죽마고우

Korean

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from 竹馬 (“bamboo horse”) + 故 (“old”) + 友 (“friend”), i.e. an old friend with whom one used to play with bamboo horses during childhood. Cognate to Japanese 竹馬の友.

The term ultimately derives from a poem by Tang dynasty poet Li Bai; see 青梅竹馬／青梅竹马 (qīngméizhúmǎ) for more.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕuŋma̠ɡo̞u]
• Phonetic hangul: [중마고우]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	jungmagou
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	jugmagou
McCune–Reischauer?	chungmagou
Yale Romanization?	cwukmakowu

Noun

죽마고우 • (jungmagou) (hanja 竹馬古友)

1. close friend since childhood

Synonyms

• 소꿉친구 (sokkup-chin'gu)
• 불알친구 (bural-chin'gu)