Annyeong! Your First Word in Korean

Think about the greetings you already know. You might say 'hello' in English, 'bonjour' in French, or 'hola' in Spanish. Every language has its own special way to say hello. Today you are going to learn the everyday greeting used by millions of people in South Korea and Korean communities around the world. Can you guess what it sounds like before we begin?

Korean is spoken by about 80 million people worldwide. South Korea, a country in East Asia, is one of its main homes. Korean has its own writing system called Hangul. It was created in 1443 by King Sejong so that everyone could learn to read and write. The word 안녕 is spelled 'annyeong' in the Latin alphabet. You say it like this: AHN-nyung. The first part, 'AHN', rhymes with 'on'. The second part, 'nyung', sounds a little like 'nyung' in 'young' with an 'n' at the front. Here is something cool: 'annyeong' means BOTH hello AND goodbye. You can use it when you meet a friend and again when you leave. It is an informal greeting — that means you use it with friends, family, and people your own age. With older people or strangers, Koreans use a longer, more formal greeting: 'annyeonghaseyo' (AHN-nyung-ha-say-yo). But annyeong is the friendly, everyday version — the one you would hear children and friends use every single day. The two letters that make up 안녕 each have a meaning. 안 (an) can mean 'peaceful' and 녕 (nyeong) also carries the idea of 'well' or 'safe'. So when you say annyeong, you are wishing someone peace and wellbeing!