Did you know that there are two different number systems used in Korea? One is called native numbers, and the other is called Sino numbers.
We’ll learn about both number systems here in this article.
Before we dive into the topic, here’s a little fact for you.
Interesting fact
Sino-Korean vocabulary comes from Chinese characters read with Korean pronunciations. These characters are called 한자 (hanja). Sino-Korean words, including numbers, are commonly written in Hangul today.
Korean native numbers 1 to 99
Native numbers are the original Korean number system. These numbers are commonly used with counters, for age with 살, and for hours on a 12-hour clock. Age expressed with 세 uses Sino-Korean numbers.
Have you ever taken a Korean martial arts class? If you have, you might recognize the native numbers 1 to 10, or at least 1 to 8. In many martial arts schools, the instructors often use Korean numbers when counting the movements.
Let’s look at 1 to 10 and the native Korean tens up to 90:
| 1 | 하나 (hana) |
| 2 | 둘 (dul) |
| 3 | 셋 (set) |
| 4 | 넷 (net) |
| 5 | 다섯 (daseot) |
| 6 | 여섯 (yeoseot) |
| 7 | 일곱 (ilgop) |
| 8 | 여덟 (yeodeol) |
| 9 | 아홉 (ahop) |
| 10 | 열 (yeol) |
| 10 | 열 (yeol) |
| 20 | 스물 (seumul) |
| 30 | 서른 (seoreun) |
| 40 | 마흔 (maheun) |
| 50 | 쉰 (swin) |
| 60 | 예순 (yesun) |
| 70 | 일흔 (ilheun) |
| 80 | 여든 (yeodeun) |
| 90 | 아흔 (aheun) |
The modern native Korean number system has no commonly used word for zero and is normally taught from 1 to 99. For zero and larger numbers, use Sino-Korean forms.
Just add the numbers 1 to 9 to the number 10 to get the numbers 11 to 19:
11 = 열(10) + 하나(1) = 열하나
12 = 열(10) + 둘(2) = 열둘
13 = 열(10) + 셋(3) = 열셋
And so on…
21 to 99 work in the same way:
21 = 스물(20) + 하나(1) = 스물하나
35 = 서른(30) + 다섯(5) = 서른다섯
99 = 아흔(90) + 아홉(9) = 아흔아홉
Sino numbers 1 to 100
Sino numbers are, in some ways, easier to learn. As shown below, 20 to 90 use the same words for 2 to 9 combined with the word for 10.
| 0 | 공 / 영 (gong/yeong) |
| 1 | 일 (il) |
| 2 | 이 (i) |
| 3 | 삼 (sam) |
| 4 | 사 (sa) |
| 5 | 오 (o) |
| 6 | 육 (yuk) |
| 7 | 칠 (chil) |
| 8 | 팔 (pal) |
| 9 | 구 (gu) |
| 10 | 십 (sip) |
Similar to the native numbers, once you memorize the numbers 1 to 10, the rest of the numbers are very logical:
11 = 십(10) + 일(1) = 십일
23 = 이십(20) + 삼(3) = 이십삼
45 = 사십(40) + 오(5) = 사십오
And so on…
This pattern gives you 11 to 99. The word for 100 is 백 (baek).
Sino numbers beyond 100
As I have mentioned before, modern native numbers normally go up to 99, but there is no limit to the Sino numbers. Let’s look at the Sino numbers beyond 100:
| 100 | 백 (baek) |
| 1,000 | 천 (cheon) |
| 10,000 | 만 (man) |
| 100,000 | 십만 (simman) |
| 1,000,000 | 백만 (baengman) |
| 10,000,000 | 천만 (cheonman) |
| 100,000,000 | 억 (eok) |
| 10 | 십 (sip) |
| 20 | 이십 (isip) |
| 30 | 삼십 (samsip) |
| 40 | 사십 (sasip) |
| 50 | 오십 (osip) |
| 60 | 육십 (yuksip) |
| 70 | 칠십 (chilsip) |
| 80 | 팔십 (palsip) |
| 90 | 구십 (gusip) |
| 100 | 백 (baek) |
Below are some examples of random Sino numbers.
