NOTE: The terms fall in descending order for convenience.
Imperial Family – 황가
(Romanized: hwang-ga)
Used to refer to a family that rules over the empire.
Emperor – 황제
(Romanized: hwang-je)
Empress – 황후
(Romanized: hwang-hu)
Used to refer to the wife of the emperor, or the first wife of the emperor, if there are other consorts. The highest ranking of all the emperor’s women.
Royal Family – 왕가
(Romanized: wang-ga)
Used to refer to a family that rules over a kingdom.
King – 왕, 국왕
(Romanized: wang, guk-wang)
Queen – 왕비
(Romanized: wang-bi)
Used to refer to the wife of the king. Can also be used to refer to consorts below the empress.
Your Majesty – 폐하
ALSO: Her Majesty, His Majesty, Sire
(Romanized: pye-ha)
Used to refer to the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king) and their consort. Is also used to refer to former rulers, like monarchs who have abdicated the throne, dowager empresses or queen mothers, etc.
Imperial Father – 아바마마
ALSO: Royal Father
(Romanized: aba-mama)
Used by royal offspring to refer to their father, the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king). Distinct for the Imperial Father used below – this term is more for addressing one’s father who is the king.
Imperial Mother – 어마마마
ALSO: Royal Mother
(Romanized: uma-mama)
Used by royal offspring to refer to their mother, typically the consort of the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king). Also used by the reigning monarch to address their mother, the dowager empress or queen mother.
Imperial Grandmother – 할마마마
ALSO: Royal Grandmother
(Romanized: halma-mama)
Used by royal offspring to refer to their grandmother, the dowager empress or queen mother.
Imperial Father – 부왕
ALSO: Royal Father
(Romanized: aba-mama)
Used by royal offspring to refer to their father, the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king). Distinct for the Imperial Father used above – this term is more for his position as the father who is the king.
Your Highness – 전하
ALSO: Her Highness, His Highness
(Romanized: jeon-ha)
Used to refer to anyone related to the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king). This is typically reserved for members of the reigning monarch’s family, like the crown prince (or crown princess, if the heir to the throne is female), other princes and princesses, consorts, offspring, etc.
Crown Prince – 황태자
(Romanized: hwang-taeja)
Used to refer to the heir to the throne, who is typically the child of the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king).
Crown Princess Consort – 황태자비, 태자비
(Romanized: hwang-taeja-bi and taeja-bi)
Used to refer to the legal spouse of the crown prince.
Prince – 왕자
(Romanized: wangja)
Used to refer to the son of the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king).
Princess Consort – 왕자비
(Romanized: wangja-bi)
Used to refer to the legal spouse of a prince.
Princess – 공주
(Romanized: gongju)
Used to refer to the daughter of the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king).
The Unique Case: The Grand Duchy
Grand Duchy – 대공가
ALSO: Archduchy, Grand Dukedom, Archdukedom
(Romanized: dae-gongga)
Used to refer to a family that is below the ruling family but is above the other noble families in terms of status and ranking. This title is awarded in two ways:
- The reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king) awards this position to someone who assisted them in the empire’s foundation – a founding grand duke, or
- The reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king) awards this position to someone who is part of the royal family – usually the sibling of the current monarch is given a grand duchy so they do not compete for the throne.
Grand Duke – 대공작
ALSO: Archduke; Grand Duchess or Archduchess, if the head is woman
(Romanized: dae-gongjak)
Used to refer to the head of the grand duchy.
Your Grace – 각하
ALSO: My Lady, My Lord
(Romanized: gak-ha)
Used to refer specifically to the head of the grand duchy. Can also be extended to the head’s spouse in English, but the Korean word is not used for the spouse.
Lady – 대공녀
ALSO: Young Lady, Your Grace, Her Grace, My Lady
(Romanized: dae-gongnyeo)
Used to refer to the daughter of the grand duke.
Lord – 대공자
ALSO: Young Lord, Your Grace, His Grace, My Lord
(Romanized: dae-gongja)
Used to refer to the son of the grand duke.
If in fact the grand duchy is related to the reigning monarch (i.e., emperor, king) and/or is originally from the royal family, then a few of the terms listed above can be translated a little differently in English despite still being the same terms in Korean. These include:
- Your Highness – 전하 (Romanized: jeon-ha), rather than Your Grace – 각하 (Romanized: gak-ha) to refer to the head of the grand duchy
- Princess, rather than Lady for 대공녀 (Romanized: dae-gongnyeo)
- Prince, rather than Lord for 대공자 (Romanized: dae-gongja)
In real-world examples, like the European nobility in which these rofan conventions are based off, offspring of grand dukes are also still referred to simply as ladies and lords, rather than as princesses or princess. However, depending on the need, there is some wiggle room to use “royal” titles for direct members of the grand duchy, despite the precedent in English.
tags: glossary, rofan glossary, romance fantasy glossary, ropan glossary, manhwa notes glossary, translation, translations, manhwa notes translations, manhwa notes translation, korean, english, romance fantasy, rofan, ropan, January 28, 2024, manhwa notes, manhwanotes
