Korean Romanization Converter — RR vs McCune–Reischauer

CONVERTER KOREAN LANGUAGE LEARNING ROMANIZATION
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By Checked against sources by , Founder & Architect, RECATOOLS Published Updated Last reviewed

Romanize Korean in Revised Romanization and McCune–Reischauer, with the pronunciation both are based on.

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Korean Romanization Converter — RR vs McCune–Reischauer

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Revised Romanization South Korea's official system since 2000 — road signs, textbooks, the passport rule —
McCune–Reischauer The Library of Congress version (ALA-LC 2009); the US and UK names boards use McCune–Reischauer for North Korean place names —
RR transliteration Letter by letter, reversible (RR §8) — for academic use —
Pronounced as The sound changes both systems spell (tensing, which neither writes, is not shown) —

Personal names

Names follow their own rules in both systems.
Revised Romanization
Han Boknam or Han Bok-nam
McCune–Reischauer (ALA-LC)
Han Pong-nam

RR writes a given name syllable by syllable, with no sound change between them (한복남 is Han Boknam, though it is said [한봉남]); the Library of Congress's McCune–Reischauer joins the syllables with hyphens and shows the change (Pong-nam). RR has never fixed spellings for family names, so the one above is the letter-for-letter reading: in practice almost every 김 is Kim and 이 is Lee — the Korean passport name romanizer shows how many passport holders chose each spelling.

📅 Research current as of 12 Oct 2026 · Sources: 국어의 로마자 표기법 (Revised Romanization), 문화체육관광부 고시 제2024-27호 of 23 May 2024 as published on law.go.kr, with the National Institute of Korean Language's English text — every example in it is a test case here; 표준 발음법 (Standard Pronunciation), 문화체육관광부 고시 제2017-13호, for the sound changes the RR notice leaves to it; Library of Congress, Korean Romanization and Word Division (ALA-LC, 2009), the McCune–Reischauer rules and Appendix 7 table; BGN/PCGN, Romanization of Korean for the DPRK.
Standards, published formulas, and reference data are revised over time — check against a current authoritative source before relying on these figures.

Everything runs in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere. Where a sound change depends on something the spelling cannot show, such as where a compound word joins, the notes name the place and give the other reading wherever the page can detect one.

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How to use the Korean romanization converter

1
Type or paste Korean

Words, place names or whole sentences. Spaces and punctuation are kept. Each row updates as you type: Revised Romanization, McCune–Reischauer, the letter-by-letter transliteration, and the pronunciation both main systems are built on.

2
Set the options

Capitalise proper names (untick it for ordinary words and sentences); tick "administrative unit" for addresses such as 충청북도 or 인왕리, which are hyphenated; untick "noun or name" for verbs, where RR spells the aspirated sound (잡혀 japyeo). A numbered 동 or 가 (종로 2가) is recognised as an address without the setting.

3
Read the notes

Some sound changes cannot be seen in the spelling — an ㄴ inserted where two words form a compound, or ㄴㄹ read as nn instead of ll. The notes under the table name the places the page can detect, with the other reading. It cannot detect them all: a final before a word of its own, as in 겉옷 [거돋], is recognised only before a few such words (없, 옷, 있, 어치, 어미).

4
Names go in the panel below

Family and given names follow separate rules in both systems. Enter them in the Personal names panel.

Revised Romanization and McCune–Reischauer: two systems, one pronunciation

Two systems dominate the romanization of Korean. McCune–Reischauer was published in 1939 by George McCune and Edwin Reischauer, who designed it for English-speaking readers. It uses breves (ŏ, ŭ) and apostrophes (k', ch'). Revised Romanization was introduced by South Korea's Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2000 and aims to use "no symbols except Roman letters" so far as possible, so it has no diacritics and no apostrophes. That is why South Korean signs read Busan, Gyeongbokgung and Jeju, while older books say Pusan, Kyŏngbokkung and Cheju. The Revised Romanization rules in force are 문화체육관광부 고시 제2024-27호 of 23 May 2024, as published on law.go.kr; the 2014 notice changed one example (굳히다 guchida replaced 맞히다 machida) and the 2024 one renamed a category, so the rules themselves are still those of 2000.

