How To Say My Name In Korean? Top 5 Easy Ways!
Original blog post: https://ling-app.com/ko/my-name-in-korean/
If you are wondering about how to tell your name in Korean or if you have the question “what is my name in Korean?” the thus blog post is for you. Keep reading to find out important details!
My Name In Korean
How would you say “my name in Korean?” There are several ways that you can ask and tell your name in Korean.
Are Names Important?
In this heavily populated world of 7.753 billion people, there are very few things that make us unique from each other, and one of those significant facts; our name is important.
Our name provides us recognition and identity and it gives us respect as well, like whenever a person see us, he/she will call our name, this is a sense of respect in society. Our names have very deep meanings that even beautify our identity and personality.
Names
Some people believe that our names can be good or bad luck. Some names are believed to carry heavy meanings behind them and it is a myth in some societies that names bearing weighty meanings have a somewhere bad impact on a person’s life and due to this most people change their name.
Regardless of this fact names are syrupy which gives us the feeling that we belong to each other. For example, if two people having similar names would have some sense of closeness to each other.
Asking Names In Korean
Before telling your name you need to ask how to ask names in Korean and here are some important phrases for you to know about!
성함이 어떻게 되세요? (dangsin-eun eotteohge doeseyo?)
This means, “What is Your Name in Korean?” Use this to ask the names of people who are older than you.
이름이 뭐야? (ileum-i joh-eungayo?)
This means, “What is Your Name in Korean?” as well.
철자 말해 주세요 (cheolja malhae juseyo)
This means, “Can you spell your name, please?” You can ask a person about the spelling of their name to write their name.
한국 이름이 뭐예요? (hangug ileum-i mwoyeyo?)
Does this mean what is your Korean name? If you are a foreigner living with the foreigners then you must need to know their Korean names. Use this and ask about their Korean names!
이름이 뭐예요? (ileum-i mwoyeyo?)
This is yet another way of asking names in Korean. It’s a very frank and informal way of asking.
Telling Names In Korean
We are going to tell you one ultimate phrase to know which will do wonders. No matter what your name is or in what situation you are, feel free to use the phrase 제 이름은 (jae ireumeun) and add a name afterward to introduce yourself.
Names In Korean
Names have a great connection with languages. If we read a name it tells us about the fact from which language it belongs, like the perusal of most the Korean names has absorbed facts about its language and roots.
We are talking about names and languages so there are certain rules for writing your name in the Korean language.
Rule 1
One consonant and one vowel are mandatory for every syllable. There are lots of mistakes that people make while putting down their name in Korean and one of the frequent mistakes that people make is associating a name’s spelling with the writing of Korean names.
However, this is incorrect. Korean names are correlated with the pronunciation of the names. The first step is to break down the sound of the name and then write it according to the sound.
Examples
Examples would play a vital role in understanding this concept. If we consider an English name Jane as an example and we Romanize it like (ja-ne) as it is Korean Romanization. After that we would write it in the Korean language and it would not sound like Jane anyway. Because it is an incorrect way of writing names in Korean.
Consonant and vowel sounds are very important in Korean words. In case of the absence of a vowel, we will add it on our own. Let us take an example of Chris, by Romanizing, it would become Kris and by adding eu with k and s, we will get keu-ri-seu.
This rule also applies to the names that start with t, for instance, Trina becomes Teu ri na.
Rule 2
Rule number two states that names ending with r would not be having r sound at their ends when being transcribed in the Korean language.
The reason for this rule is not so clear, there are two concepts for having this rule among people, some people say that it is because the National Institute of Korean Language has not allowed r sound at the end of the syllable while others have different thoughts about this.
Example
Peter is a name that ends with r and when Romanized, it is written as pi-teo.
Rule 3
The third rule is to avoid the h sound at the end of names. For instance, the name Hannah is a female name, and it is written as Hanna. It is spelled differently but pronounced the same.
Rule 4
Names that end with sh are tricky to write in Korean. Si and Swi are to be added at their ends. For example, Josh would become Josi or Joswi.
Rule 5
Syllables having p or ph at their ends would either be having elimination of h from their ends or subtraction of h and addition of eu when written in Korean. It depends on our preference.
Examples
Joseph would be written as Josep or people also write Jospeu. Another example, Phillip is a native Korean name; it would be written as pillipeu.
Rule 6
There is also a rule for the names having t at their ends i.e. Syllables ending with t.
Example
Scott is an English name; it is noticed to be written as Seukot and also seukoteu.
Another example would solve the knots, if any, regarding this rule. Matt is a name ending with t, and it would be written as Maet or Maeteu in the Korean language.
Rule 7
Names starting with f, when written in Korean replaced by p. F sound have not been found in the Korean language. So the f sound is pronounced as p.
For instance, Felicity starts with f and would be noted down as Pellisili. It also adds one more “l”.
Rule 8
This rule is somewhere similar to the previous one as it also deals with sounds and replacements of Hangul. In this rule, v is replaced by b.
Example
Vanessa is a name, and it will be written as Banesa. Similarly, Becky will become Beki and Steve will be written as Seuibeu.
Rule 9
There is no differentiation between z and j sounds in Korean writing decorum. Both are written as j like Joe is a name that would be noted down as Jo and Jack and Zack would be as Jaek.
Rule 10
This rule is going to be dealing with l and vowel. If there is any l plus vowel in the middle of a syllable, then l would be multiplied by 2 and it would become l plus l plus vowel.
