낙동강

Korean

Alternative forms

• 락동강 (洛東江, Rakdonggang) (North Korea)

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from 洛東江, from 洛 (“toponym”) + 東 (“east”) + 江 (“river”).

The river was anciently most often called 黃山江, modern Korean reading 황산강 (Hwangsan'gang). The modern name first appears in the fifteenth century. Two suggestions have traditionally been proposed as to the first element:

• From 낙양(洛陽) (nagyang( 洛陽 )), an alternative name of Sangju, a major town on this river. Suggested in Yi Jung-hwan's 택리지/擇里志 Taengniji, 1758, and other Early Modern sources.
• From 가락(駕洛) (garak( 駕洛 )), an alternative name of 가야 (伽倻, Gaya), an ancient ethnic group living west of this river. Suggested in Jeong Yakyong's 아방강역고/我邦疆域考 Abang gang'yeokgo, c. 1812.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [na̠k̚t͈o̞ŋɡa̠ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [낙똥강]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	Nakdonggang
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	Nagdonggang
McCune–Reischauer?	Naktonggang
Yale Romanization?	naktongkang

Proper noun

낙동강 • (Nakdonggang) (hanja 洛東江)

1. the Nakdong River (the longest river entirely in Korea)

Derived terms

• 낙동강 오리알 (Nakdonggang orial, “loner, outcast”, literally “duck's egg on the Nakdong”)