"McCune–Reischauer" is also not one system. The 1939 paper writes 시 as si; South Korea's own 1984 version (문교부 고시 제84-1호) writes it shi, writes ㅝ as wo, and hyphenates a given name with no sound change across the hyphen (김복남 Kim Pok-nam); the Library of Congress's version (ALA-LC, 2009) writes si and shows the sound change (Pong-nam). This page follows the Library of Congress version.

Both spell the sound, not the letters

The part most converters get wrong is that both systems romanize pronunciation. Korean consonants change when they meet: 종로 is pronounced [종노], so it is Jongno, not Jongro; 신라 is [실라], so Silla; 독립문 is [동님문], so Dongnimmun. This page runs those rules — liaison, nasalisation, lateralisation, palatalisation and the ㅎ rules — before it spells anything, and shows the pronounced form in its own row so you can see why each spelling comes out as it does. Where the romanization rules are silent on a sound, the page takes it from South Korea's Standard Pronunciation rules (표준 발음법): ㄺ before ㄱ, for example, is [ㄱ] in the noun 닭고기 (dakgogi) but [ㄹ] in the adjective form 맑게 (malge).

"When Korean sound values change as in the following cases, the results of those changes are transcribed as follows" — National Institute of Korean Language, Romanization of Korean, §3(1)

Among the examples that follow are 신라 [실라] Silla and 신문로 [신문노] Sinmunno: the same letters ㄴㄹ, read as ll in one and nn in the other. Nothing in the spelling tells the two apart, so the page reads nn before suffixes such as 로 and 량, ll everywhere else, and lists the other reading.

Where the systems differ

Apart from the spelling of vowels (eo / ŏ, eu / ŭ), MR writes the plain consonants ㄱ ㄷ ㅂ ㅈ as k t p ch at the start of a word and, in most positions between voiced sounds, as g d b j, so 부산 is Pusan but 갈비 is kalbi. RR always uses g d b j before a vowel. The ㅎ rules differ too: in a noun, RR keeps the h after ㄱ, ㄷ and ㅂ (묵호 Mukho) but spells the aspirated sound in a verb (잡혀 japyeo); the Library of Congress always keeps it (잡히면 chaphimyŏn). Addresses divide the two sharply: RR puts a hyphen before the unit and does not spell sound changes across it (인왕리 Inwang-ri), while MR shows them (황곡리 Hwanggong-ni). After a number, RR also prints how the number is read — 종로 2가 is Jongno 2(i)-ga — while the Library of Congress writes Chongno 2-ka.

What a converter cannot know

A few sound changes depend on meaning. Where two words form a compound, an ㄴ may be inserted: 학여울 (학 + 여울) is pronounced [항녀울], Hangnyeoul, and 알약 is allyak, but 먹이 is never [멍니] and 절약 is jeoryak. The page inserts the ㄴ by default only in the compounds the official rules print with it, 학여울 and 알약 among them; anywhere else it reads the word without the ㄴ and lists the inserted reading. ㄴ followed by ㄹ is usually ll, except before certain suffixes (생산량 saengsannyang). And the Library of Congress writes a tensed consonant as voiceless where the dictionary has it, which the table rules capture for most Sino-Korean words but not all.

Korean names across Southeast Asia

Korean names reach readers in Southeast Asia in whichever romanization the source used — a passport, a K-pop agency, a library catalogue — and the same person can appear as Lee, Yi or Rhee. Knowing which system produced a spelling helps match records, search catalogues, and write addresses for mail and forms.

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A 1939 system in several versions, a 2000 system on the signs, and the apostrophe that tells ㄴㄱ from ㅇ

01

McCune–Reischauer was published in 1939 in the Transactions of the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, volume XXIX.

