Grammar
-에 따르면
Meaning
Advanced-e ttareumyeon
Attaches after a noun naming an information source — a report, survey, agency, or person — to mean 'according to ~'. It introduces a fact or statement that comes from that source, and is very common in news and formal writing.
Form
Noun + 에 따르면, with no batchim distinction (e.g. 조사에 따르면 'according to the survey', 정부에 따르면 'according to the government'). It comes from the verb 따르다 ('to follow/be based on') in its -(으)면 'if' form, so literally 'if we follow N'. Always needs a noun before it — it cannot attach directly to a verb clause.
Examples
조사에 따르면 많은 사람이 여름휴가를 떠납니다.
According to the survey, many people go on summer vacation.
From: Korean Airports See 160,000 Daily Travelers at Summer Peak
국가데이터처에 따르면 출산율이 낮아졌다.
According to the National Data Agency, the birth rate has fallen.
기상청에 따르면 내일 비가 온다고 합니다.
According to the weather agency, it's going to rain tomorrow.
이 보고서에 따르면 물가가 계속 오르고 있다.
According to this report, prices are continuing to rise.
Common mistakes & nuance
A common mistake is dropping the 에 (writing 보고서 따르면 instead of 보고서에 따르면) — 에 is required. The sentence often ends in reported-speech forms like -다고 하다/보도했다, but that's not mandatory; a plain statement works too.
Similar grammar
- -에 따라
-에 따라 means 'according to / depending on' something as a basis for variation or manner (e.g. 지역에 따라 다르다 'it varies by region'), while -에 따르면 specifically introduces a cited source of information that the following statement comes from.
- -다고 말하다/밝히다
-다고 말하다/밝히다 attaches to the end of a quoted clause to name a speaker who directly said something, while -에 따르면 comes before the clause and names the source the whole statement is based on — the two are often used together in the same sentence.