Editing Korean language (section)

===Vowels===
[[File:Korean_short_vowel_chart.svg|thumb|[[Short vowel]] chart]]
[[File:Korean_long_vowel_chart.svg|thumb|[[Long vowel]] chart]]

The standard Korean monophthongs and their pronunciation principles<ref name="korean.go.kr">{{cite web |script-title=ko:표준어 규정-표준 발음법 |url=https://korean.go.kr/kornorms/regltn/regltnView.do?regltn_code=0002&regltn_no=346#a346 |website=한국어 어문 규범 |publisher=[[National Institute of Korean Language]] |access-date=1 March 2025}}</ref> are as follows:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Monophthongs
|{{lang|ko|ㅏ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/a/}}{{ref|ㅏ|[A]}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅓ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/ʌ/}} or {{IPA|/ə/}}{{ref|ㅓ|[B]}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅗ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/o/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅜ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/u/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅡ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/ɯ/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅣ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/i/}}<br />{{IPA|/e/}} {{lang|ko|ㅔ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/ɛ/}} {{lang|ko|ㅐ}},&nbsp;{{IPA|/ø/}} {{lang|ko|ㅚ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/y/}} {{lang|ko|ㅟ}}
|-
!Vowels preceded by intermediaries,<br />or diphthongs
|{{lang|ko|ㅑ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/ja/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅕ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/jʌ/}} or {{IPA|/jə/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅛ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/jo/}}<br />{{lang|ko|ㅠ}}&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;{{IPA|/ju/}}<br />{{IPA|/je/}} {{lang|ko|ㅖ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/jɛ/}} {{lang|ko|ㅒ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/we/}} {{lang|ko|ㅞ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/wɛ/}} {{lang|ko|ㅙ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/wa/}} {{lang|ko|ㅘ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/ɰi/}} {{lang|ko|ㅢ}}, &nbsp;{{IPA|/wʌ/}} {{lang|ko|ㅝ}}
|}
{{note|ㅏ|[A]}} {{lang|ko|ㅏ}} is closer to a [[near-open central vowel]] ({{IPA|[ɐ]}}), though {{angbr|a}} is still used for tradition.

{{note|ㅓ|[B]}} ㅓ is generally pronounced as [ə] when it becomes a long vowel.

However, in Korea, with the exception of older generations in certain regions, most people neither pronounce nor distinguish clearly between the two monophthongs 'ㅐ' (ae) and 'ㅔ' (e). Similarly, 'ㅟ' and 'ㅚ' are sometimes pronounced as [wi] and [we] respectively.<ref name="korean.go.kr"/> The demographic that maintains monophthongal realizations of 'ㅟ' and 'ㅚ' is reportedly limited to elderly speakers in the Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and Chungcheong provinces. The official standard pronunciation guidelines acknowledge this variation by permitting both monophthongal and diphthongal pronunciations of these vowels.<ref>{{cite web |script-title=ko:모음체계 |url=https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0078687 |website=[[Encyclopedia of Korean Culture]] |access-date=1 March 2025}}</ref>

In South Korea, while the distinction between long and short vowels is not clearly pronounced in contemporary speech, this distinction is maintained in standard language norms for reasons of tradition and semantic differentiation.<ref name="korean.go.kr"/>