| 2020 | 이천이십 (icheonisip) |
| 133 | 백삼십삼 (baeksamsipsam) |
| 2,351 | 이천삼백오십일 (icheonsambaegosibil) |
| 75,954 | 칠만 오천구백오십사 (chilman ocheongubaegosipsa) |
| 500,000,000 | 오억 (oeok) |
Sino-Korean numbers can be written in Hangul or with Arabic digits. Digits are common for dates, prices, phone numbers, and measurements. The Hangul forms here show how to read the numbers.
Which Korean number system to use? Native or Sino?
Koreans use both number systems on a regular basis. Each number system is used in different situations and for different purposes:
| Sino | Native |
|---|---|
| For math, dates, addresses, phone numbers, money, measurements, and time (minutes and seconds) | For counting with many counters, age with 살, and the hour on a 12-hour clock |
Let’s look at some examples of native numbers in a sentence:
Native numbers
| 저는 18살이에요. [저는 열여덟 살이에요] |
I am 18 years old. |
| 우리 집에 고양이 일곱 마리가 있어요. | There are seven cats at our house. |
| 오늘 연습을 서른 번도 더 했어요. | I practiced more than 30 times today. |
Notice that the age 18 is written in the numeric form. You will often see that in writing, but you should still read it as a native number 열여덟 (yeollyeodeol).
Now let’s look at some example sentences with Sino numbers. Sino numbers are usually written in the numeric form. The pronunciations are in brackets.
Sino numbers
| 2 더하기 4는 6이에요. [이 더하기 사는 육이에요] |
2 plus 4 is 6. |
| 우리 집 아파트는 34번이에요. [우리 집 아파트는 삼십사 번이에요] |
Our apartment is number 34. |
| 제 전화번호는 201-234-5678이에요. [제 전화번호는 이공일-이삼사-오육칠팔이에요] |
My phone number is 201-234-5678. |
| 가격은 5달러 50센트예요. [가격은 오 달러 오십 센트예요] |
The price is 5 dollars and 50 cents. |
On a 12-hour clock, use native Korean numbers for hours and Sino-Korean numbers for minutes. Formal 24-hour time can use Sino-Korean hours, such as 십삼 시 for 13:00.
| 5:30 | 다섯 시 삼십 분 |
| 12:15 | 열두 시 십오 분 |
| 9:00 | 아홉 시 |
I am assuming that you are thoroughly confused by now. It will take some practice to get used to using two different number systems for telling time.
It may be easier for you to comprehend the concept if you look at the time in a different way:
- Read 5:30 as 다섯 시 삼십 분: native 다섯 for the hour, Sino-Korean 삼십 for the minutes.
- Read 12:15 as 열두 시 십오 분: native 열두 for the hour, Sino-Korean 십오 for the minutes.
- Read 9:00 as 아홉 시. These are cardinal numbers, not ordinals such as “ninth.”
If you look at it that way, it does actually make sense, right?
Counters should be added to the numbers in sentences in Korean.
When counting things or people, Korean commonly uses a counter after the number. Counters such as 개, 명, and 마리 are nouns, not particles. The counter and context help determine which number system to use.
In English sentences, we simply use the number as the adjective for the item or person that we’re describing, such as ten cats, two apples, five men, etc. A common Korean order is noun + number + counter, as in 사과 두 개 (“two apples”). Other constructions are possible, so this is a useful pattern rather than the only permitted order.
If you think about it, the English language also uses a similar format of number + counter when talking about money or measurements, such as 11 inches, 19 dollars and 99 cents, 120 pounds, etc.
You can think of the counters as units for counting. The Korean language has numerous counters for every type of noun. It will be almost impossible for you to learn all the counters at once, because there are so many. Just take one at a time as they come up and add to your vocabulary.
