Day 1 of 20~12 minThe borrowed set: 일, 이, 삼 up to 십, and zero as 영 or 공.
Romanisation help
일, 이, 삼, 사, 오, 육, 칠, 팔, 구, 십, 영, 공
Korean has two sets of numbers and uses both every day. This course starts with the Sino-Korean set, which came into Korean from Chinese: 일 (il), 이 (i), 삼 (sam) up to 십 (sip), plus two different words for zero. By the end of today you can say every digit, pick the right zero, and say why a floor or an exit takes this set.
One to ten
Ten numbers, each one syllable long:
일, 이, 삼
il, i, sam
one, two, three
일 ends in a clear l made with the tip of the tongue, never the dark l of 'full'. 이 is a plain ee.
사, 오, 육
sa, o, yuk
four, five, six
오 is a pure o with no w sliding in at the end, so not quite English 'oh'. 육 has the short u of 'book' and a closed k.
칠, 팔, 구
chil, pal, gu
seven, eight, nine
칠 and 팔 start with a strong puff of air. 구 starts with a much softer sound, between g and k.
십
sip
ten
ㅅ before ㅣ is close to sh, so 십 sounds nearly like 'ship', with the p held shut and not released.
Why it works
Every Sino-Korean number is one syllable because each was one Chinese character, read the Korean way. That makes them short and regular, and it is why tomorrow's two-digit numbers are just these syllables put side by side. Korean also has a native set, 하나, 둘, 셋, which day 5 covers properly. The two sets do not do the same job: this one measures and labels, the native one counts, and a phrase as ordinary as 세 시 삼십 분 'half past three' uses one of each.
Two words for zero
영 (yeong) and 공 (gong) both mean zero. Which one you use depends on what the zero is doing:
010, the start of a mobile number
Not this one
영일영
yeongiryeong
This one
공일공
gongilgong
Phone numbers, codes and account numbers are read digit by digit, and their zero is 공.
zero degrees
Not this one
공 도
gong do
This one
영 도
yeong do
도 is degree. Temperatures take 영, and so does 영하 (yeongha), 'below zero'.
a score of two nil
Not this one
이 대 공
i dae gong
This one
이 대 영
i dae yeong
대 means 'against'. A score is an amount, so it takes 영.
Why it works
영 comes from a character meaning zero as a quantity, and 공 from one meaning empty. So 영 is the zero you measure with: a temperature, a score, a sum in maths. 공 is a zero that is only a symbol in a row of digits, holding a place in a phone number or a code. The split is a convention rather than a law of nature, but it is a firm one, and 공일공 is how every Korean mobile number begins when it is read aloud.
Where you meet this set first
Four things you will see on your first day in Seoul, all read with Sino-Korean numbers:
일 층
il cheung
the ground floor
층 is floor. Korea calls street level 일 층, the first floor, so 이 층 is what a British speaker calls the first floor.
이 호선
i hoseon
Line 2 (of the subway)
호선 is a numbered line. In Seoul, Line 2 is the one that runs in a loop.
삼 번 출구
sam beon chulgu
exit 3
번 is 'number' and 출구 is exit. Stations have many numbered exits, and meeting at one is normal.
오 분
o bun
five minutes
분 is minute. Minutes always take this set, which matters on day 10.
Why it works
None of these is a count of things. Floor 1 is not one floor, it is the floor called 1; exit 3 is a name painted above a staircase; five minutes is a quantity on a scale. Labels and measurements are the territory of the Sino-Korean set, and money and dates join them later in the course. If you wanted to say 'three exits', you would be counting, and counting needs the native numbers of day 5.