Embassy of the Republic of Korea to Norway

The secret language of Korea

Anna Kopperud Andersen

Languages are constantly changing and evolving to meet the user's needs. Languages are influenced by time, experience and trends. Slang is a part of this constant change. Slang denotes short language, and it's used in informal conversations. Slang is often a shorter way to say a word or a phrase. Slang can also be an informal term that conveys a meaning other than its literal meaning. Koreans tend to shorten words or phrases, similar to any other language, but in a more extreme way - to the point that it almost becomes a secret language. 

Korean words consist of letters from the Korean alphabet (한글) grouped into boxes based on syllables. Most Korean words consist of two or three syllables. Koreans usually use the first syllable of a word and then combine it with the first syllable of another word to make it shorter and easier to say (or write). Sometimes, Korean slang may look and sound like existing words, because many words have similar or identical syllables. Thus, you stumble upon a new word you haven’t heard before only to discover that it is comprised of a word that you already know. The twist is that it only consists of few of the syllables of the word you already know. 

Here are a few examples of shortening words and phrases: 

비번 (bi-beon) - Password

This is the slang version of the word 비밀 번호 (bi-mil beon-ho) meaning secret and number. Therefore to shorten the word they have taken the first syllable for secret (비) and put it together with the first syllable for number (번) to create a shorter word. 

갑분싸 (gap-bun-ssa) - Sudden awkward atmosphere

This word is short for 갑자기 분위기가 싸해진다 (gap-ja-gi bun-ui-gi-ga ssa-hae-jin-da) meaning the atmosphere or mood suddenly becomes cold or awkward after someone has said or done something.      

소확행 (so-hwak-haeng) - Small but certain happiness 

This expression is a contraction of the words 소소하지만 확실한 행복 (so-so-ha-ji-man hwak-sil-han haeng-bok). Directly translated, this expression means a ‘small but certain happiness’. In a fast paced and busy life, it’s important to find something in your daily life that will give you a moment of happiness. Something small and simple can be the answer to this.  

In addition to these examples of shortening words for the purpose of ease, we also have to take a small look at slang for expressing emotions and emphasizing something. Here are three examples of slang for expressing emotions that are pretty self explanatory, while the three examples of emphasizing something will need some more explanation.

Slang for expressing emotions:

헐 (heol) - Oh my gosh 

대박 (dae-bak) - Awesome

화이팅 (hwa-i-ting) - You can do it! 

Slang to emphasizing something:

강추 (gang-chu) - Strong recommendation

This word combines the verb 강하다 (gang-ha-da) meaning to be strong and the verb 추천하다 (chu-cheon-ha-da) which means to recommend. This expression is often used to strongly recommend different products or places posted online - a super recommendation.     

꿀잼 (ggul-jaem) - Really fun 

꿀 (ggul) means honey, and 잼 is short for 재미있다 (jae-mi-it-da) which means interesting or fun. Putting these two together makes the word ‘honey fun’ and it’s used to express something that is really fun or interesting. 

노잼 (no-jaem) - Boring 

When you want to express the opposite you can just change the first syllable to 노 (no) and the word then directly translated to no fun. 

As a foreign learner, slang is either one of the first things you pick up or the last things you learn. Either way it can be frustrating because it’s constantly changing – and therefore temporary. When you feel you have finally gotten the hang of using the word it may not be trendy anymore and you may feel uncool for using non-trendy slang. It can almost be an identity marker that shows if you are keeping up with the trends or if you are a bit old fashioned. Keep in mind that it is difficult for Koreans to keep up with all of it too. Given that many words have the same first syllable you sometimes just have to guess what the word means. Slang is fun until you really don’t have a clue, but it is pretty cool to be able to participate in the use of this secret language. 

As a small bonus you can also have a look at this picture with examples of slang to use when texting. Only two single letters are needed.

Sources 

Slang, Urban dictionary, Retrieved August 2021, from https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Slang 

Korean Slang – 101 Popular Words & Phrases in 2021, 90 day Korean, Retrieved August 2021, from https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-slang/ 

Want to Learn These 20 Korean Slang Words? “Call!”, Fluentu, Retrieved August 2021, from https://www.fluentu.com/blog/korean/korean-slang/

갑분싸, Naver, Retrieved August 2021, from  https://terms.naver.com/entry.naver?docId=5145832&cid=43667&categoryId=43667

소확행, Naver, Retrieved August 2021, from https://terms.naver.com/entry.naver?docId=4346464&cid=42107&categoryId=42107

Image sources

Drawing of King Saejong the Great https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3103832/how-15th-century-king-sejong-great-helped-make 

Korean texting slang

https://kimchicloud.com/korean-texting-internet-slang/