Korean Alphabet A to Z: Hangul Chart for Beginners

If you are looking for a Korean alphabet A to Z chart, there is one important thing to understand first:

Korean does not have direct A, B, C through Z equivalents.

Korean uses its own alphabet called Hangul (한글).

However, when Korean represents English names and loanwords, some Hangul letters and syllables are used as the closest available sounds.

That is what the A-to-Z chart below shows.

TL;DR

There is no true one-to-one Korean version of the English alphabet.

Instead:

• Korean uses Hangul
• Hangul has 24 basic letters
• English sounds are approximated with Korean consonants and vowels
• letters such as F, V, R, L, Z, and X do not have perfect Korean equivalents

If you only want the A-to-Z chart, start here.

A to Z Korean Alphabet Chart

The chart below shows the closest Hangul sound or spelling commonly used when representing English words.

It is not a literal translation of the English alphabet.

The important phrase here is:

closest Hangul sound

For example, English F does not have an exact Korean equivalent.

Korean commonly uses ㅍ, which is closer to an aspirated p sound.

Likewise, English V is often approximated with ㅂ, because Korean does not have the same English V sound.

Why There Is No True Korean A to Z

English and Korean use different sound systems.

English has 26 alphabet letters:

A–Z

Korean uses Hangul letters such as:

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅇ

and:

ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ

The sounds do not always match.

For example:

English R and L

Korean commonly uses:

ㄹ

for sounds that English speakers may hear as either R or L.

So both letters are represented with the same Hangul consonant.

English F

Korean has no exact F consonant.

It is normally approximated with:

ㅍ

For example, foreign words containing F are adapted to fit Korean pronunciation.

English V

There is also no exact Korean equivalent of English V.

It is commonly approximated using:

ㅂ

English Z

Modern Korean does not have a native consonant identical to the English Z sound.

Foreign Z sounds are usually adapted with ㅈ or another spelling depending on the word.

This is why an A-to-Z Korean chart should be used as a sound guide, not as an exact alphabet conversion table.

Examples of English Letters in Korean Words

A few examples make the idea easier to understand.

A

A common Korean vowel close to English “a” is:

ㅏ

For example:

아

B

The closest basic Hangul consonant is:

ㅂ

For example:

바

G

A common approximation is:

ㄱ

For example:

가

Depending on its position, ㄱ can sound somewhere between what English speakers think of as G and K.

L and R

Both are commonly represented by:

ㄹ

For example:

라

The Korean ㄹ sound is not exactly the same as either English R or L.

M

The closest equivalent is:

ㅁ

For example:

마

N

The closest equivalent is:

ㄴ

For example:

나

S

The closest basic consonant is:

ㅅ

For example:

사

The 24 Basic Hangul Letters

If your goal is actually to learn Korean rather than only convert English letters, these are the letters you should memorize.

14 basic consonants

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ

For a deeper explanation, see our Korean consonants guide.

10 basic vowels

ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ ㅡ ㅣ

For more detailed vowel practice, continue with our Hangul vowels guide.

You can also use our interactive Korean pronunciation and writing tool to hear Korean letters, practice their pronunciation, and learn how to write them.

How Korean Letters Combine

Hangul letters are not normally written one after another like English letters.

Instead, they combine into syllable blocks.

For example:

ㄱ + ㅏ = 가

And:

ㅎ + ㅏ + ㄴ = 한

This is how the word:

한국

is built.

It contains:

한 + 국

and means Korea.

So Korean letters are alphabetic, but they are arranged into square-looking syllable blocks.

Why English Names Look Different in Korean

Korean has to adapt foreign names to the Korean sound system.

That means an English name is usually not converted letter by letter.

Instead, Korean tries to represent the pronunciation.

For example:

Notice that Korean sometimes adds vowel sounds.

For example:

David → 데이비드

That happens because Korean syllables follow different sound patterns from English.

So if you want to write your name in Korean, focus on:

how the name sounds

not:

how each English letter is spelled

Why Korean Adds Extra Vowels to English Words

English often places several consonants together.

Korean syllables usually need a vowel structure around consonants.

That is why English words may become longer when written in Hangul.

For example:

Mike → 마이크

The Korean spelling is based on how the name can be represented naturally using Hangul syllables.

This is also common with loanwords.

For example:

computer → 컴퓨터

and:

coffee → 커피

The Korean forms reflect the Korean sound system rather than English spelling.

Is Romanization the Same as the Korean Alphabet?

No.

Romanization writes Korean sounds using Latin letters.

For example:

한국

may be written as:

Hanguk

But Hanguk is not Korean writing.

The actual Korean word is:

한국

Romanization is useful for beginners, but it should be temporary.

Try to move toward:

Hangul → sound

instead of:

Hangul → English letters → sound

24 Letters or 40 Letters?

You may see both numbers online.

The 24 basic Hangul letters are:

• 14 consonants
• 10 vowels

Modern Korean also includes:

• 5 tense consonants
• 11 additional vowel forms

So learner charts may show:

19 consonants + 21 vowels = 40 forms

For a beginner, start with the basic 24.

You do not need all 40 before you can start reading simple Korean.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a Korean alphabet from A to Z?

Not literally.

Korean uses Hangul rather than the Roman A–Z alphabet. An A-to-Z chart can only show the closest Korean sounds used to approximate English letters.

What is the Korean alphabet called?

The Korean alphabet is called Hangul (한글).

How many letters are in the Korean alphabet?

Beginners normally start with 24 basic letters:

• 14 consonants
• 10 vowels

Modern Korean also uses additional tense consonants and compound vowels.

What is the Korean equivalent of A?

The vowel ㅏ is commonly romanized as a and is one of the closest basic Hangul sounds.

However, English letter names and English vowel sounds can be represented differently depending on the word.

What is the Korean equivalent of B?

The closest basic Hangul consonant is ㅂ, which can sound between English B and P depending on context.

What is the Korean equivalent of R and L?

Both are commonly represented with ㄹ.

Its pronunciation changes depending on its position and is not exactly the same as either English R or English L.

Does Korean have F and V?

Not as exact native equivalents.

English F is generally approximated with ㅍ, while V is commonly approximated with ㅂ in foreign words.

Can I convert my English name letter by letter into Korean?

Usually no.

Names should be written according to pronunciation, not one English letter at a time.

For example:

Mike → 마이크

not a separate Korean symbol for M + I + K + E.

What Should You Learn Next?

If your goal is only to understand the A-to-Z comparison, the chart above is enough.

If you want to actually read Korean, continue with:

• Korean Consonants
• Hangul Vowels
• Korean Pronunciation Guide
• Basic Phrases in Korean

These topics are more useful than trying to force every English letter into a Korean equivalent.

Final Thoughts

There is no true Korean version of A through Z.

Hangul is its own alphabet with its own sound system.

The A-to-Z chart is useful when you want to understand how English sounds are approximately represented in Korean, especially for:

• names
• loanwords
• brands
• foreign terms

But if you want to learn Korean properly, focus on the 24 basic Hangul letters rather than memorizing English-to-Korean substitutions.

Start with:

ㄱ ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ ㅁ ㅂ ㅅ ㅇ ㅈ ㅊ ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅎ

and:

ㅏ ㅑ ㅓ ㅕ ㅗ ㅛ ㅜ ㅠ ㅡ ㅣ

Then begin combining them into syllables such as:

가, 나, 다, 한, 국

That is the point where the Korean alphabet stops looking like a collection of symbols and starts becoming readable.