생일 축하해요
saeng'il chukhahaeyo[sʰɛŋiɭ t͡ɕʰukʰa̠ɦɛjo]
In Korean, birthday wishes is translated as 생일 축하해요 (saeng'il chukhahaeyo).
This phrase is used to congratulate someone on their birthday.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 생일 (birthday) and 축하해요 (congratulate/celebrate).
Which one should you use?
When speaking to someone much older or of much higher status, the word 생일 is replaced with the honorific 생신.
How does it change in a sentence?
Dropping the 요 at the end of 생일 축하해 makes the phrase informal, used with friends or younger people. Conversely, using 축하드립니다 instead of 축하해요 in the phrase 생일 축하드립니다 makes it highly formal and polite, suitable for elders or superiors.
How do you pronounce it?
saeng'il chukhahaeyo
Did you know?
- Korean culture historically used the 'East Asian age reckoning' system, where a baby was considered one year old at birth.
- In Korea, the first birthday, called 돌 (dol), is a major milestone and often involves a ceremony where the child picks an object to predict their future career.
- While 생일 축하해요 is standard, many Koreans celebrate birthdays by eating a specific seaweed soup called 미역국 (miyeok-guk) to honor the day their mother gave birth.
Examples in context
- 생일 축하해요!saeng-il chuk-ha-hae-yo!Happy birthday!
Example conversation
Jieun meets Minjun at a cafe to celebrate his birthday.
- 지은 Ji-eun민준 씨, 생일 축하해요!Min-jun ssi, saeng-il chuk-ha-hae-yo!Minjun, happy birthday!
- 민준 Min-jun고마워요, 지은 씨.go-ma-wo-yo, Ji-eun ssi.Thank you, Jieun.
- 지은 Ji-eun선물도 가져왔어요.seon-mul-do ga-jyeo-wa-sseo-yo.I brought a gift too.
- 민준 Min-jun정말 고마워요!jeong-mal go-ma-wo-yo!Thank you so much!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 생일 축하해요, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
