Category archive: Language
It’s monsoon (장마) time! Guess that Means I’ve got Time to Update
Now that I’m stuck inside because it’s monsoon season (장마 as it’s known in Korean), it’s the perfect time to make an update. Over the past month or so, my life was utterly consumed by Korean class at Yonsei. Level 5 was ridiculously demanding, but I made some major improvements in my Korean. I started…
My Rough Guide to Learning Korean Pronunciation (Part Two: Those Tricksy Nasalization/ Nasal Assimilation/ 비음화 Rules)
The final consonant(s) of a syllable (받침) become nasalized when they are followed by a nasal consonant (ㄴ, ㅁ) at the start of the next syllable (aka a “head sound”). Whether the final 받침 becomes an ㄴ, ㅁ, or ㅇ all depends on the representational sound value of the 받침 (If you want more information…
My Rough Guide to Learning Korean Pronunciation (Part One: The Basics)
In general, the Korean script, 한글, is a favorite of linguists, logically constructed and relatively standard in its pronunciation. However, there are a number of exceptions, which can totally mess up foreigners. So, if you’re attempting to master the pronunciation of Korean as spoken in Seoul (I really can’t help you with regional dialects, because…
I’m a studying warrior, bringing Korean grammar and pronunciation to heel, mwahaha
For those not in the know, I’m going back to Yonsei’s Korean Language Institute (연세어학당!) to finish up the program I started last time I was in Korea. Class starts on Monday, and I’m super-pumped! In the week and a half leading up to the level test last Wednesday, I spent probably around 12 hours…
COCKROACH ALERT!
OMG! A COCKROACH JUST CRAWLED ON MY COMPUTER! TAIPEI, THIS IS WAR! EEEEEEEW! I squashed it, mercilessly with toilet paper, but now I’m plagued with the fear that a gigantic army of cockroaches is going to attack me in my sleep. It’s a revenge driven plot and I’m totally imagining the movie trailer, with a…
