Romanization in Korean: Insights from our Hangeul Day street interview

With the world becoming more interconnected, learning new languages is more important than ever. Korean is one of the languages gaining popularity, thanks in no small part to K-pop and Korean dramas. But as any learner will tell you, mastering another language comes with challenges. For Korean, one of the most significant hurdles is deciding whether to rely on romanization—the use of the Latin alphabet to represent Korean sounds—or to dive straight into learning Hangeul, the Korean writing system.

Hangeul Day, celebrated each year on October 9th to honor the invention and proclamation of this unique script, is the perfect time to talk about this. This year, we took the celebration to the streets to hear native Koreans' perspectives on romanization. We also talked about what it means for language learners.

Does romanization sound like Korean to native speakers?

When presented with Korean written in the Latinalphabet, reactionswere mixed. Somefiguredout the meaning, but mainly because they already spoke Korean. Despite that, many thought it was strange, resembling forced or random English. It was generally agreed that while some familiarity with English helped, the romanized Korean didn't truly capture the essence of the language's pronunciation and structure.

Interestingly, romanization isn't completely absent in Korean culture.It finds its place in light-hearted chat among friends or as a workaround for language restrictions on platforms like YouTube. It also serves a practical role in international documents like passports or in making Korean content more accessible through subtitles for foreign audiences.

Learning Korean: Romanization vs. Hangeul

When you consider the implications for language learners, the real debate starts. Should one start learning Korean using the English alphabet, or should one learn Hangeul right away? On this, Korean voices echoed a consistent theme: Romanization might offer an initial crutch, but it quickly becomes a hindrance rather than a help.

Many people said romanization might skew learners' pronunciation, causing them to make hard-to-correct mistakes. In contrast, Hangeul is known for its scientific and logical structure, which accurately represents Korean sounds. The consensus was clear: to truly grasp the language, one must engage with it in its native script.

Advice to Korean Learners: Embrace Hangeul

The interviewees' message to Korean learners worldwide was unanimous: embrace Hangeul. Although it may seem intimidating at first, you'll learn it pretty quickly. This lays a solid foundation for future fluency. Native Koreans say Hangeul isn't just a means of writing, it's part of their culture. This enables learners to understand and appreciate the culture more deeply.

Start Learning Hangeul with our Course and Book

If you already know Hangeul, that's great! Keep using it to improve your Korean skills. If you are just starting out with the Korean language and would like to start with the writing system, we have a very handy book and a easy-to-follow course for you.

Get your copy of Hangeul Master here. (Fast global shipping available)

Take our online Hangeul Course here!

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