Example
An example would clear the problems if there are any. Julia would be put down as Jullia. Nicolas is another name and it would be written as Nikollaseu.
Another point to take into account when dealing with l is that, if any name begins with l, l remains the same like Lena remains Rena. And also if there are already 2 l’s in the middle, l won’t be changed either. For example, Gabriella remains Gabriella
Rule 11
Name ending with k like Patrick would be noted down as paereurik. And names ending with k sound like Eric would be written as Erik.
Writing My Name In Korean
Before getting into this we need to know naming conventions in the Korean Language.
Naming Conventions
Every language has its unique naming conventions and so does the Korean language. And it is given below:
Korean names are arranged in a specific order. Family names occupy the first place and your personal name is on the second number.
For example, Kim Taehyung (also name of a K-pop singer) is a very popular name of a male singer in a BTS band. In this name Kim is a family name while Tae hung is a personal name. Another example is a female name Lee Hyori where Lee is a family name and Hyori is personal.
Three Syllables In Each Korean Name
There are three syllables in each Korean name. The family name comes first while the second and third name is usually the given name, like in Kim Min Su, Kim is the family name.
Family names are simply called surnames and these are inherited and given to the next generation of that family. It is usually a single character and is always written before the given name.
After the family name, then comes the turn of the given name which is also being called a personal name. It consists of usually two characters. Those two characters of the given names contemplate as a single unit.
One component of the given name is unique, as it is given to a person at his/her birth. The other component is given to all the siblings of the same gender and that character is called a generation name.
For example, Lee Hyori has two sisters and their names are lee yuri and lee Aeri. In this case, Ae and Yu is the name that makes them unique in the family and is given to them at birth while ri is the generation name shared with every same-gender sibling.
Names Are Written Together Or Given Separately
Here is another name convention according to South Korean culture. The two components of a given name can either be written together or can also be given separately and divided into two. If we take the Hyori example further we see that the name Hyori can also be noted down as Hyori or Hyo-ri. However, it is good if both words are written together as a single name.
Here are also given names found that has single syllable but those Korean names are not that common. Example Jo and Kwon.
The naming convention also involves the fact that a given name and the family name are not separated by spaces when it is to be put down in Korean hangul. For example Kim Sok Jin.
The legal names of women are not changed even after their marriage.
Korean Names Using Your Birthday
One interesting fact about Korean names is that you can make your Korean name using your birth date, and month. This is shown in many Korean dramas or Korean movies and everybody finds it very cool, so how it goes like basically there is a fun chart provided and there is a name for every month, day, and the last number of your birth year and you can just have your name from that chart.
For Example:
You do not need to worry if this concept has not stepped into your mind yet.
If you are a female and you are born on 1st of September 1996, your full name according to that chart Choe jin-hui. And if you are a male and your birthday is on the same 1st of September 1996, your name would be Choe jin-hun, where Cheo is the surname and jin hun is the given name.
It is a fun activity as there are many unique concepts in South Korea; this thing has added more beauty to Korean culture. There is another way of writing your name in Korean, and in that, you pick any Korean name that sounds identical to your actual name and then makes up your own from that name.
Chinese Characters In Korean Naming Conventions
Chinese characters play a great role in the Romanization of Korean names as these characters are expressed in many different ways and it has many spelling variations in English like Lee can be written as Phee, Rhi, Ni, Ri, etc.
So it is very convenient to write your name in Korean, you just need to write down naming conventions on a page, and use them depending on your need and finally, you will get your Korean name.
Or to even more clear your concept you can just search for a lecture on the Korean language and select one that sounds good to you, the one which teaches to the beginners, and then grabs the concept. This would also really help. Moreover, Korean name generator is a cool thing to study as well.
Westernized Forms of Korean Names
Koreans also use their name in the westernized form and for that matter, they just reverse the arrangements of their name like Kim Min Su would be written as Min Su Kim which fits into western English naming conventions.
Addressing Others In Korean
Now when we have read about naming conventions and rules, it would be good if we also touch on the topic of addressing others in Korean culture.
People who are of your age or younger than you, you can address them with only their first name. This rule is also applied to your friends i.e. you can also call your friends with their first name only.
The Family Name Alone Is Not Preferred
Giving titles is found really cool in South Korea and titles are added to the end of a person’s full name. People who are older than you are referred as “hyung” or “obba” for males and “noona” or “unni” for females.
Reference on the basis of people’s profession is also really common like “Kyuso” (teacher) etc. Many parents are addressed by their children’s names like Kim Min Su’s mother would be called “Minsu’s mum” which sounds really sweet.
People who watch K-dramas have pretty much an idea about all of these addressing points.
Asking Again, Are Names Important?
Everything is temporary and would come to an end in this world and so doe’s humans but one thing that remains after humans is their name. Names have a major impact on a person’s life so it has to be meaningful and good to be called. As names define your personality so, good names enhance your personality.
Many people consult a fortune teller before giving names to their kids and they select the one which is lucky for their child e.g. Geon (strong), or Cho (beautiful). Korean names also have gender-specific meanings like beauty or softness for female and strength or bravery for males.
Names reflect the personality, making a good reflection. Here you can find more Korean names of Boys and Girls to choose a name for yourself.
Wrapping Up
Learn the Korean alphabet and pronounce the Korean letters and words like a pro. On Ling App, we teach you all the things essential for your learning process. Each post is written by a native speaker who would like to give you a fun and thoughtful insight into Korean culture. Learn Korean with Ling App now!
