Korean phrasebook

Korean (한국어 hangugeo or 한국말 hangugmal in South Korea, 조선어 chosŏnŏ or 조선말 chosŏnmal in North Korea and China, 우리말 urimal (our language) or 국어 gugeo (national language) as a neutral denomination) is spoken in South and North Korea, as well as parts of Northeast China (where it is an official language in Yanbian). It may be distantly related to Japanese, but is certainly entirely distinct from Chinese, although it uses large amounts of imported Chinese vocabulary.

Depending on which part of Korea you go to different dialects of Korean are spoken. The standard in South Korea is based on the Seoul dialect, which is spoken in Seoul and Gyeonggi province as well as the city of Kaesong in North Korea, while the standard in North Korea is based on the Pyongan dialect, which is spoken in Pyongyang as well as North and South Pyongan provinces. Other dialects include the Gyeongsang dialect spoken in Busan, Daegu, Ulsan and the provinces of North and South Gyeongsang, the Jeju dialect spoken on the island of Jeju, and the Hamgyong dialect spoken in North and South Hamgyong provinces. The dialects spoken by the ethnic Korean minority in China also differ by region, with those from Jilin mainly speaking the Hamgyong dialect, those from Liaoning mainly speaking the Pyongan dialect, and those from Heilongjiang mainly speaking the Gyeongsang dialect. This guide is based on the standard in South Korea.

The Korean language is fundamentally the same in North and South Korea, and speakers from both sides of the border are, for the most part, able to understand each other. The main differences lie in the loan words used to represent modern concepts, where South Koreans typically use English words, and North Koreans typically use the corresponding Russian words or create new words instead. The standard form of Korean used by the ethnic Korean minority in China mostly follows the North Korean standard, albeit with a significant number of loan words from Mandarin for modern concepts, though due to the popularity of South Korean dramas, most people also understand South Korean terms.