처녀림
Korean
editEtymology
editSino-Korean word from 處女林, from 處女 (“virgin girl”) + 林 (“forest”), ultimately a calque of English virgin forest.
Pronunciation
edit- (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ˈt͡ɕʰɘ(ː)ɲʌ̹ɾim]
- Phonetic hangul: [처(ː)녀림]
- Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.
Romanizations | |
---|---|
Revised Romanization? | cheonyeorim |
Revised Romanization (translit.)? | cheonyeolim |
McCune–Reischauer? | ch'ŏnyŏrim |
Yale Romanization? | chēnyelim |
Noun
edit처녀림 • (cheonyeorim) (hanja 處女林)
- (less common) virgin forest
- Synonym: 원시림(原始林) (wonsirim)
Usage notes
editThis term is often criticized, partly because such an attributive use of 처녀(處女) (cheonyeo, “virgin girl”) is highly foreign to the Korean language, and partly because of potential misogynistic interpretations.