There was a brief but heavy downpour earlier in the day. Would this be called a torrential rain? I had to slow down to 30 km/h on the highway and set the windshield wipers to their fastest speed, but the thick raindrops pounding the windshield still made it hard to see ahead. After about 30 minutes of this, the rain slowly changed to a drizzle, and the sky began to clear, with visibility improving, as if peace was being restored.

 

Once that rain nearly stopped, the next rain felt like mist — so fine that the drops were hardly visible, just a foggy haze before my eyes. You mentioned it was like water being sprayed from a spray bottle? I responded that it felt like standing in front of a humidifier. But then, suddenly, it seemed like using spray bottles and humidifiers to describe the rain was a little too bland.

 

Perhaps the word "hamchoromi" could have been used. The word "hamchorom" is defined in the Korean dictionary as "neat and beautiful." This rain was akin to the way water droplets gather on a fully bloomed hydrangea in the yard, a sight you could describe as "the hydrangea blooms hamchorom." But that phrase is more suited for describing flowers than rain, so I wondered if there might be a more precise word for this type of rain. Since I couldn't find an answer right away, I decided to study the various Korean names for rain.

 

Today's mist-like rain, where the drops are nearly invisible, is, of course, called "anggae-bi" (misty rain). From my research, I also learned that rain slightly heavier than mist but still resembling it is called "neun-gae" (light drizzle). It’s like a more drawn-out version of mist. Rain that is a bit thicker than neun-gae is called "iseul-bi" (dew rain).

 

Rain that falls in small, scattered drops is known as "boseul-bi". Rain slightly thicker than boseul-bi is "buseul-bi". Then, there is "garu-bi", which falls like powder, and "jan-bi", which is fine and small. There is also a word "sil-bi", which describes rain as fine as threads, falling in thin, long streaks. A rain that is both scattered and heavier than neun-gae but still light is called "garang-bi".

 

There's also "ssarak-bi", which falls like granules, and "nal-bi", which is rain falling in thin streaks like the fine threads used in weaving straw mats. Lastly, after a long drought, a brief rain that barely settles the dust is called "meonji-jaem" (dust-dampening rain), meaning the dust has finally been put to rest.

 

These are all the different names and descriptions of light rain in Korean. I felt somewhat embarrassed to have only been able to describe it as "gan-eun-bi" (fine rain), unaware that there were so many types of fine rain. Reflecting back on today’s rain, I would still describe it as "anggae-bi" because it was foggy and seemed like a blend of rain and mist.

 

Or maybe it was more than that — perhaps it was the first time rain felt so soft, like the gentleness of mist. Either way, it was the softest, most delicate rain I could describe using the names for rain in Korean.

 

▲ Strong wind and rain engulf a street in central Seoul on Nov. 6, 2023. (Yonhap)

 

In a country like Korea, where people have long relied on rice farming and where many fields are rain-fed, we have become intimately familiar with rain, which is reflected in the richness of our language when it comes to naming and describing it. It’s akin to how the Inuit people, who live surrounded by snow year-round, are said to have more than 60 words for snow. As I listed above, the various names for fine rain are vast, and there is an equally extensive list of names for heavy rain.

 

We have terms like "bal-bi" (visible, thick rain), "jakdal-bi" (intense, pounding rain), "jang-dae-bi" (thick, driving rain like a bamboo pole), "juruk-bi" (pouring rain), "dalgubi" (rain pounding the ground like a metal tamper), "chae-chik-bi" (whipping rain), "baram-bi" (wind-driven rain), "eok-su" (a torrential downpour, also called "ak-su"), "modagit-bi" (rain as fierce as a beating), "ure-bi" (thunderstorm), "keun-bi" (rain heavy enough to cause floods), "bi-museul" (an old word for flood), and "gae-busim" (rain that suddenly pours down after a lull at the end of a monsoon).

There are also agricultural terms like "mojong-bi" (rain that falls during rice planting), "mok-bi" (vital rain that comes just in time for planting, with mok referring to a crucial point), "mut-bi" (a satisfying rain that provides enough water to finish planting), "kkul-bi" (rain like honey), "dan-bi" (welcome rain), "bok-bi" (abundant rain), and "yak-bi" (medicinal rain).

 

There are various names related to the amount and duration of rain in Korean, such as "guzun-bi" (persistent rain that lasts a long time), "sonagi" (a sudden shower), "jangmat-bi" (monsoon rain), "oran-bi" (an old term for monsoon rain), and "mareun-bi" (tiny rain that evaporates before reaching the ground).

 

Regarding the Nature of Rain:

 

Koreans also use specific terms to describe the nature of rain, like "chan-bi" (cold rain) and "nuri" (hail).

 

Regarding the Timing of Rain:

 

When it comes to the timing of rainfall, we have "ireun-bi" (early rain), "neujeun-bi" (late rain), "geumeum-chi" (rain that comes at the end of the lunar month), "boreum-chi" (rain that comes during the full moon), "dan-bi" (sweet rain after a drought), "bombi" (spring rain, associated with work as spring is a busy season), "yeoreum-bi" (summer rain, known as jam-bi because it gives people time to nap since there is less work in summer), "gaul-bi" (autumn rain, known as tteok-bi since it’s a time to make rice cakes and rest after harvest), and "gyeoul-bi" (winter rain, called sul-bi as it is a good time to drink and relax during the farming off-season). There's also "bam-bi" (night rain).

 

Regarding the Appearance of Rain:

 

There are colorful terms like "baram-bi" (rain accompanied by wind), "ut-bi" (rain that temporarily stops but hasn’t fully cleared), "hae-bi" (rain with sunshine on one side), "yeowu-bi" (fox rain), "sonagi" (downpour), "meonji-jaem" (rain just enough to settle the dust), "doduk-bi" (unexpected rain that sneaks in at night), and "bi-kkot" (the first few drops of rain).

 

For someone like me, who loves rain, these Korean terms for rain feel very endearing. Each name beautifully reflects the specific state or quality of the rain, and it brings out a different feeling for each type, making all these words truly lovely.

 

The rainy season is upon us. It’s said that the human body is sensitive to changes in atmospheric pressure, humidity, and sunlight, which explains why cloudy or rainy days can make us feel down or melancholic.

 

Among these influences, melatonin, a hormone that regulates our biological rhythms and is secreted by the pineal gland in the brain, is controlled by the amount of light that enters through our eyes. During bright daylight, only small amounts of melatonin are released, but as it gets darker, more is produced, helping us sleep peacefully. This is why melatonin is sometimes used to treat insomnia, and it’s also likely why many people experience depression during long monsoon seasons—due to an excess of melatonin.

 

But that’s what the doctors say...

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