Chapter Seventeen
Korean Family Terms
Hi,
Family is the base of every society, right? Wherever you go, you may come across different types of families. Suppose, you are traveling to Korea or are planning to stay in Korea for a while, learning the family terms in Korean will be more helpful. There are a lot of terms for family members in the Korean language. That is because Korean people often use the terms or these titles instead of using the names. So learning these titles is very important and at the same time, is very helpful.
In this lesson, we are going to give you complete information about the family terms in Korean. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to use these titles.
So, let's get started!
Table of contents
What is 'Family' in Korean?
Like I said earlier, families are the basis of every society. Families together form a society. There are many definitions for the question 'What is a family'. But simply, it is where a man and woman live together with their kids, and sometimes also their parents, and other relatives.
The Korean term for the word family is 가족 (gajok). Some other terms that are related to family 가족 are, 친족 (chin-jog) meaning kin, 가정(ga-jeong) meaning home or household, and 일족(il-jog) meaning family or clan. But, 가족 is the one which is generally used.
Let's look at an example of how the term is used in the middle of a sentence.
Q: 가족이 몇 명이에요? How many people do you have in your family?
Gajogi myeot myeongieyo?
A: 가족이 넷 명이에요. 아버지, 어머니, 여동셍이 하나 있어요. There are four people in my family. Father, mother, and a younger sibling.
Gajogi net myeongieyo Aboji, Eomoni, yeodongsaengi hana itseoyo.
Trouble reading Korean words? Don't worry, I've got you covered! Check this tool and get the correct pronunciation right away!
Turn your phone or tablet into a professional virtual reading tutorNote: I earn a small commission if you make a qualified purchase! Read the complete disclosure here.
See, like this, you can use the term in your daily sentences or ask about the family of your friends very easily!
Family members in Korean
Learning these titles are very important, because, Korean people often use these titles instead of using the names of those people. The terms for the family members or the titles to address the members of a family are,
Parents - 부모님 - poomonim
Father - 아버지 - aboji
Dad - 아빠 - appa
Mother - 어머니 - eomoni
Mom - 엄마 - eomma
Son - 아들 - aadeul
Daughter - 딸 - ttal
Children/child - 아이 - aayi
The elder brother (If you are a boy) - 형 - hyeong
The elder brother (If you are a girl) - 오빠 - oppa
Elder sister (If you are a boy) - 누나 - noona
Elder sister (If you are a girl) - 언니 - eonnie
Younger brother - 남동셍 - namdongsaeng
Younger sister - 여동생 - yeodongsaeng
Grandparents - 조부모님 - jopoomonim
Grandfather - 할아버지 - haraboji
Grandmother - 할머니 - halmoni
Younger sibling - 동생 - dongsaeng
Brothers - 형제 - hyeongje
Sisters - 자매 - jamae
Also read:
Terms for family members from father's side
The family from the father's side is named as 친가 (chinga). The names or titles for relatives from 친가, are,
Father's:
Elder brother and wife - 큰아빠 (keun-appa) & 큰엄마 (keun-eomma)
Younger brother and wife - 작은아빠(jag-eun-appa) & 작은엄마(jag-eun-eomma)
Younger brother (If unmarried) - 삼촌 (sam-chon)
Younger sister and husband - 고모 (gomo) & 고모부(gomoboo)
Terms for family members from mother's side
The family from the mother's side is named as 외가 (eoga). The names or titles for relatives from 외가 are,
Mother's:
Brother and wife - 외숙부 (eo-sook-boo)& 외숙모 (eo-sook-mo)
Sister and husband - 이모 (imo)& 이모부 (imoboo)
Married couple: Husband and wife in Korean
Since families are formed through marriages, learning these terms are also important somehow. Even though we have listed above everything to call our family members in Korean, what will the married couple or the husband and wife
address their partners without using their names? Let's look at every title that is formed from a marriage.
Husband - 남편
Wife - 부인
Father-in-law (for husband) - 장인
Mother-in-law (for husband) - 장머님
Father-in-law (for wife) - 아버님
Mother-in-law (for wife) - 아마님
There are many more relatives titles, like husband's brother, husband's sister, wife's brother and sister, wife's unmarried sister and brother, husband's unmarried brother, etc. But the reason why I am not explaining it here is to reduce the confusion.
All the basic titles you need to know, are explained above.
Try to memorize them and practice by using these titles in your house, if possible. If you want to know the rest, leave a comment below.
