'm speaking Korean. When I'm speaking English, I only pronounce it correctly if I'm actively thinking about it. I think part of that is old habit---I picked it up as "soul"---and part is just that, when I'm speaking English, my brain is not in "Korean mode". So some words will come out correctly, like Gangnam, because "ah" is natural in English. Others will not. I'll often pronounce the "eo" in Seolleung and Samseong as a "u", like in "sun", for example. There are many English words that have made it into everyday Korean, but they're usually pronounced differently for the same reason that romanized Korean is mispronounced by English speakers: the spelling. Korean and English just don't line up perfectly. So "bus" in Korean is "buseu", and taxi is "taegsi", which is sounds somewhat like "tech shee". One thing of note is that young people tend to have better pronunciation than their elders these days, even when using "Koreanized" English words like bus and taxi. Thirty years ago, most people would say "tech shee" when speaking English, but now a lot of people say it like "taxi" when speaking English and use the Korean pronunciation when speaking Korean. I respect that, because I have a very, very hard time giving Korean pronunciation to English words when I'm speaking Korean!

[@Imbrad91]

Jamsil just next door to Gangnam has probably one of the most famous examples of a station with pronunciation discrepancy with the 어 and 오 with the now called “잠실새내역” which used to be “신천역” (sincheon with the “eo”), which caused lots of confusion with even koreans apparently as 신촌역 (sinchon with the “o”) is on the same line #2 but on opposite ends of the city. Taxi drivers used to have to ask me all the time if i meant “the sinchon towards hongdae right??” Since it was so famously mispronounced. I believe the name was finally changed in like 2016 or so.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Yeah, I could never remember which one was which. I got into the habit of prefixing the station names with "Yeondae" or "Jamsil" to avoid the confusion. But I didn't realize they'd changed the name of Sincheon Station until one day last year, or maybe the year before. That tripped me up a bit. Now I can never remember the new name. I always think it's Jamsilnaru, which of course is the new name for the station on the other side of Jamsil.

[@999jeon]

짬이 느껴집니다

[@pebblebeach8383]

구독 했습니다 형님!

[@MikeFromKorea]

고맙네 동생!

[@HappyLife_J]

재미있어요....

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thank you!

[@CynD-CynD]

Interesting! Thank you.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Glad you liked it!

[@yoona5820]

Thanks for another great video!

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks, Yoona!

[@keesungzang3324]

could you list up the background music of this episode? so impressive to me ^^

[@MikeFromKorea]

It's there at the very bottom of the description along with a link to the site where I licensed it. It's 'Dreams' by the Cranberries. The original version was the debut single from their first album in the early 90s. The acoustic version is from their 2017 album, "Something Else". kzbin.info/www/bejne/nIGupoGAfbJln8ksi=dZy7COvq5jFNZxnq

[@keesungzang3324]

@@MikeFromKorea 처음 듣는 순간 나를 신나게 하는 이 음악은 뭐지? 하고 추적해보면 신기하게도 번번이 아이리쉬 뮤직이라는 것에 놀랍니다. ^^ thanks to find the cranberries !!

[@ozskzkizz]

So useful, Mike, thanks for another great video! I've been trying to explain to my husband about how I find it harder to read the romanised version and prefer to read and pronounce the Hangul, it's easier and helps me sound it out way more accurately (we're both learning Korean to try and keep up with our daughter who is planning to study for a while in Seoul during university years 2025+ sometime). Your description in this video made it so clear for him! Also. The yellow dust. I see your reply to another comment and have a question: does it get so bad that you'd recommend avoiding a certain time in Spring in particular? we were struck by the underground clear air room. It kinda indicates this can get quite chronic, yeah? (I ask bc I am prone to breathing difficulties with super-fine particles - does a face mask fix the issue?) Would Oct-Nov be a better time to visit than, say, Feb-April sometime? We love cool clear weather, we're not heat seekers! but trying to avoid too much rain 😂 Would appreciate your thoughts/advice. Thanks again, we love your channel.

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks for letting me know your husband found this helpful. Good luck on your Korean language journey! So the best time of year for air quality is August and September. Unfortunately, that's also the hottest. It actually is at its worst in the winter, starting in November. Most people don't notice it, though, until the Yellow Dust phenomenon starts up in March or April. I'm not so sensitive to pollution normally, but some days in the spring it can be so heavy that I can taste it and feel it in the back of my throat. That said, these days we do tend to have more good/moderate days than unhealthy/extremely unhealthy ones in any given month. You can get a good idea on this page: aqicn.org/historical#!city:seoul It has charts of the past 10 years showing the number of days each month in each category. I've gotten into the habit of asking Siri what the air quality is before I leave the house for my walk so I can decide how I want to approach it. At the highest levels, I don't go out at all, and at the "unhealthy" levels I don't overexert myself. I don't usually wear a mask. We've got multiple air cleaners in the house. If I can feel a difference in the air when I step outside, then I'll wear a mask. Usually, that's only in the spring when the yellow dust is heaviest. But then I don't have any respiratory issues. People who do, or who are otherwise sensitive to the air quality, usually do wear masks and try to minimize the amount of time they spend outdoors. My wife is somewhat sensitive and sometimes wears a mask. She says it helps. So if you want the best air quality, I'd recommend visiting sometime in mid to late September. It will still likely be hot, but not as bad as August, and you'll be in just before the air starts to go downhill later in October. Keep some masks on hand in case there are any bad days while you're here. Always check the quality before heading out, and keep an eye out for the displays around the city showing the current air quality so you can know if it's changed. They're usually color coded, often with a little emoji-like face with an expression that changes with the color (happy green, neutral yellow, sad orange, angry red). At night, if you're in view of Seoul Tower, the color of its lights will tell you quality of the air: www.seoultower.co.kr/en//tour/tower_light Hope that helps!

