엉가

Korean

Alternative forms

• 언가 (eon'ga), 은가 (eun'ga), 응가 (eungga)

Etymology

From 형아 (hyeong'a, “older sibling”), from 형(兄) (“older same-sex sibling”) +‎ 아 (-a, vocative particle), with [g] introduced as fortition of nasal [ŋ]. Colloquial Korean family terms tend to include a fused vocative particle.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʌ̹ŋɡa̠~ɤŋɡa̠~əŋɡa̠]
• South Gyeongsang (Busan) pitch accent: 엉가의 / 엉가에 / 엉가까지

  Syllables in red take high pitch. This word always takes high pitch only on the first syllable, and lowers the pitch of subsequent suffixes.

Noun

엉가 • (eongga)

1. (dated, chiefly southern dialectal, including Gyeongsang, Jeolla dialect) older sister of a girl or woman

   Synonym: 언니 (eonni, Standard Seoul)

   Hypernym: 세이 (sei)

   엉가가 엄마 맞잽이가 돼갖고 […] (Gyeongsang dialect, Changwon)

   eongga-ga eomma matjaebi-ga dwaegatgo [ … ]

   Older sister was like a stand-in for Mom […]

Usage notes

Generally replaced by Standard 언니 (eonni) for younger speakers.