The Case Particle 「의」

The case particle 의 indicates the possessor and possession relationship between two nouns, as in 제임스의 방(James’ room). The first noun is typically the possessor(since it is attached by the particle), and the second noun is the possession. The case particle 의 is a one-form particle. It is the same regardless of whether it attaches to a noun that ends in a vowel or a consonant, as in 수잔의 가방(Susan’s bag) and 토니의 지갑(Tony’s wallet).
The first person possessive pronoun 내(plain form) and 제(humble form) are combinations of the first person pronouns and the particle:

In a similar manner, the question word 누구의(whose) is the combination of the question word 누구(who) and the particle 의, as in "이 것은 누구의 편지예요?(As for this, whose letter is this?)".

As seen above, the function of the particle 의 resembles that of the English suffix -’s. However, there is one clear difference in their usages. English allows the possessor + ’s construction, as in “Steven’s” or “Andy’s”. However, Korean does not allow the possessor noun ending with the particle. Consequently, a sentence like "그 컴퓨터는 스티브의예요.(As for that computer, it is Steven’s)" is unacceptable. For this purpose, a bound noun 것(thing) typically appears after the particle, as in "그 컴퓨터는 스티브의 것이에요.(As for that computer, it is Steven’s thing)".

In colloquial and informal usages, the particle 의 can be often omitted. For instance, 수잔 가방 can be used instead of 수잔의 가방(Susan’s bag) and 스티브 것(or 스티브 거 for a more colloquial usage) can be used instead of 스티브의 것(Steven’s thing)
In summary, there are three ways to express a possessor–possession relationship in Korean:

* Click to read related posts.
Grammar for Beginners
Particles Part.1 (What are the particles in Korean)
Particles Part.2 (Case Particles)
- The Subject Case Particle 「이/가」
- The Direct Object Particle 「을/를」
- The Case particle 「(으)로」
- The Case particle 「에」
- The Case particle 「와/과, (이)랑, 하고」
- The Case particle 「에서」
- The Case particle 「한테, 에게, 께」
- The Case particle 「한테서, 에게서」
Particles Part.3 (Special Particles)

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