Hangul Syllable Moenj

It spells one syllable; it is not a word meaning by itself.

In a Korean word, this block contributes one syllable; the surrounding word gives it meaning. Unicode’s label “Moenj” is generated from the component jamo names. It describes how the block is assembled, not a separate Korean word or a pronunciation guide.

The script, called Hangul in South Korea and Choseongul in North Korea, was introduced by King Sejong in 1443. It was first named Hunminjeongeum; a book with that title, published in 1446, explained its purpose and design. Before Hangul, Idu, Gugyeol and Hyangchal adapted Chinese characters to write Korean words and grammar. The new script was designed to make Korean writing easier to learn.

Why does 묁 look like one square?

Three alphabetic letter elements join to form one syllable block.

Jamo are Hangul’s alphabetic letter elements. This block combines ᄆ, an initial consonant; ᅬ, a vowel; and ᆬ, a final consonant cluster.

Unicode can represent the same syllable as the single block 묁 or the sequence 묁. NFC composes the sequence; NFD decomposes the block. As of 2026, displaying decomposed jamo as a joined block depends on the app and font, so the sequence may not look the same everywhere.

Hangul became an official national writing system in 1894, then lost that status under Japanese rule in 1910. It appeared in Buddhist and Confucian books, practical manuals, letters, labels and official life. Hangul is common in South Korean usage; North Korea prefers Choseongul.