Palatalization: A Tricky Pronunciation Rule in Korean
Okay, I should clarify first. This sound change rule is not easy to understand. In Korean, you won’t come across this very often, except for one common word: 같이 [가치] [gachi] meaning ‘together.’
As a Korean language teacher, I don’t teach it in detail before learners reach the upper intermediate level. Lately, however, I’ve had a lot of messages asking me about it, so it’s a good time to explain.
- When ㄷ [d/t] as a final consonant (called 받침 [batchim]) is followed by 이 [i], the combination of ㄷ and 이 is pronounced 지 [ji].
- When ㄷ [d/t] as a final consonant is followed by 히 [hi], the combination of ㄷ and 히 is pronounced 치 [chi].
- When ㅌ [t] as a final consonant is followed by 이 [i], the combination of ㅌ and 이 is pronounced 치 [chi].
This rule is called “palatalization.” In Wikipedia, you’ll see this definition:
More confused? Don’t worry about it. Some of you might think it happens only in Korean, but this is a common feature in sound changes in many languages.
Let’s see how it works in English, to help understand better.
Try pronouncing this: “Did you?”
You probably pronounced it more like “/dɪdʒuː/ [di-jyu]” than “/dɪdjuː/ [did-yu],” right?
A similar phenomenon happens when ㄷ is followed by 이. Now let’s see some examples and practice so you can get used to it.
1. Final consonant ㄷ + 이 → 지
⓵ 해돋이 [해도지] [hedoji]: sunrise
⓶ 맏이 [마지] [maji]: the oldest of one’s siblings
⓷ 굳이 [구지] [guji]: deliberately, is it really necessary to.., did you absolutely have to..
- 남자친구와 저는 해돋이를 보러 아침 일찍 일어났어요.
[namjachinguwa jeoneun hedojireul boreo achim iljjik ireonasseoyo]
My boyfriend and I got up early to go see the sunrise.
- 저는 맏이예요.
[jeoneun majiyeyo]
I’m the oldest sibling.
- 굳이 그 미팅에 참석해야 하나요?
[guji geu miting-e chamseokheya hanayo]
Do I absolutely have to attend the meeting?
| Word List | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 남자친구 [namjachingu] | boyfriend | 와 [wa] | (vowel +) with |
| 저 [jeo] | I | 는 [neun] | (vowel +) topic marker |
| 해돋이 [hedoji] | sunrise | 를 [reul] | (vowel +) object marker |
| 보다 [boda] | to see | 아침 [achim] | morning |
| 일찍 [iljjik] | early | 일어나다 [ireonada] | to get up |
| 맏이 [maji] | the oldest of one's siblings | 굳이 [guji] | deliberately, is it really necessary to.., did you absolutely have to.. |
| 그 [geu] | the | 미팅 [miting] | meeting |
| 참석하다 [chamseokhada] | to attend |
2. Final consonant ㄷ + 히 → 치
⓵ 닫히다 [다치다] [dachida]: to be closed/ shut
⓶ 굳히다 [구치다] [guchida]: to solidify/ harden
- 편의점이 이미 닫힌 상태였어요.
[pyeonuijeomi imi dachin sangteyeosseoyo]
The convenience store was already closed.
- 다시 불을 붙이기 전에 양초를 굳히세요.
[dasi bureul buchigi jeone yangchoreul guchiseyo]
Allow your candle to solidify before re-lighting.
| Word List | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 편의점 [pyeonuijeom] | convenience store | 이 [i] | (consonant +) subject marker |
| 이미 [imi] | already | 닫히다 [dachida] | to be closed, shut |
| 상태 [sangte] | state | 다시 [dasi] | again |
| 불 [bul] | fire | 을 [eul] | (consonant +) object marker |
| 붙이다 [buchida] | to light (a fire) | 전 [jeon] | before |
| 양초 [yangcho] | candle | 를 [reul] | (vowel +) object marker |
| 굳히다 [guchida] | to solidify, harden |
3. Final consonant ㅌ + 이 → 치
⓵ 같이 [가치] [gachi]: together
⓶ 붙이다 [부치다] [buchida]: to affix/ attach/ stick
- 내일 저녁 같이 드실래요?
[neil jeonyeok gachi deusilreyo]
Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow?
- 편지에 우표 붙이는 걸 잊지 마세요.
[pyeonjie upyo buchineun geol itji maseyo]
Don’t forget to put a stamp on a letter.
| Word List | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 내일 [neil] | tomorrow | 저녁 [jeonyeok] | dinner, evening |
| 같이 [gachi] | together | 드시다 [deusida] | to eat (honorific) |
| 편지 [pyeonji] | letter | 우표 [upyo] | stamp |
| 붙이다 [buchida] | to affix, attach, stick | 잊다 [itda] | to forget |
Reference:
- Jaehoon Yeon, Lucien Brown. Korean: A Comprehensive Grammar (Routledge Comprehensive Grammars). 1st ed. Routledge; 2011.
- “Palatalization (Sound Change)”. En.Wikipedia.Org, 2018, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatalization_(sound_change). Accessed 12 Aug 2018.