Here are some common Korean counters to start you off (but not a full list):
Native number counters(up to 99, then use Sino numbers with the same counters)
| 마리 (mari) | Animals: 고양이 세 마리 (three cats), 개 한 마리 (one dog) |
|---|---|
| 명 (myeong) | People (general): 남자 두 명 (two men) |
| 분 (bun) | People (honorific): 손님 두 분 (two guests) |
| 개 (gae) | A general counter for objects, often used when no more specific counter is needed: 사과 한 개 (one apple), 과자 두 개 (two cookies), 모자 세 개 (three hats) |
| 번 (beon) | Number of times: 다시 한 번 (one more time), 열 번 (ten times), 두세 번 (two or three times) |
| 시 (si) | The hour portion of time: 한 시 (one o’clock), 두 시 (two o’clock), 세 시 (three o’clock) |
| 시간 (sigan) | Duration of time: 한 시간 (one hour), 열두 시간 (12 hours) |
| 대 (dae) | Vehicles: 자동차 두 대 (two passenger cars), 트럭 다섯 대 (five trucks) |
| 장 (jang) | Pieces of paper: 종이 한 장 (one piece of paper), 도배지 열 장 (ten pieces of wallpaper) |
| 권 (gwon) | Books: 책 여섯 권 (six books) |
| 컵 (keop) | Cupfuls (the container or measure): 물 한 컵 (one glass of water), 주스 두 컵 (two glasses of juice) |
| 잔 (jan) | Cups or glasses of drinks: 커피 한 잔 (one cup of coffee), 티 두 잔 (two cups of tea), 소주 한 잔 (one shot of soju) |
| 병 (byeong) | Beverages that come in a bottle: 콜라 한 병 (one bottle of cola), 맥주 두 병 (two bottles of beer) |
Sino number counters
| 분 (bun) | The minutes portion of time: 30분 (30 minutes), 40분 (40 minutes), 15분 (15 minutes), 오후 1시 15분 (1:15 pm) |
| 원 (won) | Won, the Korean monetary unit: 1,000원 (1,000 Won), 100,000원 (100,000 Won). Exchange rates vary; 원 does not have a fixed dollar value. |
| 불 (bul) | American dollar: 1불 (one dollar), 10불 (ten dollars) |
| 센트 (senteu) | Cents: 50센트 (50 cents), 99센트 (99 cents). 전 is a different monetary subunit, not the usual word for US cents. |
| 번 (beon) | Assigned number to something: 3번 (number 3), 54번 (number 54) |
You should also be aware that counters for Sino numbers include the units of measuring weight, length, volume, and distance.
One last thing to mention is that when the native numbers are used with a counter, the numbers 1 to 4 change in format as follows:
| # | Native number | When used with a counter | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 하나 | 한 | 사과 한 개 (one apple) |
| 2 | 둘 | 두 | 남자 두 명 (two men) |
| 3 | 셋 | 세 | 세 시 (3 o’clock) |
| 4 | 넷 | 네 | 커피 네 잔 (four cups of coffee) |
스물 also becomes 스무 before many counters: 스무 살 (“20 years old”), 스무 개 (“20 items”). Compound numbers ending in 하나, 둘, 셋, or 넷 also change: 스물한 살, 서른두 개. These are common forms; some counters have additional special patterns.
Conclusion
Having to learn two different number systems at once in a new language can be overwhelming at first. I suggest you start by memorizing the numbers 1 to 20 in both systems. I usually have my students practice saying the numbers backwards once they have mastered them in the forward order.
Saying the numbers backwards helps you imprint each number in your head instead of just memorizing them in order.
As far as learning the counters, that will just take time. Like I mentioned before, take one at a time and master each one as you build up your vocabulary. You will get there, I promise!
REVIEW AND REPEAT DAILY, AND YOU WILL SEE PROGRESS! 화이팅!!
Beginner answer
How should beginners learn Korean numbers?
Learn Korean numbers by separating native Korean numbers from Sino-Korean numbers, then practice each system in real situations such as age, time, prices, dates, and counting objects.
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