처녀림

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Korean

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Etymology

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Sino-Korean word from 處女林, from 處女 (virgin girl) + (forest), ultimately a calque of English virgin forest.

Pronunciation

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  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ˈt͡ɕʰɘ(ː)ɲʌ̹ɾim]
  • Phonetic hangul: [(ː)]
    • 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

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처녀림 (cheonyeorim) (hanja 處女林)

  1. (less common) virgin forest
    Synonym: 원시림(原始林) (wonsirim)

Usage notes

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This 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.