That’s all you need – you are now able to read and write simple words. Let’s get serious and test your newly acquired skills.
We’re done!
To make it a bit easier for you, we break the word Bibimbap into syllables first. Grab a letter and drag and drop it on the syllables to see if you’re right:
There are six possible combinations:
Horizontal, vertical and mixed. When you apply letters in those boxes it looks like this:
Hangul letters are grouped into syllabic blocks, vertically and horizontally. As it combines the features of alphabetic and syllabic writing systems, Hangul has been described as an “alphabetic syllabary” by some linguists.
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Consonant
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Vowel
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Final consonant
Building syllables
Vowels are either horizontal or vertical bars, so it’s easy to distinguish them from consonants:
The Korean alphabet consists of 14 consonants and 10 vowels – so 24 characters in total. Some consonants have subforms (like the example in the first chapter) that are not listed as separate characters in the Hangul alphabet.
Let’s get started with the consonants:
The alphabet
ya like in yawn
i like in meet
And another example for vowels:
a like in hah
g like in go
k like in khaki
g like in gone
Some linguists consider Hangul the most logical writing system in the world, let’s start!
It’s most important to emphasize each letter right, Hangul makes this one easy for you. By adding strokes or repeating the original shape Hangul expresses if a letter is emphasized silent, stressed or strong. Here is an example how it works for consonantes:
→ Haneuls Guide to Hangul
Sounds and tones
Hangul is the official writing system of South and North Korean. The alphabet has been used to write the Korean language since its creation in the 15th century during the Joseon dynasty under Sejong the Great (1397–1450).
He decided to establish a writing system much simpler and easier to understand than the previously used chinese characters.
Korea’s writing system
Learning Hangul
Korean script in 15 minutes