02

Revised Romanization was created by South Korea's Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2000. The rules in force are notice 문화체육관광부 고시 제2024-27호 of 23 May 2024 (law.go.kr); the 2014 notice before it changed a single example.

03

The US and UK geographic names boards switched to Revised Romanization for South Korea in 2011 and still use McCune–Reischauer for North Korean place names.

04

There is more than one McCune–Reischauer: the 1939 original and the Library of Congress's 2009 rules write 시 as si, while South Korea's 1984 version wrote shi.

05

Revised Romanization's first principle is to use no symbols except Roman letters "so far as possible", which is why it has no ŏ, ŭ or apostrophes.

06

Both systems spell pronunciation: 종로 is Jongno (RR) and Chongno (MR), because it is said [종노].

07

In MR an apostrophe separates ㄴ + ㄱ (잔금 chan'gŭm) from ㅇ (장음 changŭm), and marks the aspirates ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅊ.

08

The Library of Congress romanizes the surnames 李 and 異 as Yi, however they are written in Hangul.

09

RR has a separate letter-for-letter mode for academic use, so that romanized text can be turned back into Hangul: 없었습니다 is eobs-eoss-seubnida.

10

RR allows a hyphen where a reading is ambiguous, as in 중앙 Jung-ang and 해운대 Hae-undae, but does not require one.

Frequently asked questions

  • Revised Romanization, introduced in 2000. It is used on road signs, in textbooks, and as the basis for passport names. The rules in force are notice 문화체육관광부 고시 제2024-27호 (23 May 2024). North Korea has published its own rules; the US and UK geographic names boards use McCune–Reischauer for North Korean places.

  • Because Korean romanization follows pronunciation. After ㅇ, ㄹ is pronounced ㄴ, so 종로 is said [종노] and written Jongno. The "Pronounced as" row shows the sound changes behind every spelling.

  • Pusan is McCune–Reischauer, which writes ㅂ at the start of a word as p. Revised Romanization writes it as b. Both describe the same pronunciation.

  • ŏ is ㅓ and ŭ is ㅡ. The apostrophe marks the aspirated consonants — k' t' p' ch' for ㅋ ㅌ ㅍ ㅊ — and separates ㄴ + ㄱ (n'g) from ㅇ (ng).

  • Some sound changes depend on where a compound word joins or on a word's origin, which the spelling does not show. The page picks a default and lists the other reading. For an inserted ㄴ the default follows the official rules where they print the word — 학여울 is Hangnyeoul, as the rules give it, with Hagyeoul listed — and is "no ㄴ" everywhere else.

  • Tick "administrative unit". In RR, units such as 도, 시, 군, 구, 읍, 면, 리, 동 and 가 follow a hyphen with no sound change across it (인왕리 Inwang-ri). In MR the sound change is shown (황곡리 Hwanggong-ni). After a number, RR adds the number's reading in brackets (봉천1동 Bongcheon 1(il)-dong, 종로 2가 Jongno 2(i)-ga); the Library of Congress does not (Chongno 2-ka).

  • In RR, family name first, then the given name written as one word with no sound changes between its syllables (한복남 Han Boknam), optionally with a hyphen (Han Bok-nam). In the Library of Congress's McCune–Reischauer, the given name's syllables are hyphenated and sound changes are shown (Han Pong-nam); the 1939 original wrote the two syllables together, and South Korea's 1984 version hyphenated them without the sound change. Family names have no fixed RR spelling, so customary forms like Kim, Lee and Park are normal.

  • The Library of Congress version (ALA-LC romanization tables, 2009). The 1939 original and South Korea's 1984 version differ from it in places — the 1984 version writes 시 as shi and ㅝ as wo, for example — so a spelling from an older book can be correct McCune–Reischauer and still differ from this page.

  • A letter-for-letter mode of Revised Romanization for academic use, where the romanized text must convert back to Hangul unambiguously. It ignores pronunciation: 독립 is doglib, not dongnip.

