Social:Nunchi

Short description: Korean phrase

Nunchi
Hangul	눈치
Revised Romanization
McCune–Reischauer

, sometimes (눈치), is a Korean concept signifying the subtle art and ability to listen and gauge others' moods. It first appears in the 17th century as (眼勢 in ), meaning "eye force/power". In Western culture, could be described as the concept of emotional intelligence. It is of central importance to the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. is literally translated as "eye-measure". is closely related to the broader concept of paralanguage but also relies on an understanding of one's status relative to the person with whom they are interacting. It can be seen as the embodiment of skills necessary to communicate effectively in high context culture.

The concept of , and one's abundance or lack thereof, forms the basis of many common expressions and idioms. For example, a socially clumsy person can be described as (눈치 없다), meaning "absence of ".

is briefly defined as the high social sensitivity of Koreans that basically means they are able to ascertain others' moods by being around them and talking to them. They are sensitive to what others say indirectly, because they want to maintain harmony. They sense someone's , a Korean word that relates to mood, current feelings, and the state of mind. Facilitating , encouraging the use of this skill, is expected to result in rich understanding. It is of central importance to the dynamics of interpersonal relationships. With , Koreans are using nonverbal cues to convey emotion and meaning through various means, including voice pitch and volume as well as intonation. Because Korea, as with other high-context cultures, caters toward in-groups that have similar experiences and expectations and from which inferences are drawn, many things are left unsaid. The culture does the explaining, in effect. Both and are very difficult concepts for non-Koreans to get the hang of.

In Korea, personal relations frequently take precedence over business. In order to be successful, it is vital to establish good, personal relationships based on mutual trust and benefit. Koreans judge this by to get a basic understanding of the individual they just met. Korean business culture is firmly grounded in respectful rapport and in order to establish this, it is essential to have the right introduction to approach the company. Koreans will use to make sure the right approach is being used, often through a mutual friend or acquaintance at the appropriate level. Koreans spend a significant amount of time developing and fostering personal contacts. Therefore, time should be allocated for this process, particularly during the first meeting, which is frequently used to simply establish rapport and build trust.

The phrase (눈치 있다) refers to someone who is quick-witted, can understand the situation quickly, or has common sense. Another way to say this is (눈치 빠르다), "to have quick ".

See also

• Korean language
• Tacit knowledge

External links

• "Make Sure You're Not Totally Clueless in Korea (눈치, nunchi)!". https://seoulistic.com/learn-korean/make-sure-youre-not-totally-clueless-in-korea-%EB%88%88%EC%B9%98-nunchi/. 
• "The Power of Nunchi". https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/608336/the-power-of-nunchi-by-euny-hong/.