[Extraordinary Attorney Woo] Palindrome; also, Yeoksam Station?

Have you heard of palindrome?

It's a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backward as forward, (e.g., madam)
Honestly, I didn't know there would be a name for such words. 😅

In the scene, where the main character introduces herself, she lists some palindromes and says her name is also a palindrome.

내 이름은 우영우

똑바로 읽어도 거꾸로 읽어도 우영우

기러기, 토마토, 스위스, 인도인, 별똥별

우영우

My name is Woo Young-woo

Whether it’s read straight or flipped, it’s still Woo Young-woo

Kayak, deed, rotator, noon, racecar

Woo Young-woo

Is Woo Young-woo a palindrome?

If you're not so principled, you might understand what she means.

In appearance (in English), her name, Woo Young-woo, looks different with exemplary palindromes such as kayak, deed, rotator, noon, and racecar. That's because of the difference between the Hangul system and the Alphabet system.

Of course, I don't have to explain the Alphabet system to you, who read this blog in English. So, let's see the Hangul system. (Don't be afraid, simply explain.)

At first, Korean, a language using Hangul, is almost 100% phonogram. That means the same sound looks the same in Korean nine out of ten. So, let's see her name, Woo Young-woo.

Woo = 우,   Young = 영,   Woo = 우  

⇒  우 영 우 (Woo Young-woo)

Now, you can see her name is a perfect palindrome in Korean.

What about Yeoksam Station? Why does she add it at the end?

Attorney Woo goes to work by subway and she gets off at Yeoksam Station. On her first commute, she seems to notice something as repeating the name of the station. But I'm not sure it's enough for foreigners to understand what she thinks at the moment.

But, anyway, there's a hint about that when she introduces herself to Attorney Jung.

제 이름은 똑바로 읽어도 거꾸로 읽어도 우영우입니다.

기러기, 토마토, 스위스, 인도인, 별똥별, 우영우

역삼역

My name is Woo Young-woo, whether it is read straight or flipped.

Kayak, deed, rotator, noon, racecar, Woo Young-woo

Yeoksamyeok

If you have a quick wit, maybe you can recognize that there's something between Yeoksamyeok and Yeoksam Station, where she gets off. That's right! 👏 In fact, both are the same word in Korean, 역삼역.

🚉 역삼역 [yeoksamyeok] = Yeoksam Station 

In detail, 역 at the last of the word means station and its sound is [yeok], while the front part '역삼 [yeoksam]' is a distinct name of the station. And you can see the very first character is also 역 [yeok], which sounds the same as the last.

In conclusion, Woo Young-woo (우영우) and Yeoksam Station (역삼역) are both palindromes in Korean.