Letter by letter
Common names use their usual Korean spelling. Other names are written by their sound, so a Korean friend may spell them a little differently.
Want to change a letter? Use the Korean Keyboard →
About writing your name in Korean
Korean doesn't translate names — it writes them by their sound in Hangul (한글), the Korean alphabet. Emma becomes 엠마, Michael becomes 마이클, Wilson becomes 윌슨. That is how your name would appear on a Korean name tag, a K-drama subtitle or a Korean ID.
Type your name and see it in Hangul straight away — together with how to say it, every letter explained, a Listen button, and a picture to save or share.
How to use it
- Type your first name, or your full name
- See it in Hangul, with the way a Korean would read it underneath
- Look at Letter by letter to see which Korean letters make each block
- Press Listen to hear it, Copy to paste it anywhere, or Save as a picture for a card to share
How Korean writes foreign names
- By sound, not by spelling. "Sean" sounds like "shawn", so it becomes 숀. "Stephen" and "Steven" are both 스티븐
- In syllable blocks. Each block is one beat: 엠·마 (Em-ma), 윌·슨 (Wil-son)
- An extra "eu" (ㅡ) for lone consonants. Korean syllables rarely end in s, f or d, so they get their own little block: Smith → 스미스 (seu-mi-seu)
- Some sounds don't exist in Korean. f becomes ㅍ (p), v becomes ㅂ (b), th becomes ㅅ (s), and r and l share one letter, ㄹ
- Your first name stays first. Korean names start with the family name, but foreign names keep their own order: Emma Wilson → 엠마 윌슨
Common names and other names
The tool knows the usual Korean spelling of about 300 common first names and surnames — Emma, Olivia, Liam, James, Smith, Garcia, Müller and many more — exactly as Koreans write them.
Other names are written by their sound, using the same rules Korean newspapers use for foreign names. The result is a good reading of your name, but English spelling is full of surprises, so a Korean friend may choose a slightly different spelling. You can change any letter with the Korean Keyboard.
Ideas
- A name tag or a phone case with your name in Hangul
- Your name in Korean for your K-pop fan account, a tattoo idea (ask a Korean speaker to check it first!) or a gift
- Learning Korean? Reading your own name is a perfect first exercise — and our TOPIK Mock Test app is below
Frequently asked questions
How do I write my name in Korean?
Type it in the box at the top. It is written in Hangul by its sound — for example Emma is 엠마 and Daniel is 대니얼 — and you see how to say it and each letter.
Is my Korean name a translation?
No. Names are not translated in Korean, they are written by their sound. Your name in Hangul still sounds like your name.
Why does my name have more syllables in Korean?
Korean syllables rarely end in sounds like s, f or d, so those sounds get their own syllable with a soft "eu" vowel. That is why Smith becomes 스미스, three blocks.
Is this the official spelling?
For about 300 common names, it is the spelling Koreans normally use. Other names are spelt by sound with the standard rules — a good reading, but check with a Korean speaker before printing it on something permanent.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Press Listen. Your device reads the Hangul with a Korean voice, if it has one installed.
Is my name uploaded?
No. Everything happens in your browser, on your own device.
Good to know
- The pronunciation line uses the official Revised Romanization, the way Korean road signs are written
- For a Korean-style name (a family name and a two-syllable given name), ask a Korean friend — that is a choice, not a spelling
- To type more Korean, use the Korean Keyboard
Related tools
- Korean Keyboard — type anything in Hangul
- Japanese Keyboard — your name in katakana
- Text to Speech — hear text read out
- Fancy Text Generator — stylish letters for your name
- Name Tag & Table Card Maker — print name tags
- Morse Code Translator — your name in Morse code
