McCune–Reischauer explained
McCune–Reischauer romanization is one of the two most widely used Korean-language romanization systems. It was created in 1937 and the ALA-LC variant based on it is currently used for standard romanization library catalogs in North America.[1]
The system was first published in 1939 by George M. McCune and Edwin O. Reischauer.[2] [3] With a few exceptions, it does not attempt to transliterate Korean hangul but rather represents the phonetic pronunciation.[4]
A variant of McCune–Reischauer is still used as the official system in North Korea.[5] South Korea formerly used another variant of McCune–Reischauer as its official system between 1984 and 2000, but replaced it with the Revised Romanization of Korean in 2000.
Characteristics and usage
Under the McCune–Reischauer system, aspirated consonants like,, and are distinguished by apostrophes from unaspirated ones. The apostrophe is also used to distinguish Korean: ㄴㄱ from Korean: ㅇㅇ: Korean: 연구 is transcribed as while Korean: 영어 is .
The breve is used to differentiate vowels in Korean: Korean: ㅜ is spelled, Korean: ㅡ is, Korean: ㅗ is and Korean: ㅓ is .
Criticism
Because of the dual use of apostrophes—the more common being for syllabic boundaries—it can be ambiguous for persons unfamiliar with McCune–Reischauer as to how a romanized Korean word is pronounced. For example, Korean: 뒤차기 →, which consists of the syllables, and).
In the early days of the Internet, the apostrophe and breve were even omitted altogether for both technical and practical reasons, which made it impossible to differentiate the aspirated consonants,, and from the unaspirated consonants,, and, Korean: ㄴㄱ from Korean: ㅇㅇ, and the vowels Korean: ㅜ and Korean: ㅡ as well as Korean: ㅗ from Korean: ㅓ. As a result, the South Korean government adopted a revised system of romanization in 2000.[6] However, Korean critics claimed that the Revised System fails to represent Korean: ㅓ and Korean: ㅡ in a way that is easily recognizable and misrepresents the way that the unaspirated consonants are actually pronounced.
Regardless of the official adoption of the new system in South Korea, North Korea continues to use a version of McCune–Reischauer.
Guide
This is a simplified guide for the McCune–Reischauer system.
Vowels
| Hangul | Korean: ㅏ | Korean: ㅐ | Korean: ㅑ | Korean: ㅒ | Korean: ㅓ | Korean: ㅔ | Korean: ㅕ | Korean: ㅖ | Korean: ㅗ | Korean: ㅘ | Korean: ㅙ | Korean: ㅚ | Korean: ㅛ | Korean: ㅜ | Korean: ㅝ | Korean: ㅞ | Korean: ㅟ | Korean: ㅠ | Korean: ㅡ | Korean: ㅢ | ㅣ |
|---|
| Romanization | a | ae | ya | yae | ŏ | e | yŏ | ye | o | wa | wae | oe | yo | u | wŏ | we | wi | yu | ŭ | ŭi | i | |
|---|
Consonants
| Hangul | Korean: ㄱ | Korean: ㄲ | Korean: ㄴ | Korean: ㄷ | Korean: ㄸ | Korean: ㄹ | Korean: ㅁ | Korean: ㅂ | Korean: ㅃ | Korean: ㅅ | Korean: ㅆ | Korean: ㅇ | Korean: ㅈ | Korean: ㅉ | Korean: ㅊ | Korean: ㅋ | Korean: ㅌ | Korean: ㅍ | Korean: ㅎ |
|---|
| Romanization | Initial | k | kk | n | t | tt | r | m | p | pp | s | ss | – | ch | tch | ch | k | t | p | h |
|---|
| Final | k | – | l | – | t | t | ng | t | – | t | k | t | p | – | |
|---|
- The heterogeneous consonant digraphs (Korean: ㄳ, ㄵ, ㄶ, ㄺ, ㄻ, ㄼ, ㄽ, ㄾ, ㄿ, ㅀ, ㅄ) exist only as finals and are transcribed by their actual pronunciation.
