[Korean Culture & Language] Regional accents

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There are Californian English, Midwestern American English, Southern American English, etc.

People from the South have one of the most well-known accents in the country, thanks to their distinct drawl and the "y'all." Certain terms that are used in the South are not used in the rest of the country. Outsiders may be confused when a familiar term has a completely different meaning when pronounced in the South. For example, Coca-Cola is known as "Coke" in most regions of the United States. However, in many parts of the South, coke (spelled with a lowercase C) is just a general term for soft drinks, like "soda" or "pop". Likewise, southerners refer to 'barbecue' as a 'cookout.'

Some regions in Korea like 경상도(Gyeongsang-do), 전라도 (Jeolla-do), 충청도 (Chungcheong-do), and others, also have regional accents or dialects called ‘사투리(Satoori)’.

The video below is the song ‘에헤이(Eh Hey)’ by 쌈디(Simon Dominic).


The lyrics are in 경상도 사투리(the regional accent of Gyeongsang province). So, many Koreans who do not live in the Gyeongsang area or who do not speak 사투리 find the song perplexing.

The song starts out with the lines ‘와 나를 못 잡아 먹어서 안달이고’. ‘와’ is the Gyeongsang dialect for ‘왜,’ which means ‘why’. ‘안달이고’ is the Gyeongsang accent for ‘안달이야,’ which means ‘fuss/eager’.

‘와 나를 못 잡아 먹어서 안달이고’ literally translates to ‘Why are you so eager to prey on me?’. It means ‘Why do you always provoke a quarrel with me?’ or ‘Why do you always try to pick on me?’. If someone spoke the statement to a Korean from another region, they would be perplexed or laugh.

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[Korean Culture & Language] Impulsiveness and MBTI

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[Korean Culture & Language] Washing one's Identity

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