Carl in Korean 칼
Korean media, baristas and the immigration office write Carl as 칼: one syllable, said kal. Here's how it's built, how to say it, and what people will call you.
Carl letter by letter
Each Hangul block is one syllable, built from a consonant, a vowel and sometimes a final consonant underneath.
ㄹ at the bottom of 칼 is an l: the tongue touches just behind the teeth and stays there.
- ㅋ at the start is aspirated: a clear puff of air, like the k in "kite".
- It's a single syllable in Korean, so say it in one short beat: kal.
How Koreans would call you
One syllable is short for Korea, where given names are almost always two, so 칼 stands out and is easy to remember. In casual sentences Koreans often add 이 after a name that ends in a consonant: 칼이 왔어 ("Carl's here").
칼 means knife in Korean.
Why it's spelled 칼
Here the letters and the sound line up: applying the loanword rules letter by letter already gives 칼, the same spelling Korean media use.
- An r after a vowel (before a consonant or at the end) isn't written. Korean spelling follows British-style pronunciation, where that r is silent.
Type Carl on a Korean keyboard
On the standard two-set (두벌식) layout, 칼 is the jamo ㅋㅏㄹ, typed with the keys zkf. Want to get fast at it? Try the Hangul Typing Test.
Similar names in Korean
Write any name in Hangul
Questions people ask
How do you write Carl in Korean?
Carl is written 칼 in Hangul (Revised Romanization: kal). It is the standard spelling Korean media use for the name. In Hangul it has one syllable: 칼.
How do you pronounce Carl in Korean?
Say it kal, with one short beat. ㄹ at the bottom of 칼 is an l: the tongue touches just behind the teeth and stays there.
Spellings follow the National Institute of Korean Language loanword rules and common Korean media usage. Last checked: October 2026.