Final consonant of the previous syllable + initial consonant of the next syllable | Initial |
|---|
| Korean: ㅇ1 | Korean: ㄱ
k | Korean: ㄴ
n | Korean: ㄷ
t | Korean: ㄹ
(r) | Korean: ㅁ
m | Korean: ㅂ
p | Korean: ㅅ2
s | Korean: ㅈ
ch | Korean: ㅊ
ch | Korean: ㅋ
k | Korean: ㅌ
t | Korean: ㅍ
p | Korean: ㅎ
h |
|---|
| Final | (vowel)3 | – | g | n | d | r | m | b | s | j | ch | k | t | p | h |
|---|
| Korean: ㄱ k | g | kk | ngn | kt | ngn | ngm | kp | ks | kch | kch | kk | kt | kp | kh |
|---|
| Korean: ㄴ n | n | n'g | nn | nd | ll/nn | nm | nb | ns | nj | nch | nk | nt | np | nh |
|---|
| Korean: ㄷ t | d | tk | nn | tt | nn | nm | tp | ss | tch | tch | tk | tt | tp | th |
|---|
| Korean: ㄹ l | r | lg | ll | ld4 | ll | lm | lb | ls | lj4 | lch | lk | lt | lp | rh |
|---|
| Korean: ㅁ m | m | mg | mn | md | mn | mm | mb | ms | mj | mch | mk | mt | mp | mh |
|---|
| Korean: ㅂ p | b | pk | mn | pt | mn | mm | pp | ps | pch | pch | pk | pt | pp | ph |
|---|
| Korean: ㅇ ng | ng | ngg | ngn | ngd | ngn | ngm | ngb | ngs | ngj | ngch | ngk | ngt | ngp | ngh | |
|---|
- Korean: ㅇ is an initial consonant before a vowel to indicate the absence of sound.
- Korean: 쉬 is romanized .
- When the previous syllable ends in a vowel (for example, Korean: 아주 is romanized, not achu).
- In Sino-Korean words, lt and lch, respectively.
For Korean: ㄱ, Korean: ㄷ, Korean: ㅂ, and Korean: ㅈ, the letters g, d, b, or j are used if voiced, k, t, p, or ch otherwise. Pronunciations such as those take precedence over the rules in the table above.
Examples
- Voiceless/voiced consonants
- Korean: 가구
- Korean: 등대
- Korean: 반복
- Korean: 주장
- The initial consonant Korean: ㅇ is disregarded in romanization, since it is only used in order to indicate the absence of sound.
- Korean: 국어 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|구거}}]) (not kukŏ)
- Korean: 믿음 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|미듬}}]) (not mitŭm)
- Korean: 법인 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|버빈}}]) (not pŏpin)
- Korean: 촬영 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|촤령}}]) (not ch'walyŏng)
- r vs. l
- r
- Between two vowels: Korean: 가로, Korean: 필요
- Before initial Korean: ㅎ : Korean: 발해, 실험
- l
- Before a consonant (except before initial Korean: ㅎ), or at the end of a word: Korean: 날개, Korean: 구별, Korean: 결말
- Korean: ㄹㄹ is written as ll: Korean: 빨리, Korean: 저절로
- Consonant assimilations
- Korean: 독립 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|동닙}}])
- Korean: 법률 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|범뉼}}])
- Korean: 않다 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|안타}}])
- Korean: 맞히다 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|마치다}}])
- Palatalizations
- Korean: 미닫이 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|미다지}}])
- Korean: 같이 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|가치}}])
- Korean: 굳히다 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|구치다}}])
Exceptions that do not predict pronunciation
- The sequences Korean: -ㄱㅎ-, Korean: -ㄷㅎ- (only when palatalization does not occur)/Korean: -ㅅㅎ-, and Korean: -ㅂㅎ- are written as kh, th, and ph, respectively, even though they are pronounced the same as Korean: ㅋ, Korean: ㅌ, and Korean: ㅍ .
- Korean: 속히 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|소키}}])
- Korean: 못하다 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|모타다}}])
- Korean: 곱하기 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|고파기}}])
- When a plain consonant (Korean: ㄱ, Korean: ㄷ, Korean: ㅂ, Korean: ㅅ, or Korean: ㅈ) is pronounced as a tensed consonant (Korean: ㄲ, Korean: ㄸ, Korean: ㅃ, Korean: ㅆ, or Korean: ㅉ) in the middle of a word, it is written as k, t, p, s, or ch, respectively, even though it is pronounced the same as Korean: ㄲ, Korean: ㄸ, Korean: ㅃ, Korean: ㅆ, or Korean: ㅉ .
- Korean: 태권도 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|태꿘도}}]) (cf. Korean: 대궐 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|대궐}}]))
- Korean: 손등 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|손뜽}}]) (cf. Korean: 전등 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|전등}}]))
- Korean: 문법 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|문뻡}}]) (cf. Korean: 맨발 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|맨발}}]))
- Korean: 국수 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|국쑤}}])
- Korean: 한자 (Korean: 漢字, pronounced [{{lang|ko|한짜}}]) (cf. Korean: 환자 (pronounced [{{lang|ko|환자}}]))
Personal names
The rules stated above are also applied in personal names, except between a surname and a given name. A surname and a given name are separated by a space, but multiple syllables within a surname or within a given name are joined without hyphens or spaces.
