Your first encounter with the Korean keyboard may be challenging. But if you master it, you can confidently write to a pen pal, communicate online or on social media and become more familiar with the Korean writing system.
Have a look at my short guide to help you get some Korean typing practice.
Named for the Korean onomatopoeia for typing, this website offers a simple, cute and colorful interface for learning how to type on a Korean keyboard.
The entire site is in Korean, but it’s not particularly difficult to navigate. This site is best suited for those just starting out with their Korean typing practice or those who aren’t very quick with typing in general.
One character is shown and a single key must be pressed per turn. There are illustrated hands that tell you which finger you should use.
While it won’t push your finger dexterity and speed to the limits, this site does focus on deliberate and careful typing so you get thoroughly acquainted with the keys and characters.
Memrise offers a structured course to help you learn the basics of typing in Korean, so this is a good choice if you’re just starting out. To access the content, you’ll need to sign up for an account, but it’s free!
There are ten sections covering the whole methodology of Korean typing, so you can digest it slowly and practice each aspect before putting it all together. This is a good resource if you prefer learning one step at a time to build a strong foundation.
TypeRacer is an award-winning platform for users who want to compete in typing races. You’ll be typing quotes from various media and honing your speedy fingers, all while facing off against other people!
This site is designed to be educational and offers 50 different languages. Not only will it give you a fun yet challenging way to practice typing in Korean, but you’ll no doubt boost your typed words-per-minute rate.
10FastFingers gives you the option to practice on your own or go the multiplayer route and compete with others.
The individual practice consists of timed tests based on the top words used in the language, with the advanced level choosing from the top 1000 words. The advanced level requires you to have completed at least 10 normal tests and have a log-in account.
Meanwhile, the multiplayer option is much like TypeRacer’s competitive format with a score leaderboard.
There’s even room for customization as you can make your own typing test and pick your own text! This will definitely add a bit of variety to your practice.
How to Install a Korean Keyboard
There are two major forms of Korean keyboards:
두벌식 (du-beol-sik, or 2-beolsik). The 두벌식keyboard has consonants on the left and vowels on the right. This is the standard keyboard for Koreans and is more widely used.
세벌식 (se-beol-sik, or 3-beolsik). The 세벌식keyboard has syllable-initial consonants (those that can appear in front of a vowel) on the right and vowels, consonant clusters and syllable-final consonants (those that can appear after a vowel) on the left. Of the two keyboards, this is the more ergonomic version, although it’s not as common as the 두벌식keyboard.
How to Set Up a Korean Keyboard on a Mac
Go to System Preferences located on the Apple icon in the corner.
Click on Keyboard.
Go to the Input Sources tab.
Click the + symbol under the left sidebar, which will list all the language keyboards currently set up.
Scroll down to the Korean option and choose your preferred keyboard type.
To quickly swap your keyboards later on, select the “Show input menu in menu bar” option. You’ll see a flag icon on the menu bar that you can click to change your keyboard layout and language.
How to Set Up a Korean Keyboard on a PC (Windows 10)
From the Start menu, go to Settings.
Click Time & Language.
Click Region & Language.
Click the Korean option.
Click Add a Keyboard.
Choose the Korean keyboard layout you prefer.
To swap between your English and Korean keyboards, press and hold the Windows key, then press the space bar. You can then toggle between your keyboard layouts.
Note that instructions may be slightly different depending on the Windows version you’re using. You can get those instructions easily from Microsoft’s support page.
The general rule is that a consonant is followed by a vowel, and that vowel can then be followed by either a consonant or vowel. For typing, it’s useful to have a good understanding of how Korean character combinations work and pay special attention to vowels!
When typing Korean, you’ll notice that characters will automatically combine. After you type a syllable and move on to the next, the starting consonant for that new syllable may automatically appear at the bottom of your first one. For example, if you’re typing 가족 (gajok, which means “family”) and just finished typing out 가 , the ㅈ character will first appear right under it to spell out 갖.
Don’t be alarmed! This happens because any given Korean syllable can have more than two characters, so the computer won’t know immediately what you want to type. But if you keep typing, the system will automatically correct itself and fix the words accordingly.
Use a Korean Keyboard Cover or Sticker
For very diligent learners, a Korean keyboard cover or sticker can be a fantastic method to help you memorize your keyboard.
Korean keyboard covers like these can simply be laid over your existing keyboard.
You can also put Korean keyboard stickers like these onto your QWERTY keyboard. This is definitely the cheapest option, although you have to make sure you put the stickers in the right place!
Korean typing practice can be both challenging and rewarding. You’ll fumble and hit “Backspace” or “Delete” many times before you get faster and more confident. But with enough diligence and practice, your fingers will be dancing over the keys in no time.
And if you’re looking for new ways to improve your Korean, give FluentU‘s free trial a go.
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