Hangul syllable Min

It has no single translation; the whole word or name decides.

민 records a Korean syllable, not a definition by itself. Its reading is roughly “min,” as in “mint” without the final t. In 국민 and 시민, 민 represents 民, linked to people or citizens; in 민감 and 민첩, it represents 敏, linked to sensitivity or quickness.

Hanja are Chinese characters used in Korean words and names. In a Korean name, 민 alone cannot tell you which Hanja were chosen, if any.

How do I type 민?

Use Korean input and enter ㅁ, ㅣ, then ㄴ.

On the standard two-set QWERTY layout, those letters are on A-L-S. With Korean input active, press them in order and the input method joins them into 민. With English input active, the same keys produce als.

Why is 민 one block?

Hangul arranges letters into blocks that form syllables. For 민, the consonants ㅁ and ㄴ sit around the vowel ㅣ.

Hangul was designed to make Korean easier to write and learn than Chinese characters, which were difficult to learn and poorly suited to Korean. Its letters were created in 1443; the explanatory text Hunminjeongeum was completed in 1446.

民 and 敏 are separate Chinese characters used in Korean vocabulary and names. They connect to meanings carried by 민, but they are not earlier drawings that developed into this Hangul block.