What Is Revised Romanization?
Revised Romanization (국어의 로마자 표기법, gugeoui romaja pyogibeop) is the standard way to write Korean words in Latin letters in South Korea. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced it as notice No. 2000-8 on 7 July 2000. It replaced the older McCune-Reischauer system as the official standard. The common abbreviation is RR.
The system is a transcription. A transcription records sounds with another alphabet, and it does not teach pronunciation. For example, 한국 becomes "Hanguk", which tells you the letters but not how a Korean speaker moves the tongue.
How Does Revised Romanization Spell Korean Sounds?
Revised Romanization uses plain Latin letters, with a few two-letter pairs for vowels that English lacks. It avoids marks such as ŏ or ch', which are hard to type.
| Hangul | RR | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ㅓ | eo | not "e" plus "o"; one vowel |
| ㅡ | eu | one vowel |
| ㅕ | yeo | y-glide plus ㅓ |
| ㅢ | ui | always ui, even when said [i], as in 희망 (huimang) |
| ㄱ | g / k | g before a vowel, k before a consonant or at the end of a word |
| ㄷ | d / t | d before a vowel, t before a consonant or at the end |
| ㅈ | j | 자 is "ja" |
| ㅊ | ch | 차 is "cha" |
The pair g/k shows the main idea: RR writes the sound a letter makes in its position. So 국 is "guk" and 김 is "gim", while the same ㄱ is "k" at the end of 국. It writes a final consonant by its closed sound, not by the letter.
Why Are Some Names Not in Revised Romanization?
Personal names often keep customary spellings such as Kim, Lee and Park. RR does include rules for personal names, but it also allows names of people, companies and organisations to keep the spelling they already use. Hyphens may also separate syllables when a reading would be ambiguous, as in 중앙 (jung-ang).
Why Does Revised Romanization Matter?
Revised Romanization matters because it is the spelling you meet on signs, maps, subway lines and official documents in South Korea. Learning it lets you match what you see in Latin letters to the Hangul behind it. Most English-language maps and travel sites use it for Korean place names.
It changed familiar names. Pusan became Busan, Kimpo became Gimpo and Cheju became Jeju. If you know RR, those changes make sense: the new spellings follow the letters ㅂ, ㄱ and ㅈ more directly.
Revised Romanization vs McCune-Reischauer
Revised Romanization differs from McCune-Reischauer mainly in marks and in a few consonants. McCune-Reischauer (MR) was published in 1939 and used diacritics and apostrophes. A modified version of it was South Korea's official system from 1984 until RR replaced it in 2000.
| Feature | Revised Romanization | McCune-Reischauer |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 2000 | 1939 |
| Diacritics and apostrophes | none | breve marks (ŏ, ŭ) and apostrophes (ch') |
| ㅓ and ㅡ | eo, eu | ŏ, ŭ |
| 부산 | Busan | Pusan |
| Typical users today | signs, maps, textbooks, most websites | older books, some academic work |
The full comparison is on the RR vs McCune-Reischauer page, and the older standard has its own entry at McCune-Reischauer.
Examples of Revised Romanization
Three place names show how RR works. 부산 is "Busan": ㅂ is written "b" before a vowel. 종로 is "Jongno", not "Jongro": RR follows the pronunciation, in which ㄹ after ㅇ is read as ㄴ. 신라 is "Silla", for the same reason: the ㄴ before ㄹ is read as ㄹ.
That last point is the surprise for beginners. RR does not always match the letters one by one: it follows the sound after many pronunciation rules apply. It does not show every change, though. In nouns, aspiration is not written, so 집현전, said [지편전], stays Jiphyeonjeon, and tensing is never written, so 압구정, said [압꾸정], is Apgujeong. To apply the system yourself, follow the Korean romanization rules or use the korean romanization converter, then check the output against a source.
Does Revised Romanization Show Pronunciation?
Only partly. RR reflects some sound changes, as 종로 (Jongno) shows, but its letters do not tell you how to make Korean sounds. Learners often assume they do. RR is a spelling system for readers who cannot read Hangul, so "eo" is not the English letters "e" and "o" said in turn. Korean ㅓ is one relaxed vowel sound.
For that reason, this site uses RR only as a learning aid in parentheses, next to the Hangul. The goal is to read Hangul directly. If "eo" and "eu" confuse you, read why romanization looks wrong. A printable romanization chart lists every letter.
Related Hangul Terms
- how Korean names are romanized: personal-name habits.
- McCune-Reischauer: the older standard.
- Korean converters: tools for romanization.
- the Hangul terms glossary: all related definitions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Revised Romanization the same as RR? Yes. RR is the common abbreviation for Revised Romanization of Korean. You will also see it called the Revised Romanization system or 국어의 로마자 표기법 in Korean. It should not be confused with the older system, McCune-Reischauer, which people sometimes abbreviate MR.
Should learners use Revised Romanization? Use it as a bridge, not a destination. RR helps on day one, because it is the spelling on signs. But it does not capture pronunciation, so learn Hangul early and rely on audio. Once you can read Hangul directly, RR becomes optional, and you can use it only to check signs, maps and unfamiliar names.
Why is 김 written Kim, not Gim? Under strict RR, 김 would be "Gim". But personal names are allowed to keep customary spellings, and many Korean families have used "Kim" for generations on passports and papers. So "Kim" is a name habit, not an RR spelling. Place names such as 김포 are written Gimpo.
Is there a Revised Romanization converter? Yes. A converter applies the RR rules to Hangul input and gives Latin letters. This site has a Korean romanization converter. Check output for names, because personal names may keep a customary spelling, and for words where pronunciation rules change the sound, such as 신라. A converter follows rules and cannot know a person's own spelling.
