Deborah, letter by letter
Hangul is written in blocks. Each block is one syllable, built from a consonant, a vowel and sometimes a final consonant at the bottom.
| Block | Letters | How each letter sounds | Sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| 데 | ㄷ + ㅔ | ㄷ d ㅔ e, as in “bed” | de |
| 보 | ㅂ + ㅗ | ㅂ b ㅗ o, as in “go” (shorter) | bo |
| 라 | ㄹ + ㅏ | ㄹ r (a light, flapped r) ㅏ a, as in “father” | ra |
Why Deborah is written this way
- Korean has one letter, ㄹ, for both “r” and “l”. At the start of a syllable it is a light, flapped sound between the two; at the end of a block it sounds like “l”.
- Say each block evenly. Korean doesn’t stress one syllable over the others the way English does, so Deborah sounds like de-bo-ra.
Introducing yourself
The ending after your name depends on how it ends in Korean. 데보라 ends in a vowel, so you say 제 이름은 데보라예요 (je ireumeun deborayeyo). With friends, Koreans add 야 (ya) when calling someone by name. At work, coworkers will usually call you 데보라 씨 or 데보라 님.
Official documents such as your residence card use your name in English letters, as in your passport. The Hangul spelling is what friends, coworkers and baristas will write.