The 12 Months In Korean: A Quick And Easy Guide

Original blog post: https://ling-app.com/ko/months-in-korean/

How essential is learning months in Korean (월 wol)? You’ll know when’s the best time to go there and you’ll know how to speak and write about dates.

What month is best to go to South Korea? When’s your birthday? These are the questions that are mostly asked when it comes to months. Learning Months in Korean is an important Korean vocabulary lesson. It helps you when booking a trip to South Korea. It also helps you when talking about birthdays and age because hierarchy and age is big deal in South Korea.

Before we learn different months in Korean, let us first make it clear that there are two Korean countries -North Korea and South Korea. Both North and South Korea speak Korean as their official language. Hangugeo is the name of the Korean language in South Korea, while chosnmal is for North Korea. Spelling and pronunciation are the main differences between the two languages. Today, we will learn how Koreans name months in their language.

Here is the list of months in Korean:

• 일월 (irwol) — January
• 이월 (iwol) — February
• 삼월 (samwol) — March
• 사월 (sawol) — April
• 오월 (owol) — May
• 유월 (yuwol) — June
• 칠월 (chirwol) — July
• 팔월 (parwol) — August
• 구월 (guwol) — September
• 시월 (siwol) — October
• 십일월 (shipirwol) — November
• 십이월 (shipiwol)- December

In this blog post, we will explain to you how the months of the year in Korean work in the sections below.

Months Of The Year In The Korean Language

월 (wol)

The Korean word for months in Korean is 월 (wol). Before we learn the months in Korean, you should first learn that Koreans use both Solar Calendar and Lunar Calendar, which is called Lunisolar Calendar.

Before learning about the pronunciation of Korean months, it’s important to know Korean numbers first, specifically, Sino-Korean numbers. There’s a separate blog for you about it if you want to learn it now.

To say a month of the year in Korean, precede the word 월 with the sino-Korean numbers for that month. See the example below:

January — 일(il) +월 (wol) = 일월

In South Korea, people celebrate different traditional holidays every month. So let’s start learning Korean months and some of the celebrations held every month.

January — 일월 (Irwol)

The first month of the year is January 일월 (Irwol). Since it is the first day of the year, this is when Koreans celebrate New Year’s Day (신정 Sinjeong) following the Solar Calendar. It’s not as grand as the Lunar New Year, but the family also celebrates this together.

February — 이월 (Iwol)

The second month of the year, February 이월 (Iwol), marks the celebration of one of the greatest and major events in Korean culture — the Lunar New Year 설날 (Seollal). February is also called the “love month” because Koreans also celebrate Valentine’s Day.

March — 삼월 (Samwol)

March 삼월 (Samwol) marks the beginning of the spring season in South Korea. This is also the month when Koreans celebrate Independence Movement Day (삼일절 Samiljeol). It is also the month when International Women’s Day is celebrated.

April — 사월 (Sawol)

Another one of the most important months in Korean culture is April 사월 (Sawol). This is the month when tourists mostly visit South Korea. The month of April is also intended to celebrate Arbor’s Day (식목일 sikmogil), which is a national celebration that aims to promote trees, tree-planting, forests, and gardening.

May — 오월 (Owol)

May 오월 — (Owol) is the month when Koreans celebrate Buddha’s Birthday (부처님 오신 날 Bucheonnim Osinnal). It marks the end of the spring season. Other important celebrations in Korean culture in the month of May are Labor Day (노동절 nodongjeol), Children’s Day (어린이날 eorininal), Parent’s Day (어버이 날 eobeoi nal), and Teacher’s Day.

June — 유월 (Yuwol)

June is the sixth month of the year. This month is the beginning of the summer season. Some of the major events that Korean people celebrate are Memorial Day (현충일 hyeonchungil), and Festival Gangneung Dano (강릉단오제 gangreungdanoje).

July — 칠월 (Chirwol)

The seventh month of the year is July (칠월 Chirwol). During this month, it’s still summer season. The major celebration that Koreans celebrate during this month is Constitution Day 제헌절 (Jeheonjeol).

August — 팔월 (Parwol)

August 팔월 (Parwol) is the month to celebrate the National Liberation Day (광복절Gwangbokjeol). It is also the end of the summer season in South Korea.

September — 구월 (Guwol)

September marks the beginning of the autumn season in South Korea. It is also one of the most significant months in Korean culture because this is when Korean Thanksgiving or Chuseok (추석) is celebrated. It is one of the biggest celebrations in South Korea that is important in their culture.

October — 시월 (Siwol)

October is still the autumn season in South Korea. During this month, National Foundation Day (개천절 Gaecheonjeol) is being celebrated. It is also a month where Koreans pay tribute to the creation and development of their writing system — Hangeul.

November — 십일월 (Shipirwol)

November (십일월 Shipirwol) is the end of the autumn season. During this month, people are starting to prepare for the winter season.

December — 십이월 (Shipiwol)

December (십이월 Shipiwol) is also a fun-filled month, especially for Korean Catholics. It is the beginning of the holiday season to celebrate Christmas. Expect South Korea to be filled with lights and Christmas music during this month. The end of the month of December marks New Year’s eve in Solar Calendar.

Learn Korean Pronunciation Of Months

Pronouncing months in Korean is easy to understand but there are things that you need to take note.

Because of Korean pronunciation restrictions, the months are pronounced slightly differently. This is due to the fact that the word for month (월 | wol) begins with a ㅇ. That means the bottom consonant of the previous syllable may modify the pronunciation. See the examples below:

유월 (Yuwol) — June
시월 (Siwol) — October

You may have noticed that the Korean words for June and October are slightly different from the original spelling of six 육 (yuk) and ten 십 (sib). This is due to the fact that the words for six and ten, (yuk) and (sib), are difficult to speak properly when coupled with the word (wol).

Other Way To Name Months In Korean

There is another way that Koreans use when naming months. This is usually used in written form. Because the Korean calendar is based on numbers, each month is frequently written in numeric form. See the table below:

Other Korean Words Related To Months

There are other Korean words that are related to months in Korean, like the word “year.” The word “year” can be expressed in two ways using the Korean language. The first one is 해 (hae) which is a native Korean word, while 년 (nyeon) is a Sino-Korean word.

Let’s widen your vocabulary more. Here are other words related Korean vocabulary related to months:

Make Every Month Worth It, Learn Korean Now!

Now that you have learned all the months in Korean, it’s to make the most of it. Why not start your first lesson with Ling App now?

Learning the Korean language is worthy of investment especially if you’re fond of the Korean culture. Ling App opens doors for language learners to learn Korean and other languages fun and conveniently. With the app’s well-developed features, it can help you achieve your language goals in record time. Whether it’s grammar, vocabulary, writing, listening, or speaking skills, Ling App can surely make language learning happen.

So, end your what-ifs and should’ve. Do not wait for more months to come without leveling up your Korean language skills. Learn with Ling App now!