Korean

Noun

한국어 • ‎(han-gugeo) ‎(hanja 韓國語)

1. the Korean language

Usage notes

Of the many Korean names for the Korean language, this is the most formal in the Republic of Korea (South Korea). 한국말 (han-gungmal) is more commonly used, but it denotes exclusively the spoken language (말 (mal, “speech”)). In North Korea, 조선말 (joseonmal) is more common.

Synonyms

• 우리말 (urimal, “our spoken language”) (broadly)
• 한국말 (韓國말, han-gungmal, “Korean spoken language”) (broadly)
• 조선어 (朝鮮語, joseoneo) (broadly)
• 조선말 (朝鮮말, joseonmal) (broadly)
• 고려말 (高麗말, goryeomal) (broadly)