Formalities are an integral part of the Korean language. Multiple levels of formalities exist depending on one's relationship with another person, including difference in age, company position, and familiarity. There exist different levels, including what you would say to someone who is only slightly older to you, what you would say to people who are much older or to a group, and even a more archaic form that was used to speak with royals. These formalities can also manifest themselves in different forms depending on the type of sentence used: declarative, imperative, and interrogative. Most often, formalities are displayed as verb endings, but some basic nouns and verbs also have formal versions. As a rule of thumb, I have noticed that the longer word/ending will often be more formal one, and I have found it relatively difficult to distinguish between formal versions of verbs in my limited experience with learning them.
One other thing I thought was interesting was that as a form of formality, people are often referred to as their title, such as job position or relationship to another person, and overall, the words "you, she/her, he/him" are not used nearly as often as they are in English, for this and other grammatical reasons.
In cultures such as these, establishing one's relationship with another person is a crucial part of interactions because that then dictates which formalities are acceptable to be used. From a foreigner's perspective, not using the correct verb ending might not seem like a big deal, but it can be seen as rude in Korea. Many celebrities have been under criticism for making mistakes like this, and have been accused of being disrespectful. It can be taxing for many to be bound under this culture of respect, and having to analyze which set of verb endings to use depending on who you are talking to, especially for foreigners, who may not understand this idea culturally, and who have not grown up surrounded by the language.
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