Grammar
-(으)로 알려져 있다
Meaning
Advanced-(eu)ro allyeojyeo itda
A resultative passive expression meaning 'is known as ~,' used to state how something or someone is generally recognized or reputed to be. 알리다 ('to inform') becomes the passive 알려지다 ('to become known'), and 있다 shows that this known state still holds now.
Form
Attach 로 to a noun ending in a vowel, 으로 to a noun ending in a consonant, to mark 'as ~', then add 알려져 있다 (from 알리다 → 알려지다 → 알려져 있다): 명소 + 로 → 명소로 알려져 있다 (is known as a famous spot). The subject of the sentence is the thing being known, not the one doing the knowing.
Examples
삼성전자는 한국의 대표적인 글로벌 기업으로 알려져 있다.
Samsung Electronics is known as a leading Korean global company.
이 식당은 맛집으로 알려져 있다.
This restaurant is known as a great place to eat.
제주도는 관광지로 널리 알려져 있다.
Jeju Island is widely known as a tourist destination.
Common mistakes & nuance
Because this is a passive form, don't use the active verb 알다 ('to know') in its place — '그는 유명한 배우로 알아요' is incorrect; it must be 알려져 있다. Also don't drop 있다: 알려지다 alone emphasizes the change ('became known'), while 알려져 있다 emphasizes the current known state.
Similar grammar
- -(으)ㄹ 것으로 보이다
-(으)ㄹ 것으로 보이다 expresses a prediction or guess about something that hasn't happened yet ('it seems it will ~'). -(으)로 알려져 있다 states an existing reputation or established fact about how something is known, not a forecast.
- -다고 말하다/밝히다
-다고 말하다/밝히다 reports what a specific person said or announced. -(으)로 알려져 있다 describes a general, often source-less reputation or common knowledge, without naming who said it.