How to Say "Savannah" in Korean

사바나

sabana[sʰa̠ba̠na̠]

The English phrase "savannah" is translated into Korean as 사바나 (sabana).

The term refers to a tropical grassy plain characterized by having relatively few trees.

How do you pronounce it?

sabana

While the word refers to a specific ecosystem, it is frequently used in Korea to evoke the imagery of 'Africa' in pop culture and media. If a Korean person mentions 사바나, they are often mentally signaling a setting far from the Korean peninsula.
Because Korean lacks a 'v' sound, 사바나 uses the letter ㅂ 'bieup', which makes the word sound closer to the Spanish 'sabana' than the English 'savannah'.
While 사바나 describes the tropical region, Koreans use the word 평원 'plain' for the vast, flat landscapes of the Eurasian steppes, treating the two types of plains as conceptually distinct.

사바나는 한국 음식을 좋아해요
Savannah loves Korean food.
아프리카에는 넓은 사바나 지역이 많아요.
Apeurikaeneun neolbeun sabana jiyeogi manayo.
There are many wide savannah regions in Africa.
사바나 초원에는 기린이 살고 있어요.
Sabana chowoneun girini salgo isseoyo.
Giraffes live in the savannah grasslands.
다큐멘터리에서 사바나의 풍경을 봤어요.
Dakumenteori-eseo sabanaui punggyeongeul bwasseoyo.
I saw the scenery of the savannah in a documentary.

Jihoon and Subin are talking about a nature documentary.

지훈 Ji-hun

그 다큐멘터리에서 사바나 풍경이 정말 멋지더라.
Geu dakumenteori-eseo sabana punggyeongi jeongmal meotjitdeora.
The savannah scenery in that documentary was really cool.
수빈 Su-bin

맞아, 사바나 동물들도 정말 귀여웠어.
Maja, sabana dongmuldeuldo jeongmal gwiyeowosseo.
Right, the savannah animals were really cute too.
지훈 Ji-hun

나중에 꼭 직접 보고 싶어.
Najunge kkok jikjeop bogo sipeo.
I really want to see it in person someday.
수빈 Su-bin

우리 나중에 같이 여행 가자.
Uri najunge gachi yeohaeng gaja.
Let's go on a trip together later.

Sources

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