  • RR does not write tensing at all (압구정 is Apgujeong). MR shows it where its table rules produce it, but a few tensed words are only in the dictionary (문법, munpŏp) and cannot be detected from the spelling.

  • No. Everything runs in your browser, with no network request.

Method & sources

How it computes

A pronunciation pass per 표준 발음법 (liaison, ㅎ rules, coda neutralisation incl. ㄺ by 제11항, nasalisation, ㄴ/ㄹ, palatalisation), then spelling: Revised Romanization per 문화체육관광부 고시 제2024-27호 §2–§3 (numbered units as Jongno 2(i)-ga) and the §8 transliteration table; McCune–Reischauer per ALA-LC 2009 rules 4–12 and its Appendix 7 position table (voicing of ㄱ ㄷ ㅂ ㅈ by the preceding sound, apostrophes, ㅎ rules 7(a)–(g), double finals rule 8).

What this tool implements

  • Every example the Revised Romanization notice prints is a test case — 98, read from the National Institute of Korean Language's text of it; the page reproduces 95 with the setting the example's section calls for, and the other 3 are the shortened unit forms the notice permits (청주시 Cheongju), for which it gives the full form (Cheongju-si). The suite also holds the Library of Congress's ALA-LC 2009 McCune–Reischauer examples and 표준 발음법's own examples: 411 checks.
  • ⚠️ Both systems spell pronunciation, so the converter runs the sound-change rules before spelling, and shows the pronounced form in its own row. Where the RR notice is silent on a sound, the rule comes from 표준 발음법 (문화체육관광부 고시 제2017-13호): ㄺ before ㄱ is [ㄱ] in a noun (닭고기 dakgogi) and [ㄹ] in a verb or adjective stem (맑게 malge), and a final before a vowel-initial word of its own is neutralised first (겉옷 [거돋], 맛없다 [마덥따]).
  • ⚠️ Where the pronunciation depends on something the spelling cannot show, the page picks a default and lists the other reading: ㄴ-insertion at a compound boundary (inserted by default only in compounds the rules print with it — 학여울 Hangnyeoul, 알약 allyak — and offered elsewhere), ㄴ+ㄹ as ll or nn (신라 Silla / 생산량 saengsannyang), a noun or a verb before ㅎ in RR (묵호 Mukho / 잡혀 japyeo), the Library of Congress's t/ch after ㄹ versus the soft consonant of native and loan words (율동 yultong / 서울대 Sŏuldae), and the prefix 웃 versus the verb 웃다. A final before a word of its own is detected only before 없, 옷, 있, 어치 and 어미.
  • Addresses follow each system's own rule: RR hyphenates the administrative unit and writes no sound change across it (인왕리 Inwang-ri), and after a number prints the number's reading (봉천1동 Bongcheon 1(il)-dong, 종로 2가 Jongno 2(i)-ga); ALA-LC shows the sound change (황곡리 Hwanggong-ni), treats 북도/남도 as the unit (경상북도 Kyŏngsang-bukto), and after a number shows neither change nor reading (Chongno 2-ka). Special terms (특별시, 광역시, 특별자치도) are not split.
  • Capitals: RR §3(3) capitalises the first letter of a proper name, so the setting capitalises each word and never a syllable that a digit or Latin letter runs into (2026년 2026nyeon).
  • Names: RR per the notice §3(4), with no sound change between given-name syllables (한복남 Han Boknam); family names are left outside the notice ("성의 표기는 따로 정한다"). MR follows the Library of Congress (ALA-LC rule 9): hyphenated with the change shown (Yi Sŏng-min), 李/異 always Yi, and an initial ㄹ in a given name kept as r (Kim Ri-na). The 1939 original and South Korea's 1984 version (문교부 고시 제84-1호) differ from it in places — 1984 writes 시 as shi — and the page says which version it follows.

Sources

Abridged — the full review record for this tool runs longer than the list above.

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