Korean Language Lesson - Unit 2

Unit 2 - Learning Objectives
(제2권 - 학습 목표)


 * Introduction of Final Consonant Effects
 * Using Korea’s two different number systems
 * Expressing numbers, times, dates and seasons
 * Using the markers 의 [UI] and 에 [E], understanding their grammatical significance
 * Using the verbs 있다 / 없다 [ITTDA/OEPDA] to express something is there/isn’t there.

Final Consonant Effects
(음절의 끝소리 규칙)

Now you understand how to read the Korean alphabet and build character blocks, the next challenge is reading the character blocks when they are connected with other character blocks. Often in Korean the final consonant in a character block will affect the pronunciation of the following character block. In this unit we will introduce some common cases of this, however keep in mind there are many more and we will introduce more of them as you progress.

Case of ‘ㅇ’: We introduced this in Unit 1, when ‘ㅇ’ is the first character in the next character block it takes on the sound of the final consonant in the previous character block

맞아 → [마자 (MA JA)] → ‘ㅈ’ replaces ‘ㅇ’ when pronounced 한국어 → [한구거 (HAN GU GEO)] → ‘ㄱ’ replaces ‘ㅇ’ when pronounced

Case of 2 Final Consonants: Some character blocks end with 2 final consonants, in this case the second consonant either caps or doubles the first consonant in the next character block (see Unit 1 for explanation of doubled/capped consonants) or if the next character block starts with ‘ㅇ’ then it simply replaces it. See below for some examples.

Numbers & Time
번호와 시간

NUMBERS
Korean has two different counting systems, one based on its own native Korean numbers and the other based on the Chinese characters (Sino Korean numbers). Both are used often and all that must be really understood is when to use each one. As a general rule of thumb the native Korean numbers are used for things you can count, such as objects and people, on the other hand the Sino Korean numbers are used for things you can measure such as height and length. Of course there are exceptions, one in particular is time which uses native Korean numbers to count the hours and Sino Korean numbers to count the minutes and seconds. In the end you will have to learn of by heart which number system is appropriate for what you are expressing. The table below briefly illustrates each number system.

To construct long Korean numbers it is quite simple, it is a case of using scalars and magnitudes. For example if you wish to say the number 300 you need to use the scalar 3 [삼 (SAM)] multiplied with magnitude 100 [백 (BAEK)] in order to make 300 [삼백 (SAM BAEK)]. To take it a step further if you wish to make more complex numbers, pronounce each part of the number in order of decreasing magnitude, so 371 is [삼백칠십일 (SAM BAEK CHIL SHI BIL) Note ‘ㅂ’ replaces ‘ㅇ’ at the end].

The last thing to be careful of is selecting magnitudes. Three instances which you should be aware of are that in native Korean numbers there are specially designed words for 10, 20, 30,… up to 90, just like there is in English however in the Sino Korean numbers this is not the case and you must use the scalar-magnitude system to make these numbers. Secondly Sino Korean numbers are usually used to say numbers larger than 100. Lastly both number sets have no new magnitudes to choose from between 10,000 [만 (MAN)] and 100,000,000 [억 (EOK)]. Therefore in order to pronounce a number like 240,000 you need to first create the number 24 as your scalar and then use 10,000 as your magnitude, so 240,000 is [이십사만 (I SHIP SA MAN)]. This can take a little time to get used to. Here are some examples:

67 → [육십칠 (YUK SHIP CHIL)] / [예순일곱 (YAE SU NIL GOP) ‘ㄴ’ replaces ‘ㅇ’] 3,580 → [삼천오백팔십 (SAM O CHEON O BAEK PAL SHIP)] 40,203 → [사만이백삼 (SA MAN I SHIP SAM)]

TIME
Now we can use numbers we can now state the time in Korean just by learning a few words.

년 [NYEON] → Year 월 [WOL] → Month 일 [IL] → Day 시[SHI] → Hour 분 [BUN] → Minute 반 [BAN] → Half 초 [CHO] → Second

The native Korean numbers are used for hours, whereas the Sino Korean numbers are used for minutes and seconds. Simply add each counter to the number it is counting. Note that 하나 becomes 한 and 둘 becomes 두 when counting in Korean, here are some examples:

1:15 → 한 시 십오분  Year 2011 → 이천십일년 11:34 → 열한시 삼십사분 17th of March → 삼월 십칠일 2:30 → 두시 반 49 seconds → 49초

Lastly it is handy to also know the days of the week, seasons and periods of the day to be more specific with time

Grammar
(문법)

===의 – Possession Marker ===

The marker 의 is used to show a connection between 2 nouns, such that one noun owns the other or is somehow connected to it. Effectively it makes the first noun an adjective describing the second noun via relationship.

스티브의 펜입니다. → It’s Steve’s pen. 한국의 드라마입니다. → It’s a Korean drama.

===에 – Location/Time Marker ===

The marker 에 is most commonly used to show location or time (it has many alternative uses as well).

언제 학교에 갈겁니까? → What time will you go to school? 8시반에 갈겁니다. → I will go at 8:30.

===있다 & 없다 – Is/Isn’t there ===

있다 and 없다 are the respective words for saying something is or isn’t there, i.e. to describe if something is present or not. Here we will introduce the polite forms of the words.

IS/ARE THERE: 있다 (basic form) → 있습니다 (formal form) ISN’T/AREN’T THERE: 없다 (basic form) → 없습니다 (formal form)

Once again to produce a question using either of the verbs in formal form, we simply drop the 다 and replace it with 까 and add a question mark.

Q: 학교에 수영장이 있습니까? → Is there a swimming pool at school? YES: 네, 있습니다. → Yes, there is. NO: 아니요, 학교에 없습니다. → No, there isn’t.

Q: 한국에 있습니까? → Are you in South Korea? YES: 네, 있습니다. → Yes, I am in South Korea. NO: 아니요, 한국에 없습니다. → No, I am not in South Korea.

Notice we used the marker 에 after the words describing locations. 있다/없다 are used in many grammatical constructs, in particular they are often used to express whether you have something in your possession.

저는 책이 있습니다 → I have a book. 선생님은 펜이 없습니다. → The teacher doesn’t have a pen.

Lastly note that the markers 는/은 mark the subject and the markers 가/이 mark the object in the above examples.

Culture Challenge!
(문화 도전!)

1. What do you think this Korean emoticon means? Can you think of alternative variations?

ㅜ.ㅠ

2. Why is the 11/11 an significant date in Korea? Can you see a connection between the date and the nature of the occasion? (Hint: See picture below)