ģė
! ģ ģ§ėģ“ģ? I hope everyone is doing okay during this time. I have come back with a post all about Korean honorifics because, well, letās be honest, theyāre really important when youāre learning Korean. Not only are they a part of the language, but a part of the culture as well. Alright, letās jump right in! ź°ģ!
First of all: What even is an honorific? An honorific, in short, is a syllable(s) in Korean You attach to the end of a personās name to show them respect. In English, the equivalent is « sirĀ Ā» or « maāamĀ Ā».
Second: When will I ever use an honorific? All. The. Time. Literally, every single day. I use them when talking with my teachers or even my friends. Why? Because honorifics can show one of two things: respect or endearment.
But SĆ f, I thought honorifics were only for people older than you
Thatās sort of correct. You use honorifics like « Mr/Ms/MrsĀ Ā» when talking to someone in your workplace/school, just like you use « dear/honeyĀ Ā» when talking to someone you adore. Honorifics arenāt just for people older than you, and they arenāt just for strangers.
With all that being said, letās start talking about formal honorifics (because yes, there are also informal ones)!
This is the most obvious one for most learners. Youāll hear this used practically everywhere. When added to a name, it means « Mr/Mrs/MissĀ Ā». Itās a very common honorific. Itās a go-to for anyone who is at an equal social standing as you, even if you donāt know them. Youāll add ģØ to then end of someoneās first name.
Example: ģ“미ė ģØ (Ms. Lee Mi-rae)
Or more casual: 미ė ģØ (Ms. Mi-rae)
Note that you shouldnāt attach it to someoneās surname (as in ģ“ ģØ) because this is seen as rude, disrespectful, and inappropriate.
I wasnāt very sure about adding these ones into the post just because they arenāt super common anymore and they are more used by the older generations, but, itās good to include these because you should stray away from them.
źµ° is used as a term for a younger, unmarried male, and ģ is used for a younger, unmarried female. You would typically hear these at formal events like weddings.
The difference between źµ°/ģ and ģØ is that you can attach źµ°/ģ either after a personās first name or surname. It isnāt seen as rude if you attach źµ°/ģ after the surname, unlike ģØ.
Note that these are used by older generations and that the younger generations now see these as condescending and the listener will think you want them to be submissive and assume to gender roles. These two are a no-no so itās best to stay away from them.
Going to be honest, this one is one of my favourite honorifics (donāt ask why because I even donāt know). So, if you wanna go the extra mile with respect, definitely use ė. ė is used when talking to someone with a profession or skill/status in something. ė is also a step up from ģØ.
Examples: ģ ģė (teacher), ėŖ©ģ¬ė (pastor)
ķ and ėė are used if you are a male and you are speaking to someone you are close to taht is older than you. ķ if the older person is a male, and ėė if the older person is a female
Examples: ģ! ķģ! ģ¬źø°ģģ! (Ah! Hyung-ah! Over here!) ėėė ģ ė
ģ ģ리ķģ“ģ. (*Nuna* cooked dinner.
ģ¤ė¹ and ģøė are used if you are a female and you are speaking to someone you are close to that is older than you. ģ¤ė¹ if thĆ© the other person is a male, and ģøė if the other person is a female.
Examples: ģ¤ė¹ ģ ģ“ė ź² ėģź¹? (*Oppa* why did this happen?) ģøė, ģ¼ķķź³ ź° ź±°ģģ? (*Eonnie* are you going to go shopping?)
Thatās it for todayās lesson! I hope everyone found these super useful! If anyone ever needs some practice with reading and understanding Korean, you can send in an ask or send me a message! I get back to people as fast as I can. Thank you everyone! Iāll see you in the next post! ģė
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