16 Comments
454
mistery of mr Garam finally solved - he was my grandpa all the time. sneaky sneaky!
- 71
When native Koreans speak, they are known to exhibit what's often referred to as "우리 mentality". Essentially, it means that when they speak about certain things, they'll do so in a collective sense rather than an individual sense as far as possession is concerned.
In contrast, in other countries, when people talk about their family members or possessions, the word "my" is used a lot. Native Koreans however, use the word "our" instead. For example: 1) Koreans don't usually say "my wife", they'll say "우리 아내" meaning "our wife". 2) Koreans don't usually say "my husband", they'll say "우리 남편" meaning "our husband". 3) Koreans don't usually say "my house", they'll say "우리 집/댁" meaning "our house". Keep in mind that this is true regardless of who the speaker is talking to.
Duolingo MODs, I think the context surrounding this sentence warrants an explanation of Korean culture or at least a review of it in the event that was discussed in a previous unit.
I hope this helps.
It says 우리 so shouldn't it be "Our"? Or would using 제 for "My" be grammatical incorrect?
As a direct translation it is correct, but since in Korea everyone is "family" and you don't just call your actual siblings as 언니/누나/형/어빠. This is kind of similar, referring to your grandparents as everyones grandparents
- 71
That's correct. If you're speaking to someone who's older than you or who's superior to you at work or if you're a customer in a place of business, then "성함" should be used instead of "이름" You'll also see "성함" on forms instead of "이름" a lot, too.
Regardless of the collective mentality of Korean families, 'our' should also be accepted because if siblings were next to each other talking to a friend, it would definitely make sense to translate it to 'our.'
