이란 걸

[jintana23]

I came across "이란 걸" many times from the songs I listened. I'd really like to know how to use it. Please help me.
감사합니다.

[holdfast]

someone correct me if i am wrong, but i think it is short for ~이라는 것을 which is like "the thing called~" so if the song said something like 사랑이란 걸 it would mean "the thing called love." but it doesn't sound quite as awkward in korean as it does in english. people use it a lot. ^^

[javiskefka]

someone correct me if i am wrong, but i think it is short for ~이라는 것을 which is like "the thing called~" so if the song said something like 사랑이란 걸 it would mean "the thing called love." but it doesn't sound quite as awkward in korean as it does in english. people use it a lot. ^^

...which is short for -이라고 하는 것을 ^^

[jintana23]

holdfast and javiskefka , thank you very much for your explanation.
If I want to say the thing called 'homework', I will say '숙제 이란 걸요.'. Is it correct?
What about verbs?
The thing called 'eating'. Is it '먹이란 걸요.?
The thing called 'studying' 배우이란 걸요.

Sorry...It may sound stupid to ask but I want to make sure that I understand everything.

[javiskefka]

No problem ^^

If I want to say the thing called 'homework', I will say '숙제 이란 걸요.'. Is it correct?
What about verbs?
The thing called 'eating'. Is it '먹이란 걸요.?
The thing called 'studying' 배우이란 걸요.

Not quite...

First off, we can more explicitly call this construction -(이)란 걸, because you only say the 이 part if the last syllable of the word you are attaching it to ends in a consonant. Also, this can only be attached to nouns, and it does not complete the sentence. Since the context you were originally asking about was song lyrics, I'll clarify that the thought is often completed in the next line of the song. Just keep in mind that you wouldn't necessarily say something in the same way in every day speech as you would in a song.

As a side note, the words in your example should be spelled like 먹이란 -> 먹기란 and 배우이 -> 배우기 (actually learning, not studying). I think it's a little more fluid to use words that are originally nouns, instead of turning verbs into nouns. For example 공부라는 걸.

Also, the reason why I pointed out that this construction is not complete thought by itself, and why Emily and I gave the full version, is that it ends in the object particle 을/를. You need a verb at the end of the sentence to complete the thought. On the other hand, I've seen this construction used as a title, in which case something like Galbijim Wiki란? means "About Galbijim Wiki". Adding -란 to a noun means you are discussing the idea of that noun, not the actual thing designated by the noun.

[manyakumi]

Great explanation, Jeff.

숙제'란' 걸

나는 벌칙이 술 먹기란 걸 몰랐다.
> 난 몰랐다. 벌칙이 술 먹기란 걸.

나는 문득 전에 인터넷에서 보았던 한글 배우기란 걸 떠올렸다.
> 나는 문득 떠올렸다. 전에 인터넷에서 보았던 한글 배우기란 걸.

'란' is a short for '라는 것은/라고 하는 것은'
It makes any nouns or clauses be a topic.