10 Things You MISSED in SQUID GAME if You Don't Speak KOREAN!

Squid Game: 10 Things You Missed If You Don't Speak Korean.

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[TheHockeywitch]

A few things to add about Korean culture that non-Koreans may not know:

1. The gigantic doll during the Red Light, Green Light game is known to many Koreans as Young Hee. She's a character from Korean school textbooks. The male version is called Chul Soo. They're kind of like the American "Dick and Jane" if they had a universal image. Image how shocking/hilarious it was to Koreans to see their version of "Jane" from their elementary textbooks playing the children's game Red Light, Green Light with deadly consequences. Maybe like a Dora the Explorer or something similar killing people. LOL

2. Korea has universal healthcare. The mother would have been treated for her diabetes without having to worry about high medical bills. That part about not being able to be treated at the hospital due to lack of health insurance was fake to make the lead character's financial situation more dire.

3. The scene at the ATM where Gi Hun didn't know his Mother's birthday had me dying with laughter! Gi Hyun said he didn't know her birthday because she goes by the lunar calendar. Non-Koreans thought it was a really lame excuse but to most Koreans it could have been possible. Possible but probably not practical cause you'd have to change the numbers every year. LOL A lot of the older generation still prefer using the lunar dates which DO change every year so it's not a date a person can come up with quickly. For example, my mother's birthday is October 9th but this year her Lunar birthday will be November 13th so we'll celebrate her birthday then. My birthday is February 28th but it'll be March 30th in 2022 according to the Lunar Calendar.

4. Guns are NOT common in Korea. I've seen some reactions from Americans where they freaked out because the birthday present was a gun and also because his daughter pulled the trigger so easily while pointing the gun at her father. All Koreans immediately knew the gun was a fake, including the daughter in the scene, so wouldn't think twice about pulling the trigger because she knew it was a toy of some sort.

5. A reaction channel was informed that guns weren't common in Korea so wanted to know how the guards knew anything about guns. Korea has a mandatory draft. All men are required to serve approximately 18 months in the military. Able-bodied men serve as active soldiers while others who are not physically able serve as public servants but ALL go through the basic "boot camp" so know how to operate all types of guns. Technically, Korea is still at war. That's also why Gi Hyun was talking in military ranks when he was setting up the group alliance and everyone immediately understood except for Ali.

6. Koreans are very conscious and aware of social standings and class status so knowing these facts from the video really do make a difference. North Koreans are discriminated against so most try to lose or hide their accents i.e. Sae Byeok. The fact that Sang Woo graduated from Seoul National University is mentioned often by his mother and even Gi Hyun because Koreans put a lot of emphasis on status and Seoul National University is the hardest college to get into in Korea (major bragging rights). Ali was more than likely not even an immigrant but an illegal resident and that's why his employer was probably able to get away with treating him like shit with no worries about repercussions. Foreigners are not treated well in Korea and Ali was initially addressing everyone very respectfully as "boss". That's why it was huge when Sang Woo gave Ali permission to call him "Hyung" implying a closer, trusted, less formal relationship.

7. Koreans do NOT call each other by only their given first names unless they are 친구 which means "friend". Technically, one can only be called a "friend" if they're 동갑 (the same age) and even then both parties have to agree to be less formal to use their given names. The word "friend" doesn't quite mean the same as it does in English. One can be "friendly" with another but to be a "friend" to Koreans, you have to be the same age. Ali always added Hyung after Sang Woo's name. Even Sang Woo added Hyung after Gi Hyun's name. They could have just said "Hyung" without adding the first names too.

8. Koreans always say and write their last names first so the first syllable is the surname. Korean women do NOT change their last name when we get married. We retain our maiden name. The kids usually receive their fathers' last names though.

9. Ali wasn't fluent in Korean and had a limited vocabulary. He understood concepts but just didn't know the Korean words like "odd" or "even". Something else I noticed was that during the dalgona game, I don't think he knew he was supposed to use the needle provided to poke out the shape. I think he kept the needle in his mouth the whole time and just used his hands?

10. Last bit of complete trivia: the old man's name일남 (Il Nam) means First Man. The word 오징어 (Squid) is often used to call someone ugly. LOL

Everyone take care & stay safe!

[petrarock]

Having been a professional subtitler/translator for 10-ish years myself, I'd say that while the subtitles of Squid Game might not be perfect, they're not bad either. In subtitling you can usually fit between 36 and 42 characters on a line (including spaces), and the maximum duration doesn't usually exceed 7 seconds. It would be impossible to fit every nuance of the show in the subtitles due to cultural differences, so the translators will have to use the closest equivalents found in the target language. Chances are a lot of the "mistranslations" are not in fact "huge misses" but adaptations to something that the target language audience would be more familiar with. If they feel like they need more insight on Korean words like gganbu, they can always do a bit of extra research themselves. Good translations are supposed to capture the meaning and the essence of the show and make the viewer feel like they're not reading subtitles at all (thought that might be a bit easier if the viewer is somewhat familiar with the source language). Regardless, I found this video very useful and informative on explaining some of the cultural aspects of the show that the non-Korean viewers might have missed :)

[susankingYT]

I think your definition of Hyeong is wrong. It's a title for a boy or man to call an older brother or older male friend. You never call a stranger "Hyeong" only because he's older. You have to be friends with him first. When Sangwoo allowed Ali to call him "Hyeong", it's like like saying "Let's be friends. Think of me like your older brother. And I'll take care of you". Ali was so moved by that, and the wall between them disappeared at that moment. That's why SW's betrayal becomes double triple bad. I liked the English translation of Sang-woo's bad investment in Futures. I bet every country had to tweak it to make sense in their own language. Nothing lost in translation there.

