Korean Culture & Customs

십팔번

sippalbeon

'십팔번' & Japanese-origin words

십팔번 means one's signature party/karaoke song, borrowed from Japanese 十八番 (ohako). Korean has many such Japanese-era leftovers like 와리바시 (chopsticks) or 다대기, which speakers are increasingly encouraged to replace with native words.

Examples

Korean	English
이 노래가 제 십팔번이에요. i noraega je sippalbeonieyo.	This song is my go-to (signature) number.

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