The original 1939 paper states the following:
The original paper also gives McCune–Reischauer romanizations for a number of other personal names:
- Footnotes on page 1: (Korean: 최현배), (Korean: 정인섭), (Korean: 김선기)
- Footnotes on page 4: (崔南善 (Korean: 최남선))
- Footnotes on page 20: (金龍雲 (Korean: 김용운)), (吳世 (Korean: 오세준))
Variants
North Korean variant
See main article: Romanization of Korean (North). A variant of McCune–Reischauer is currently in official use in North Korea. The following are the differences between the original McCune–Reischauer and the North Korean variant:
- Aspirated consonants are represented by adding an h instead of an apostrophe.
- However, Korean: ㅊ is transcribed as ch, not chh.
- Korean: ㅈ is transcribed as j even when it is voiceless.
- Korean: ㅉ is transcribed as jj instead of tch.
- Korean: ㄹㄹ is transcribed as lr instead of ll.
- Korean: ㄹㅎ is transcribed as lh instead of rh.
- When Korean: ㄹ is pronounced as Korean: ㄴ, it is still transcribed as r instead of n.
- Korean: ㄴㄱ and Korean: ㅇㅇ are differentiated by a hyphen.
- But when ng is followed by y or w, a hyphen is not used, like the original system.
- In personal names, each syllable in a Sino-Korean given name is separated by a space with the first letter of each syllable capitalized (e.g. Korean: 안복철 An Pok Chŏl). Syllables in a native Korean name are joined without syllabic division (e.g. Korean: 김꽃분이 Kim KKotpuni).
- However, it is not really possible to follow this rule because a certain name written in hangul can be a native Korean name, or a Sino-Korean name, or even both. For example, Korean: [[Bo-ram (name)|보람]] cannot only be a native Korean name,[7] but can also be a Sino-Korean name (e.g. 寶濫).[8] In some cases, parents intend a dual meaning: both the meaning from a native Korean word and the meaning from hanja.
The following table illustrates the differences above.
| Hangul | McCune–Reischauer | North Korean variant | Meaning |
|---|
| Korean: 편지 | | phyŏnji | letter (message) |
| Korean: 주체 | | Juche | Juche |
| Korean: 안쪽 | | anjjok | inside |
| Korean: 빨리 | | ppalri | quickly |
| Korean: 발해 | | Palhae | Balhae |
| Korean: 목란 | | mongran | Magnolia sieboldii |
| Korean: 연구 | | yŏn-gu | research, study |
| Korean: 영어 | | yŏng-ŏ | English language |
| Korean: 안복철 | | An Pok Chŏl | personal name (surname Korean: 안, given name Korean: 복철) |
| 렬도 | | ryŏldo | archipelago | |
South Korean variant
A variant of McCune–Reischauer[9] [10] was in official use in South Korea from 1984 to 2000. The following are the differences between the original McCune–Reischauer and the South Korean variant:
- Korean: 시 was written as shi instead of the original system's si. When Korean: ㅅ is followed by Korean: ㅣ, it is realized as the pronounced as /[ɕ]/ sound (similar to the English pronounced as /[ʃ]/ sound (sh as in show)) instead of the normal pronounced as /[s]/ sound. The original system deploys sh only in the combination Korean: 쉬, as shwi.
- Korean: ㅝ was written as wo instead of the original system's wŏ in this variant. Because the diphthong w (Korean: ㅗ or Korean: ㅜ as a semivowel) + o (Korean: ㅗ) does not exist in Korean phonology, the South Korean government omitted a breve in wŏ.
- Hyphens were used to distinguish between Korean: ㄴㄱ and Korean: ㅇㅇ, between Korean: ㅏ에 and Korean: ㅐ, and between Korean: ㅗ에 and Korean: ㅚ in this variant system, instead of the apostrophes and ë in the original version. Therefore, apostrophes were used only for aspiration marks and ë was not used in the South Korean system.
- Korean: ㄹㅎ was written as lh instead of rh.
- Assimilation-induced aspiration by an initial Korean: ㅎ is indicated. Korean: ㄱㅎ is written as kh in the original McCune–Reischauer system and as k in the South Korean variant.
- In personal names, each syllable in a given name was separated by a hyphen. The consonants Korean: ㄱ, Korean: ㄷ, Korean: ㅂ, and Korean: ㅈ right after a hyphen are written as k, t, p, and ch, respectively, even when they are voiced (e.g. Korean: 남궁동자 Namgung Tong-cha). But a hyphen can be omitted in non-Sino-Korean names (e.g. Korean: 한하나 Han Hana).
- However, it is not really possible to follow this rule. See the
- North Korean variant
section above.
