Characteristics of Korean language

3 years ago

>Topic-prominent language

Although we call it a subject, its position is not for subjects, the actor, only. A topic can also be in the position. A topic may not be an actor, but the one which the sentence is about. Let's take an example:
You bumped into a friend after lunch. Your friend asks you, "Hey, how about a lunch?" You might want to say, "Lunch? I already had it. How about a cup of coffee?" The first part of this speech can be understood, 'As for (or, speaking of) lunch, I already ate it.' In Korean, this can be stated simply:
<Korean> Lunch, I ate. (점심, 나(난=나는) 먹었어)
너는 점심(식사) 먹었냐?
점심 너는 먹었냐?
먹었냐 너는 점심? 
>너는 점심을 먹었냐?

>>점심=점심식사 lunch

>Agglutinating language

Now, you may have been confused, saying, 
"I don't get it. How come no one interprets it 'A lunch ate me.'?" 

This is where the powerful function of particles, endings, and conjugation comes in. 
By attaching these little grammatical devices, you label each words, so that your words come into places without causing misunderstanding.


cited from Korean lessons