Sound Change Rules

🎵 The Secret Music of Korean: Sound Change Rules

Welcome to the Hidden Symphony!

Imagine you’re learning a new song. The notes on the paper say one thing, but when you actually sing them together, they blend and dance into something beautiful! That’s exactly what happens in Korean. The letters (called jamo) sometimes change how they sound when they meet their neighbors.

Think of it like making friends at school. When you’re alone, you act one way. But with your best friend? You might talk differently, laugh differently, even walk differently! Korean sounds do the same thing.

🔗 1. Linking Rules (연음법칙)

When Sounds Hold Hands

The Big Idea: When a word ends with a consonant and the next syllable starts with ㅇ (which is silent), the ending consonant “jumps over” and takes the empty ㅇ’s place!

🎯 Why Does This Happen?

The ㅇ at the beginning of a syllable is like an empty chair. The consonant from the previous syllable sees the empty seat and says, “I’ll sit there!”

✨ Examples That Click

🧠 Remember It Like This:

“Empty seat? Fill it!” - The consonant sees ㅇ and moves right in!

🛑 2. Batchim Neutralization (받침 중화)

The Great Simplifier

The Big Idea: At the end of a syllable (called batchim), Korean only allows 7 sounds. Any other consonant must transform into one of these 7!

🎭 The Lucky 7 Club

Only these 7 sounds can sit at the end of a syllable:

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅇ
[k] [n] [t] [l] [m] [p] [ng]

🔄 The Transformation Rules

✨ Real Examples

🧠 Remember It Like This:

Think of a nightclub with a strict dress code. Only 7 outfits are allowed inside. Everyone else must change clothes at the door!

👫 3. Double Batchim Pronunciation (겹받침 발음)

When Two Consonants Share One Spot

The Big Idea: Sometimes two consonants sit together at the bottom of a syllable. When you say the word alone, only ONE of them gets to be heard. But which one?

📋 The Double Batchim Chart

🌟 The Exception Stars: ㄺ, ㄻ, ㄿ

When followed by a consonant, these special ones break the normal rule:

• ㄺ → Usually ㄱ, but before ㄱ → ㄹ (읽고 → [일꼬])
• ㄻ → Usually ㅁ (삶 → [삼])
• ㄿ → Usually ㅂ (읊다 → [읍다])

🧠 Remember It Like This:

It’s like two kids trying to fit through a door at the same time. Usually the one on the LEFT goes through (ㄱㅅ → ㄱ), but some special pairs have different rules!

👃 4. Nasal Assimilation (비음화)

Catching the Cold

The Big Idea: When certain consonants meet nasal sounds (ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅇ), they “catch a cold” and become nasal too!

🤧 What Are Nasal Sounds?

Nasal sounds come through your nose:

• ㄴ - like “n” in “nose”
• ㅁ - like “m” in “mom”
• ㅇ - like “ng” in “sing”

🔄 The Transformation Magic

✨ Real Examples

🧠 Remember It Like This:

When you sit next to someone with a cold, you might catch it too! Nasal sounds are “contagious” - they make their neighbors sound nasal as well!

🌊 5. Lateral Assimilation (설측음화/유음화)

The ㄹ Magnet

The Big Idea: The sound ㄹ (like “l” or “r”) is magnetic! When ㄴ and ㄹ meet, they both become ㄹㄹ!

🧲 The Simple Rule

✨ Real Examples

🧠 Remember It Like This:

ㄹ is the popular kid at school. When ㄴ hangs out with ㄹ, ㄴ wants to be just like ㄹ too! They both become ㄹ!

💨 6. ㅎ Aspiration Rules (격음화/ㅎ 탈락)

The Breath of Change

The Big Idea: ㅎ is like a puff of air. When it meets certain consonants, they combine to make a stronger, “breathy” sound!

🌬️ The Aspiration Combinations

And it works both ways! ㅎ + consonant OR consonant + ㅎ!

✨ Real Examples

🌬️ When ㅎ Disappears!

Sometimes ㅎ just vanishes between vowels or before ㄴ, ㄹ, ㅁ:

🧠 Remember It Like This:

ㅎ is like a magic breath. When it touches ㄱ, ㄷ, ㅂ, or ㅈ, it gives them superpowers and makes them stronger (aspirated)! But sometimes ㅎ is shy and just disappears!

🎯 Quick Summary Flow

graph LR
    A["Sound Change Rules"] --> B["Linking"]
    A --> C["Neutralization"]
    A --> D["Double Batchim"]
    A --> E["Nasal Assimilation"]
    A --> F["Lateral Assimilation"]
    A --> G["ㅎ Aspiration"]

    B --> B1["Consonant jumps to empty ㅇ"]
    C --> C1["Only 7 sounds at syllable end"]
    D --> D1["Pick one from the pair"]
    E --> E1["ㄱㄷㅂ become nasal near ㄴㅁ"]
    F --> F1["ㄴ+ㄹ both become ㄹ"]
    G --> G1["ㅎ + consonant = aspirated"]

🏆 You’ve Got This!

These rules might seem like a lot at first, but here’s the secret: Native Korean speakers don’t think about these rules consciously. They just happen naturally when you speak!

The more you practice listening and speaking, the more these sound changes will become automatic for you too. Your mouth will learn the shortcuts before your brain even realizes it!

🎵 Final Thought

Think of these sound changes as Korean’s way of making speech flow like a beautiful melody. Every language has its own music, and now you know the secret notes that make Korean sing!

Practice tip: Listen to native speakers and try to catch these sound changes in action. Once you start noticing them, you’ll hear them everywhere! 🎧✨