Hangul syllable Tyeol

텰 is an older Hangul syllable used in historical Korean spellings.

In 텰릭, an older spelling of 철릭, 텰 begins the name of a traditional Korean coat; the word comes from Mongolian terlig. Older Korean readings also used 텰 for 鐵, the Chinese character meaning “iron.”

The surrounding word or gloss tells you which use is meant. Keep 텰 when transcribing an old source; modern Korean uses 철 for the later reading.

How did 텰 become an older spelling?

Its history runs through Korean words and readings, not a separate emblem.

The garment name appears in texts from the Goryeo period, including the old Korean song 정석가 and late-Goryeo language textbooks. It comes from Mongolian terlig; Chinese characters such as 帖裏, read as 첩리 in Korean, were also used as a label for the garment.

Historical dictionaries also record 텰 as a reading of 鐵. Older spellings with a brief y-like glide remained in use through the 18th and early 19th centuries. The sound shifted toward 철; historical accounts place the change by the latter half of the 19th century, and the 1933 orthographic reform standardized 철.

Should I use 텰 in modern Korean?

Use 텰 for historical spellings and 철 for modern Korean.

Keep 텰 when transcribing an old document, quoting the garment name’s earlier form, or discussing historical Korean readings. If you are writing modern Korean and mean the later reading, use 철.

An 18th-century map preserves 텰산 in a place name, showing the older spelling pattern.