[roseblue_]

The three ranks of guards are Worker (Ant), Warrior (Ant) and Manager (Handler). In Korean that is일벌 (일개미), 전사 (전사 개미), 매니저. Romanized that is ilbeol (ilgaemi), jeonsa (jeonsa gaemi), and manija. They start with the letters ㅇㅈㅁ. A circle ㅇ, a triangle ㅿ and a square ㅁ (see my other post for an explanation).

[AureliaDaskye]

OK the fact that Ali wasn't just calling Sang-woo by his name just broke me again! God that scene was heartbreaking

[someoneintheshadow]

The hibiscus was a resistance symbol during the Japanese oppression of Korea. “The hibiscus has bloomed” was code for the resistance to attack, so Japanese soldiers would beat you up for saying it. However soldiers didn’t beat up children, so the revolutionaries would teach kids to say it and avoid suspicion.

[kimekitty]

They should have hired people who make subtitles for k-dramas. They usually add another line in parenthesis or in italics which explains what wouldn't be known outside of Korea.

[asnpride]

This is great. More people should see this if they like Squid Game.

[annavandongen]

Sanwoo eating first even though he’s not the oldest at the table is also something people who are not familiar with Korean customs might have missed

[wizyfactory]

The 선물 / “future” joke for English could’ve easily been shoehorned in. When I watched it, I thought the joke was that Gi-hun thought Sang-woo meant he wasted his money investing in a “future” with a woman he fell for. I had no knowledge of the double meaning/homonym situation. I still laughed. It could’ve worked. I’m thankful I learned something new today LOL

[lux]

I am Korean, so when my American husband and I watched it, I was able to explain to him the subtle cultural differences as we watched. However, I ALSO see why they made the decisions they did with the translations. While I agree, they could have been done them a bit better, to fully explain all the deeper meanings is not feasible in a fast-paced show or movie. Especially when you're asking the audience who is unfamiliar with Korean culture in the first place to read all this as well as watching the action on the screen. An audience that has generally never had to read their movies and shows, and tend to shy away from foreign language cinematography specifically because of this.

Sometimes, you need to shorten phrasing and take shortcuts in translation to keep the proper pace of the mood and vibes. Sometimes, a relatable and understandable equivalent will make far more sense than a direct Korean translation. Explaining all the deeper aspects of Korean culture is not something you can do quickly - it takes time and tons of subtitling to explain the differences. While I was able to do it quickly verbally, it's a bit much to ask for in text on the screen in the midst of dialogue and action sequences. And since not everyone can have a Korean handy to explain things as you go, you do what you can.

Videos like this, that explain all the subtle things afterwards, is ideal for those who have watched the show, and are wondering about what they may have missed due to that cultural barrier. But it's better done like this - afterwards - than trying to jam all that information into the show as you watch. It's just too much, and can be prohibitive. If a person is overwhelmed, then they are more likely to walk away than to stick it out. At this point, I'm just happy westerners are getting over their aversion to reading a non-English film - the culture lessons can come later. It's better to ease people into another culture and pique their own interest in gaining that knowledge, rather than jamming it down their throats all at once whether they want to know or not.

[Mac.Eunique]

This is golden!! While everyone else is yammering on about "playstation buttons" and "Is he is daddy??", you brought some real and useful insight to the series that I wouldve never understood otherwise. This video definitely should have more views!!

[crimsonshadow]

This vid needs more views. Adds much more value to the show than the gazillion other Squid Game content out there. I already knew the robot wasn't saying red light green light just by the sing song tone and the sentence was too long, but was hard to find an explanation of what it was really saying

[harmonysquad]

As a KDrama fan (that's not a Korean), I did realise that Ali was addressing him as his elder brother when he kept calling out for Sang-Woo as Hyung... It broke my heart, honestly speaking... That's when I noticed the subs were just mentioning his name.. I felt sorry for the ppl that were missing on the emotion 😕😕😕

[kmxfqzp]

Hahahaha okay. I'm Korean. I agree that some parts of english sub for squid game were not enough to deliver the original meaning but I think this clip also has some overtranslation. Especially the tiktoker youngmi? She said the Han Mi-Nyeo's line '공부를 안해서 그렇지' means 'never got a chance to study'. It's not impossible to translate it like that depending on the situation. But it literally means 'I didn't study' or 'I didn't like studying'. There's no words for 'never got a chance' or 'not wealthy' in it. I also do not think Han Mi-Nyoe grew up in a wealthy family but in that scene, 'I didn't study' is more appropreate I think. If the writer wanted to deliver the meaning of 'never got a chance' through the line, he would have gone by '공부를 못했다/할 수 없었다'(I couldn't study) something like that. Thank you for trying to understand Korean language more accurately. But you don't need to think that every single sentence of squid game has deep meaning. hahaha

[seannixon]

This was by far the most intersting squid game based video I've seen. They MUST be more. Please make more. Thanks.

[Ajedsshi]

Also, there are 2 versions of english subs. English CC and English. English CC is the english used in the dubbed version. English has a more accurate translation. So for example, Minyeo's scene 'go away' is actually 'what are you looking at' in the English version of subs. 👍

[ladislaugomes]

Thank you. It makes a huge difference. Especially the formal and informal way of treating elders, you mentioned.

[michaelkim]

I think it would be impossible to transfer all of the nuances of Squid Game from Korean to English. If you watch with subtitles, you can still pick up things in just an actor's tone or behavior that can help fill in the gaps, but you'll never get 100%. Still they did a pretty good job overall, that's why SG is so popular worldwide!

[gotenson]

The north korean dialect being hidden. That is mad props to the show. I always thought that was because the actress was still green to keep the accent consistent bit my God I was wrong! This makes me respect the writing even more!