The following table illustrates the differences above.
| Hangul | McCune–Reischauer | South Korean variant | Meaning |
|---|
| Korean: 시장 | | shijang | market |
| Korean: 쉽다 | | swipta | easy |
| Korean: 소원 | | sowon | wish, hope |
| Korean: 연구 | | yŏn-gu | research, study |
| Korean: 영어 | | yŏng-ŏ | English language |
| Korean: 회사에서 | | hoesa-esŏ | at a company |
| Korean: 차고에 | | ch'ago-e | in a garage |
| Korean: 발해 | | Palhae | Balhae |
| Korean: 직할시 | | chik'alshi | directly governed city[11] |
| Korean: 못하다 | | mot'ada | to be poor at |
| Korean: 곱하기 | | kop'agi | multiplication |
| Korean: 남궁동자 | | Namgung Tong-cha | personal name (surname Korean: 남궁, given name Korean: 동자) | |
ALA-LC variant
The ALA-LC romanization of Korean[12] is based on but deviates from McCune–Reischauer.
- Unlike the original McCune–Reischauer, it addresses word division in seven pages of detail.
- A postposition (or particle) is separated from its preceding word, even though the original McCune–Reischauer paper explicitly states that this should not be done.[13]
- /Korean: ㄷ/ + /Korean: ㅆ/ is written as ts instead of ss.
- For personal names:
- The surname Korean: 이 is written as Yi instead of I.
- A hyphen is inserted between the syllables of a two-syllable given name only when it is preceded by a surname, with the sound change between the syllables indicated. The original McCune–Reischauer paper explicitly states that this also should not be done.[14]
- However, if a given name is three syllables long or is of non-Sino-Korean origin, the syllables are joined without syllabic division (e.g. Korean: 신사임당 Sin Saimdang, Korean: 김삿갓 Kim Satkat).
The following table illustrates the differences above.
| Hangul | McCune–Reischauer | ALA-LC variant | Meaning |
|---|
| Korean: 꽃이 | | kkot i | flower + (subject marker) |
| Korean: 굳세다 | | kutseda | strong, firm |
| Korean: 이석민 | | Yi Sŏng-min | personal name (surname Korean: 이, given name Korean: 석민) | |
Other systems
A third system, the Yale romanization system, which is a transliteration system, exists but is used only in academic literature, especially in linguistics.
The Kontsevich system, based on the earlier Kholodovich system, is used for transliterating Korean into the Cyrillic script. Like McCune–Reischauer romanization it attempts to represent the pronunciation of a word, rather than provide letter-to-letter correspondence.
See also
References
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: McCune-Reischauer Romanization. University of Chicago.
- Lee. Sang-il. On Korean Romanization. The Korean Language in America. 8. 2003. 407–421. via JSTOR. 42922825.
- Book: Tables of the McCune-Reischauer System for the Romanization of Korean. 1961. Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Korea Branch. 121.
- Book: Song, Jae Jung. The Korean Language: Structure, Use and Context. 87. Routledge. 2006. 9781134335893.
- Web site: Working Paper No. 46 . 2018-03-17 . UNGEGN.
- Web site: Romanization of Korean. July 2000. Korea.net. Ministry of Culture & Tourism. 9 May 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20070916025652/http://www.korea.net/korea/kor_loca.asp?code=A020303 . 16 September 2007.
- Web site: 김보람(金보람). 한국법조인대관. List of Legal Professionals in Korea. 법률신문 (The Law Times). 2023-08-15. ko.
- Web site: 강보람(姜寶濫). 한국법조인대관. List of Legal Professionals in Korea. 법률신문 (The Law Times). 2023-08-15. ko.
- Web site: . 국어 로마자 표기법 . Romanization of Korean . Korean-language Life (국어생활) . October 1984 . ko.
- Web site: Republic of Korea . Report on the State of Standardization of Geographical Names and Romanization in Korea . United Nations Economic and Social Council . 1987-08-25 .
- Korean: 직할시 (Korean: 直轄市; "a directly governed city"; jikhalsi in the Revised Romanization) is one of a former administrative divisions in South Korea, and one of a present administrative divisions of North Korea. In 1995, it was replaced by Korean: 광역시 (Korean: 廣域市; gwangyeoksi; "metropolitan city") in South Korea.
- Web site: ALA-LC Romanization Tables . Library of Congress.
"The nouns, likewise, should be written together with their postpositions, including those called case endings, not separately as in Japanese, because phonetically the two are so merged that it would often be difficult and misleading to attempt to divide them."
"A simple example, the word Silla, will help to clarify the point. In Chinese, hsin 新 plus lo 羅 are pronounced Hsin-lo but in Korea, sin 新 plus na (la) 羅 are pronounced Silla. To hyphenate this name as Sil-la would imply that it is composed of two parts which individually are sil and la, which is obviously misleading."
