Reading Korean road signs

Hangul, the Korean alphabet, has 24 basic letters, grouped into square blocks of one syllable each. Many people learn it in an afternoon.

South Korean road signs usually show the name in Hangul with the English below, but the Hangul is bigger and comes first. Learn the letters and 부산 (Busan) or 강남 (Gangnam) read themselves.

Korean at a glance

Hangul is the alphabet of South and North Korea. Its letters are grouped into square blocks, one block for each syllable, and the blocks are read left to right.

Inside a block, start at the top left: 부 is b and ‘u’, 산 is s, ‘a’ and n.

Consonants

Some change a little with their place in the block: ㄱ is g at the start and k at the end, ㄹ is r or l. ㅇ is silent at the start of a block and ng at its end.

• ㄱg, k
• ㄴn
• ㄷd, t
• ㄹr, l
• ㅁm
• ㅂb, p
• ㅅs
• ㅇ–, ng
• ㅈj
• ㅎh

An extra stroke

One more stroke adds a puff of breath: ㄱ g becomes ㅋ k, ㄷ d becomes ㅌ t, ㅂ b becomes ㅍ p, ㅈ j becomes ㅊ ch.

A doubled letter is said tense, and written double.

• ㅋk
• ㅌt
• ㅍp
• ㅊch
• ㄲkk
• ㄸtt
• ㅃpp
• ㅆss
• ㅉjj

Vowels

Vowels are a long line with a short stroke. Upright ones stand to the right of the consonant, flat ones under it: 가 is ga, 고 is go.

• ㅏa
• ㅓeo
• ㅗo
• ㅜu
• ㅡeu
• ㅣi
• ㅐae
• ㅔe

Vowels with a y or a w

A second short stroke adds a y: ㅏ ‘a’, ㅑ ya. Put ㅗ or ㅜ before another vowel and you get a w: ㅘ wa, ㅝ wo.

• ㅑya
• ㅕyeo
• ㅛyo
• ㅠyu
• ㅘwa
• ㅝwo
• ㅚoe
• ㅟwi
• ㅢui

Building a block

A block starts with a consonant (ㅇ when there is no sound), then the vowel, and sometimes one or two consonants at the bottom.

• 가ga
• 강gang
• 고go
• 공gong
• 아a
• 안an
• 울ul
• 원won

Sounds that rub off

Side by side, some letters change their sound. The most common: ㄹ after ㄴ or ㅇ is read n, so 강릉 is Gangneung, not Gangreung.

Name parts worth knowing

Most names are two blocks, many of them old Chinese words. Some come back again and again.

In Seoul, Busan and the other big cities, signs also point to districts, such as 강남 Gangnam and 해운대 Haeundae. Those are in the quiz too.

Try it

Which city is on the sign?

All the letters

Consonants

• ㄱg / k
• ㄴn
• ㄷd / t
• ㄹr / l
• ㅁm
• ㅂb / p
• ㅅs / t
• ㅇ– / ng
• ㅈj / t
• ㅊch / t
• ㅋk
• ㅌt
• ㅍp
• ㅎh / t
• ㄲkk / k
• ㄸtt
• ㅃpp
• ㅆss / t
• ㅉjj

Vowels

• ㅏa
• ㅑya
• ㅓeo
• ㅕyeo
• ㅗo
• ㅛyo
• ㅜu
• ㅠyu
• ㅡeu
• ㅣi
• ㅐae
• ㅒyae
• ㅔe
• ㅖye
• ㅘwa
• ㅙwae
• ㅚoe
• ㅝwo
• ㅞwe
• ㅟwi
• ㅢui

Each block is one syllable, read from its top left: 한 is h, a, n.

Where two sounds are given, the second is the one at the end of a block.

The 200 places in the quiz

The quiz has every city and county of South Korea, plus well-known districts of Seoul, Busan and the other big cities.