Busan Dialect: 18 Common Busan Korean Phrases and What They Mean

Busan is Korea's second-largest city, on the southeast coast. Its speech belongs to the Gyeongsang dialect, which about 13 million people speak across the old Gyeongsang provinces. Daegu and other cities in the north of the region sound a little different, so this list keeps to forms you hear in Busan and the south.

How Busan Speech Changes Standard Korean

Busan speech mostly changes how sentences end. Questions end in 나, 노, 가, or 고, and polite sentences end in 예 or 이소.

Endings and Questions

Standard Korean uses the same ending for every kind of question. Busan speech has two pairs. On a verb, 나 asks yes or no and 노 asks for details. On a noun, 가 and 고 do the same jobs.

～나?

Asks a yes-or-no questionStandard Korean: ～니?집에 가나? means "Are you going home?" The answer is yes or no, so the question ends in 나.

～노?

Asks a question with where, what, why, or whoStandard Korean: ～니?어데 가노? means "Where are you going?" 누가 means "who", so 누가 뭐라 카노? is right. TV actors faking the accent often get this wrong and say 누가 뭐라 카나?

～가?

Asks a yes-or-no question about a nounStandard Korean: ～이야?이건 니 책이가? means "Is this your book?"

～고?

Asks a question about a noun with a question wordStandard Korean: ～이야?이기 뭐고? means "What is this?" and 누구 책이고? means "Whose book is it?"

～예

Makes a sentence politeStandard Korean: ～요여기 있어예 means "Here it is." KoreanClass101 says people of every age use it today.

～이소

Politely asks someone to do somethingStandard Korean: ～세요The entrance to Jagalchi fish market says 오이소, 보이소, 사이소: "come, look, buy."

～데이

Adds a warm, friendly endingStandard Korean: ～다감사합니데이 is a friendly thank-you.

아이가

Isn't it? You know?Standard Korean: 아니야?It comes after a statement to ask the listener to agree. 이거 내인대 있던 거 아이가? means "Wasn't this mine?"

머라카노?

What are you saying?Standard Korean: 뭐라고 하니?This short form is used across the whole region. You will also see it written 뭐라 카노.

Everyday Words

Some of these are standard words said the Busan way, like 어데 for 어디. Others, like 억수로 and 파이다, are words of their own.

어데

WhereStandard Korean: 어디어데 가노? means "Where are you going?"

와

WhyStandard Korean: 왜와 이라노? means "What's wrong?" In Seoul you'd say 왜 그래?

묵다

To eatStandard Korean: 먹다밥 뭇나? means "Have you eaten?" People say it as a friendly hello.

억수로

Very, reallyStandard Korean: 아주억수로 맛있다 means "It's really tasty."

쪼매

A littleStandard Korean: 조금You'll also hear it in Gangwon and South Jeolla.

단디

Carefully, properlyStandard Korean: 단단히단디 해라 means "Do it properly" or "Take care."

파이다

Not good, no goodStandard Korean: 별로다If a friend asks about a shirt and you say 파이다, you don't like it.

찌짐

A savory pancakeStandard Korean: 전A green onion pancake, 파전 in standard Korean, is a kind of 찌짐.

할매

GrandmaStandard Korean: 할머니People in Gangwon, South Jeolla, and South Chungcheong say it too.

How Busan Speech Sounds

Busan speech uses pitch, how high or low a syllable is, more than Seoul speech does. Take 말이: with a high 말 it means "the horse," and with a low 말 it means "the words." In many parts of the region, people also say ㅆ like ㅅ, so 쌌다 and 샀다 sound the same.

Minji Teaches Korean's 6 Must-Know Busan Dialect Expressions has KoreanBilly saying 머라카노 out loud, and DKDKTV's Busan Dialect 101 covers the basics for foreigners.

Practice Busan Korean in Lessons

When you pick Korean in Bubblegum, you can choose Busan Korean as your dialect. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes each lesson in Busan speech at your level, and friends in her stories ask 밥 뭇나? and 어데 가노?

DKDKTV is one of the channels in Best Ways to Learn Busan Korean, which also covers books and classes. Ferries from Busan run to Fukuoka in Japan, whose dialect is in our Hakata dialect phrases.

Common Questions