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Romanization of Korean (North Korean system)

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(Redirected from Romanization of Korean (North)) Official romanization of North Korea
Korean writing systems
Hangul
Hanja
Mixed script
Braille
Transcription
Transliteration

Romanization of Korean is the official Korean-language romanization system in North Korea. Announced by the Sahoe Kwahagwŏn, it is an adaptation of the older McCune–Reischauer system, which it replaced in 1992, and it was updated in 2002 and 2012.

Transcription rules

Vowels
Hangul ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ ㅡ ㅣ ㅐ ㅒ ㅔ ㅖ ㅚ ㅟ ㅢ ㅘ ㅝ ㅙ ㅞ
Romanization a ya ŏ yŏ o yo u yu ŭ i ae yae e ye oi wi ŭi wa wŏ wae we
Consonants
Hangul ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ ㄲ ㄸ ㅃ ㅆ ㅉ ㅇ
Romanization Initial k n t r m p s j ch kh th ph h kk tt pp ss jj –
Final l t t t k t p t k – – t – ng
  • In double consonants in the end of a word or before a consonant, only one of them is written:
  • 닭섬 → Taksŏm
  • 물곬 → Mulkol
  • However, in the case before a vowel, both consonants are written:
  • 붉은바위 → Pulgŭnbawi
  • 앉은바위 → Anjŭnbawi
  • The soft voiceless consonants between vowels ㄱ, ㄷ, and ㅂ and those between resonant sounds and vowels are transcribed as g, d, and b.
  • Final consonants may undergo assimilation before resonants.
  • 백마산 → Paengmasan
  • 꽃마을 → KKonmaŭl
  • 압록강 → Amrokgang
  • When lax consonants become tense in compound words, they are transcribed as tense consonants if they are preceded by a vowel. Also, if the next element begins with a resonant, then n is added before it.
  • 기대산 → Kittaesan
  • 새별읍 → Saeppyŏl-ŭp
  • 뒤문 → Twinmun
  • The consonant clusters ㄴㄹ and ㄴㄴ are only transcribed as ll if they correspond with longstanding usage; ㄹㄹ does not have a special transcription.
  • 천리마 → Chŏllima
  • 한나산 → Hallasan
  • 찔레골 → JJilregol
  • Double consonants may be capitalized as a single unit: kk → KK.

Guide

A personal name is written by family name first, followed by a space and the given name with the first letter capitalized. Also, each letter of a name of Chinese character origin is written separately. The given name's first initial is transcribed in a voiceless letter, even when it becomes resonant in pronunciation.

  • 김꽃분이 → Kim KKotpuni
  • 박동구 → Pak Tong Gu
  • 안복철 → An Pok Chŏl

However, it is not really possible to follow this rule because a certain name written in hangul can be a native Korean name, or a Sino-Korean name, or even both. For example, 보람 can not only be a native Korean name, but can also be a Sino-Korean name (e.g. 寶濫). In some cases, parents intend a dual meaning: both the meaning from a native Korean word and the meaning from hanja.

A name for administrative units is hyphenated from the placename proper:

  • 도 → -do
  • 시 → -si
  • 군 → -gun
  • 면 → -myŏn
  • 리 → -ri
  • 동 → -dong
  • 구 → -gu
  • 구역 → -guyŏk

However, a name for geographic features and artificial structures is not hyphenated:

  • 산 → san
  • 거리 → gŏri
  • 고개 → gogae
  • 대 → dae
  • 봉 → bong
  • 교 → gyo
  • 골 → gol
  • 각 → gak
  • 벌 → bŏl
  • 관 → gwan
  • 곶 → got
  • 강 → gang

Sound changes are not transcribed in the suffixes above:

  • 삿갓봉 → Satkatbong
  • 압록강 → Amrokgang

Transcription of geographical names may be simplified by removing breves and by reducing initial double consonants to single consonants:

  • 서포 → Sŏpho → Sopho
  • 찔레골 → JJilregol → Jilregol

Notes

  1. The 1992 version used oe instead; Rodong Sinmun still uses oe as of 2022.

References

  1. The University of Chicago Press Editorial Staff (2024). The Chicago Manual of Style (18th ed.). University of Chicago Press. 11.95. ISBN 9780226817972.
  2. ^ "Working Paper No. 46" (PDF). UNGEGN. Retrieved 2018-03-17.
  3. ^ "Updates to the report on the current status of United Nations romanization systems for geographical names" (PDF). UNGEGN. Retrieved 2018-03-17. In the Democratic People's Republic of Korea there is a national system adopted in 1992 and presented to the 17th session of UNGEGN in 1994, updated version was published in 2002.
  4. "E/CONF.94/INF.72 - Guideline for the Romanization of Korean" (PDF). UNGEGN. 2002-08-26. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  5. ^ "E/CONF.101/CRP15 - The Rules of Latin Alphabetic Transcription of Korean Language" (PDF). UNGEGN. 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  6. "Choe Ryong Hae Inspects Different Units of South Phyongan Province". Rodong Sinmun. 2022-07-04. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  7. 김보람(金보람). 한국법조인대관 [List of Legal Professionals in Korea] (in Korean). 법률신문 (The Law Times). Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  8. 강보람(姜寶濫). 한국법조인대관 [List of Legal Professionals in Korea] (in Korean). 법률신문 (The Law Times). Retrieved 2023-08-15.
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