The pronunciation change for today is called Nasalisation (=비음화, bieumhwa), a key form of consonant assimilation (=자음동화, ja-eum donghwa) in Korean phonology.
It happens when a non-nasal stop consonant in the batchim position is followed by a nasal consonant. The stop consonant changes its pronunciation to its corresponding nasal counterpart to make the transition smoother.
👍 The rule of Nasalisation
The rule follows the concept of 'reverse assimilation,' where the nasal sound in the following syllable influences and changes the sound of the preceding batchim consonant.
👄 The principle: Matching the place of articulation
The batchim changes into a nasal sound that is produced at the same place of articulation as the original stop consonant.
1) ㄱ (ㄱ, ㄲ, ㅋ, ㄳ, ㄺ) + ㄴ or ㄹ or ㅁ
Both [ㄱ] and [ㅇ] are made at the Velar (soft palate) position, making the transition to the nasal sound seamless.
Place of articulation: Back of the mouth
ㄱ -> [ㅇ]
Example, 국물[궁물], 먹는[멍는]
2) ㄷ (ㄷ, ㅌ, ㅅ, ㅆ, ㅈ, ㅊ, ㅎ) + ㄴ or ㄹ or ㅁ
Both [ㄷ] and [ㄴ] are made at the Alveolar (gums) position.
Place of articulation: Behind the teeth
ㄷ -> [ㄴ]
Example, 닫는[단는], 옛날[옌날]
3) ㅂ (ㅂ, ㅍ, ㄼ, ㅄ) + ㄴ or ㄹ or ㅁ
Both [ㅂ] and [ㅁ] are made at the Bilabial (two lips) position.
Place of articulation: Both lips
ㅂ -> [ㅁ]
Example, 밥물[밤물], 입니다[임니다]
Thank you.
Please practice a lot!
See you next time!
