캘리포니아
Kaelliponia[kʰɛʎʎipʰo̞nia̠]
In Korean, the US state California can be expressed as 캘리포니아 (Kaelliponia) or 가주.
Meaning: US state (name)
Ways to say it
| Korean | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 캘리포니아 | Kaelliponia | [kʰɛʎʎipʰo̞nia̠] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) [kʰe̞ʎʎipʰo̞nia̠] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
| 가주 | Gaju | [ka̠d͡ʑu] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
Which one should you use?
캘리포니아 is the most common way to refer to the state in everyday conversation and media. 가주 is used primarily in formal contexts, such as news headlines or academic writing.
How do you pronounce it?
Kaelliponia
Did you know?
- The formal term 가주 is a contraction where 가 comes from the Chinese character for 'add' or 'increase' and 주 means 'state'.
- If you see the characters 加州 in a Korean newspaper, you are looking at a shortened, formal way to write 'California'.
- While 캘리포니아 is a phonetic loanword, 가주 follows a traditional pattern of shortening foreign place names into two Sino-Korean characters.
Examples in context
- 가주 패션California fashionThis example shows the use of 가주 in the context of fashion.
- 캘리포니아는 날씨가 아주 좋아요.Kelleiponiya-neun nalssiga aju joayo.The weather in California is very good.
- 저는 캘리포니아에서 왔어요.Jeoneun Kelleiponiya-eseo wasseoyo.I am from California.
Example conversation
Minji and Dohyun are talking about travel plans.
- 민지 Min-ji도현 씨, 이번 휴가 때 어디 가요?dohyeon ssi, ibeon hyuga ttae eodi gayo?Dohyun, where are you going this vacation?
- 도현 Do-hyeon저는 캘리포니아로 여행 가요.jeoneun kaelliponia-ro yeohaeng gayo.I am traveling to California.
- 민지 Min-ji정말 좋겠어요! 부러워요.jeongmal jokess-eoyo! bureowoyo.That sounds great! I'm jealous.
- 도현 Do-hyeon함께 갈래요?hamkke gallaeyo?Do you want to come along?
Sources
- Wiktionary, “california” translations and entries 캘리포니아, 가주, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 가주, 캘리포니아, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
