TOPIK II · LEVEL 6
-(이)라 (예스러운 서술)
An archaic plain (해라체) statement ending attached to 이다 and 아니다: 'X is Y.' It sounds solemn and old, as in classical texts, proverbs, historical-drama narration and poetry; modern Korean uses -(이)다.
문장 끝·말투Endings & speech styleHan: Statement -라 attaches only to 이다/아니다; after an adjective it reads as a command ('be blue!'). Use -다 (or literary -도다).
Examples
이 땅은 우리 조상들이 피와 땀으로 지켜 온 땅이라.This land is the land our ancestors defended with blood and sweat.
옛 문헌에 이르기를, 백성은 나라의 근본이라.As the old texts say, the people are the foundation of the state.
사극 속 노승은 "모든 것이 다 하늘의 뜻이라" 하며 조용히 눈을 감았다.In the historical drama, the old monk said, 'All of this is Heaven's will,' and quietly closed his eyes.
Don’t mix up
-(이)라 (예스러운 서술)vs-(이)다The modern written statement: 이것은 하늘의 뜻이다. The same sentence with -이라 (하늘의 뜻이라) sounds like an old sage or a historical drama.
-(이)라 (예스러운 서술)vs-(으)니라-(으)니라 is another archaic ending, a didactic 'know that …' spoken from above: 부모를 공경해야 하느니라. -(이)라 merely states what something is.
How to build it
N+이라 (after a vowel, 이 may drop: 라)
아니다 → 아니라
땅 → 땅이라; 뜻 → 뜻이라; 것 → 것이라; 바다 → 바다라; 사람이 아니다 → 사람이 아니라
- Only after 이다 and 아니다. After other verbs and adjectives -라 is a command (가라, 보라), and the old statement form is -다 or -도다.
- It is a style marker, not everyday grammar: use it to read classical-style writing, old sayings and drama lines; in your own speech and essays write -(이)다.
- Do not confuse it with the modern connectives: -(이)라(서) 'because it is' (휴일이라 문을 닫았다) and 아니라 'not X but Y' (학생이 아니라 선생님이다). Those link clauses; this -라 ends the sentence.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 가을 하늘이 참으로 높고 푸르라.
Right: 가을 하늘이 참으로 높고 푸르다.
Statement -라 attaches only to 이다/아니다; after an adjective it reads as a command ('be blue!'). Use -다 (or literary -도다).
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)오/-소Ending of the 하오체, an old-fashioned semi-formal style: one form serves statements and questions, and with -(으)시오 commands. Heard in period dramas, between older spouses, and in written notices such as 손대지 마시오.
- -(으)리오An archaic, literary rhetorical-question ending: 'how could …? who would …?'. The question implies the opposite (누가 알리오 = nobody knows). Found in classical poetry and prose, speeches and period dramas.
- -나 (의문)A question ending without 요 with two uses: the 하게체 question an older speaker asks an adult junior ('are you …?'), and a casual question to oneself ('did I …?', 'is it …?').
- -네 (하게체 서술)Statement ending of the 하게체: an older speaker telling an adult junior (son-in-law, grown-up former student) a fact or an intention, plainly but with courtesy. Old-fashioned; today mostly heard from elderly men and in novels and dramas.
- -그려Added after another sentence ending (-네, -구먼, -세, -ㅂ시다…) to give an old-fashioned emphatic or exclamatory touch: '…, indeed / you know'. Now found mainly in novels, period dramas and the speech of very old people.
- -던가 (회상 의문)A 하게체 question ending asking the listener about something they saw or experienced in the past: 'was it …? did you find that …?'. Old-fashioned, used by older speakers to adult juniors.
- -구려 (권유·명령)A 하오체 ending after an action verb that gently urges or advises the listener: 'do …, why don't you …'. Old-fashioned; heard from elderly speakers (often between spouses), in period dramas and novels.
- -던가 (혼잣말·추측)Used when talking to oneself about the past: the speaker wonders about something remembered only vaguely, or makes a tentative guess about it: 'was it …?', 'I wonder if …'. Reflective; common in essays, lyrics and inner monologue.
- -구려/-는구려Exclamatory ending of the old-fashioned 하오체: the speaker remarks on something just realised, with feeling: '…, I see / how …!'. Today heard mostly from elderly speakers (for example between older spouses) and in period dramas and novels.