Is there a way to say she/he in Korean?
Last week, we covered a few ways to say ‘you’. In this article, we will be talking about ‘he/she’. Spoiler alert: it is not that different from ‘you’. Technically(and traditionally), Korean didn’t have an English equivalent of ‘he’ and ‘she’ because:
A. Koreans tend to be very specific when they refer to a certain person(that lady, that guy, that kid, that teacher or just say his/her name etc.)
B. The context usually shows who they are talking about.
Most Western languages have ‘he’ and ‘she’ and that is why quite a lot of beginner learners get confused. I don’t blame them! Here is some good news but also bad news: Modern Korean did make up an English equivalent of he(그) and she(그녀) around the 1920’s(If you’re interested in the history perhaps we can cover this some other time), so you will likely see them if you read Korean books or songs. However, they are hardly ever used in spoken Korean. (I have never met a single Korean saying ‘그’ and ‘그녀’ in natural daily conversations.)
So how do you say ‘he’ or ‘she’ in a conversation?
The best way is to say their name or nickname when you want to give context, but this is also where you can be creative! Let’s talk a look at a few examples.
‘그 아이(that kid)’ or its shorten version ‘걔’: Gender neutral and usually used among close people. If you want to be polite to the person that you are referring to, it is best to avoid this word.
‘그 사람(that person)’: If you want to be more polite, you can also use ‘그 분’ instead of ‘그 사람’. Funnily enough, ‘그 분’ is also used when you(or a group of people) don’t want to call someone’s name explicitly- maybe someone you are gossiping about, boyfriend/girlfriend or ex-boyfriend/girlfriend.
‘그 친구(that friend)’: Ironically, this word can also be used when you are not a friend of the person that you are referring to. If you are referring to a friend of someone who is older than you, ‘그 친구분’ is appropriate. ‘분’ is kind of a magic word to know.
‘그 여자(that woman)’, ‘그 남자(that man)’: These may sound okay but I recommend you think before using them because they can sound quite rude depending on the situation. Alternative? ‘그 여자분’ or ‘그 남자분’ sound more respectful.
Their Social role: 엄마(mom), 아빠(dad), 딸(daughter), 아들(son), 동생(younger sibling or younger friends), 선생님(teacher), 팀장님(manager), you name it. Koreans tend to be very specific when they refer to someone.
Here how Koreans avoid he/she:
When mom is asking you if you had fun with a friend:
친구랑 / 잘 놀다왔니?
With friend / hung out well? (Did you have fun with your friend/him/her?)
When Michael and Dong-eun are talking about a friend named Sally:
마이클: 샐리는/지금/어디에/있어?
Michael: Sally/now/in where/is? (Where is Sally now?)
동은: 서울에/있어.
Dong-eun: In/Seoul/is. (She is in Seoul.)
‘She’ is omitted, and technically speaking, ‘있어’ can be ‘am, are, is’, all three of them since Korean verbs don’t conjugate in accordance to the subject.
It might feel a bit awkward at first but it is quite fun(?) and convenient omitting the subject once you get used to it!