Korean Alphabet

The Korean script consists of 40 letters in total. These letters are divided into 19 consonants and 21 vowels.

Hangul is considered one of the most scientific writing systems in the world! Here's why:

• Logical design - consonant shapes are based on mouth position when making sounds

• Systematic patterns - vowels follow consistent visual logic

• Perfect phonetic match - each letter represents exactly one sound

• Block system - letters combine into neat syllable squares

• No exceptions - unlike English, what you see is what you get!

King Sejong designed it so anyone could learn to read in just days!

Korean letters don't line up like English - they stack into blocks! It's like Tetris:

• Each block = one syllable of sound

• Consonant + vowel = basic block (like 가 = g + a)

• Add final consonant = complete block (like 강 = g + a + ng)

• Blocks make words - 한국 (hanguk) = Korea

• Reading order - left to right, top to bottom within each block

It's like building with alphabet Legos - super logical once you get it!

Korean is spoken by about 77 million people worldwide:

• South Korea - about 51 million people

• North Korea - about 25 million people

• China - over 2 million Korean speakers (mostly in northeast regions)

• Other countries - Korean communities in USA, Japan, Russia, and more

Thanks to K-pop, K-dramas, and Korean culture, more people worldwide are learning Korean than ever before!

Korean is famous for being super quick to learn! Here's a realistic timeline:

Reading basics:

• 1-2 weeks - learn all 40 letters

• 1 month - read simple words slowly

• 2-3 months - read Korean text fluently (even if you don't understand meaning)

Why so fast?

• Perfect phonetic system - no weird spelling rules

• Logical patterns - once you learn the system, everything follows it

• No exceptions - unlike English, Korean spelling is 100% consistent

Many people can start reading K-pop lyrics within a month!