The Real Meaning of Korean Greeting “ANNYEONGHASEYO” (안녕하세요)





ANNYEONGHASEYO” or 안녕하세요 in Hangeul, is unarguably the first word you would probably encounter when you enter the world of Korean. Whether you live in Korea, or you visited Korean once in your lifetime, or you’re one of those crazy Hallyu Wave fans fangirling over oppas and going gaga over Kdrama, you would probably know by now how to say Annyeonghaseyo and when do you usually say that.

If you say that Annyeonghaseyo means hello or hi, yes you are correct!

If you think it means Good morning, Good afternoon, Good noon or Good evening, well, guess what? You are right!

So you see, Annyeong haseyo could actually mean any kind of greeting when you meet somebody in some random places. That’s how versatile it is.

In an informal setup, you can simply say “Annyeong” which basically conveys the same meaning as “Annyeonghaseyo” but less polite. Also, Annyeong can also mean Goodbye as an additional meaning.

But do you actually know the actual meaning of “Annyeong haseyo”?

This word actually is composed of two words “Annyeong” and “Haseyo”. Haseyo is a standard ending for words in korea to mean “to do” or “to be”. So basically, it means “to do Annyeong” or “To be Annyeong”.

The word “Annyeong” means “peace”. So if we have to literally translate it, when you say annyeonghaseyo, it’s actually wishing well to somebody “to be at peace”. If you say it with question mark, it means you are asking somebody “are you at peace?

So there you go. I hope I explained it well. Next time you say that greeting, you know the real meaning of that.

Annyeong!

Comments

  1. Tq u so much it is really now I know the real meaning of annyeong haseyo😊😊

    ReplyDelete
  2. Then do i reply- ''ne. Annyeonghaseyo'' or just ''Annyeonghaseyo''

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You can reply both.. Ne is basically Yes, so you can or can't add that

      Delete

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