[@ozskzkizz]

@@MikeFromKorea it sure does! Thanks so much, great information here and good to know. We may well still come across at the end of winter but I have been wondering if heading into winter was better. You've confirmed. So we have some thinking to do!

[@holytiger89]

great tip

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks!

[@derek-je9dp]

There is a Finnish guy whose family moved to Korea when he was 1 year old and he's been living in Korea for most of his life(he is 30 yrs old) He speaks Korean better than Finnish or English 😂 He speaks Korean better than I do and I am native Korean 😂😂not even just the language and grammar, intonation, but the soul, the emotion, the sounds(sigh, grunt etc), the gesture, the mannerism everything is super Korean about him😂😂 it's hilarious check out his channel!

[@derek-je9dp]

The channel is '레오티비 LEOTV'

[@MikeFromKorea]

Thanks for the tip! I'll check it out.

[@lizl8997]

I forgot to mention the Naver map English translation is just awful. Have you ever looked at it? I don't know why they don't make the effort to have the correct spelling. I'm always trying to figure out what the words mean.

[@MikeFromKorea]

I tend to use Naver map more on my desktop via their website, and for me that's all Korean. I just scrolled around a bit on the iPhone app and there were no misspelled translations that jumped out at me. There's a lot of romanized names on it, though. Do you have any specific examples?

[@grokker99]

"EO" is pronounced like a short "U" (vowel) as in "cup, luck..."" So "ApguJeong Yeok" Station is Ap-Gu-Jung Yuk.

[@MikeFromKorea]

It's not quite the same. It's more between that and an "o". "Yeok" does not sound like "yuck".

[@grokker99]

@@MikeFromKorea dude, 역 is straight up pronounced “yuck” not “yock”.

[@grokker99]

As is 정 pronounced w a short U sound “Jung”…not “Jong”. And the vowel in 성 is pronounced w the short “u” vowel as in “sung”, not “song”. I mean how is it anything but a short “u” sound? Native Korean and English speaker here.

[@MikeFromKorea]

@@grokker99 I'll admit that this one has always been difficult for me to get right. I usually pronounce it too close to an "o", but I still don't hear it as an "uh". I promise you I've never heard my Korean wife say "Yucksam Yuck" in the 26 years we've been living together. This is how I hear people pronounce it and how I try to say it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i6Gaepaei66lic0si=cxi8jJq8lQpNzGbX I don't hear that as an "uh", but somewhere between "oh" and "uh".

[@grokker99]

@@MikeFromKorea dude ur overthinking it. How do u say coffee in Korean? 커피. Cup pee. 떡뽁이. Ttuk bohk key. It’s a short U sound. I mean, u might have superhuman hearing to be able to discern an O sound in the 어 vowel, but all I hear is a short U sound. “Eo” is just a short U sound. I don’t think any Korean person, even a linguist, would try and correct someone if they read words by this rule. Just my 2 cents.

[@ilseki]

haha as an original korean in your age prolly, I see its fun you are struggling to teach them our pronunciation.

[@ruleoflawkorea]

This is even interesting to me, 토종 korean

[@normalcynormalcy2338]

The 'revised romanization of Korean' torments so many. Me, I just don''t see why differentiating ㅚ and ㅙ is so important.... A foreigner sees "hoe," and pronounces it "ho." That can give rise to a lot of grief, as while I'm sure 호웅성 (홍성) 한우 is just fine, it's just not the same as the "Hwengseong" 한우 visitors are more likely after.

[@MikeFromKorea]

I've read through some academic texts on Korea in the past few months to brush up on my facts. They tend to use a very different romanization system. It's so jarringly different to the RRK, so unnatural with all the diacritics they use, and so far from any representation of how the syllables are actually pronounced, that it takes me forever and a day to get through them. The RRK is the best we've got right now, I suppose. Even so, there's so much variation out there that it doesn't really matter. Lee vs Rhee vs Yi vs Yee, sung vs song vs seong... That's why I recommend anyone visiting take the time to learn to read Hangeul. Even if they don't understand the words they're reading, just being able to pronounce the syllables goes a long way.