UNIT 1 The Alphabet
UNIT 1 The Alphabet
UNIT 1 The Alphabet
When first introduced by King Sejong in 1446, hangeul had 28 letters of which only 24 are
in use today. The 10 basic vowels and 14 single consonants of hangeul expand to 21 vowels and 19
consonants for a total of 40 letters in combination. The following are the sound values and names
of each letter.
a. Consonants: 19 Letters
Single Consonant: 14 letters
Hangeul Letter Sound Value Name of letter Example
ㄱ [g/k] 기역 [gi-yeok] goat
ㅇ [*/-ng] 이응 [i-eung] *
b. Vowels: 21 letters
Single Vowel: 10 letters
Hangeul Letter Sound Value Name of letter Example
ㅏ [a] 아 [a] father
ㅣ [i] 이[ i] bee
*Vowels by themselves must always be preceded by “o” (silent), because Korean
words always begin with a consonant.
I. ㄱ + ㅏ ㄱ [g]
가 [ga] + 고 [go]
[g] [a] ㅗ [o]
II. ㄱ + ㅏ ㄱ [g]
[g] [a] +
+ 각 [gak] ㅗ [o] 곳 [got]
ㄱ +
[k] * ㅅ [t] *
*At the end of a word, ㄱ is pronounced as [k], ㅅ is pronounced as [t], when the word is
not followed by another word.
III. ㄱ + ㅏ ㄱ [g]
[g] [a] +
+ 값 [gap] ㅗ [o] 곬[gol]
ㅂ ㅅ +
[p] [Ø] * ㄹ ㅅ
[l] [Ø] *
*When the double consonants ㅂㅅㄹㅅ are used as final consonants and are followed by
ㄱ,ㄷ,ㅂ,ㅅ or ㅈ, they are pronounced as single finals [p], and the ㅅ is not pronounced.
In Korean, the 2nd and 3rd consonants in a word are referred to as 받침 must
always be 1 or 2 consonants and all fall into eight pronunciation groups.
1. ㄱ, ㅋ and ㄲ are pronounced as [k], when the word is not followed by another
vowel.
Example: [sok] inside [han-guk] Korea
[bu-eok] kitchen [bak ]outside
2. ㄴ is pronounced as [n]. This letter sound does not change, whatever the position.
Example: [nun] eye,snow [pyeon-ji] letter
[an-gae] fog [su-geon] towel
3. ㅅ,ㅈ,ㅊ,ㅌ and ㅆ are pronounced as [t], when the word is not followed by another
vowel.
Example: [got] soon [sut-ga-rak] spoon
[bit] comb [ot] clothing
[nat] daytime [it-dda] to forget
[bit] light [ggot] flower
[mit] bottom [ggeut] end
[it-dda] to have
4. ㄹ is pronounced as [t], when the word ends with “ㄹ”
Example: [da] moon [ga-eul] autumn
[eol-gul] face [ddal-gi] strawberry
And if a word ends with “ㄹ” and is followed by another “ㄹ”, you pronounce both [l].
Example: [dal-la-yo] (it) is different
[mol-la-yo] (I) do not know
5. ㅁ is pronounced as [m]. This letter sound does not change, whatever the position.
Example: [bom] spring [jeom-sim] lunch
[bam] night, chestnut [ma-eum] heart
[no-ta] to put
[jo-ta] to be good
[jo-chi]
[no-chi]
Part A (1-3)
When the first vowel in a word is “ㅏ,ㅑ,ㅓ,ㅕorㅣ” the word is constructed by having
the letters arranged horizontally. (c-consonant: v-vowel).
Part B (4-6)
When the final vowel in the word is “ ㅗ, ㅛ, ㅜ, ㅠ, ㄱ or ㅡ” the word is constructed
by having the letters arranged vertically.
a. Consonants: 19 letters
The fourteen consonants are shown below in Korean alphabetical order with
the direction and sequence of the strokes. The romanized letters are their
sound value.
Table
b. Vowels: 21 letters
There are a total of twenty-one different vowel-syllables. In the table below, the
vowels are listed in Korean alphabetical order.
Tbale
EXERCISES
1. Write the fourteen consonants in the
2. Fill in the boxes alphabetically
3. Write the ten vowels in the
4. Please fill in the gaps in alphabetical order
5. Write the words in alphabetical order.
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