Learn Hardcore Korean: siktak wie geureusi nohyeo isseoyo. - There are bowls on the dining table.

식탁 means “dining table.”
위에 attaches the locative particle -에 to 위 (“top, above”), so 식탁 위에 specifically means “on the dining table,” i.e. on its surface.
By contrast, 식탁에 is more general (“at/to the table”) and doesn’t clearly indicate “on top.”

Why is 그릇 marked with 이 instead of 을/를?

In 그릇이 놓여 있어요, 그릇 is the subject in a stative/passive construction, so it takes the subject marker 이/가.
을/를 would mark a direct object in an active sentence (e.g. 그릇을 놓다, “place the bowl”).

What is the structure of 놓여 있어요?

It comes from the verb 놓이다 (“to be placed”), which is an -이- passive/stative form of 놓다.
놓이다 irregularly conjugates to 놓여 in its stem form.
You then add 있다 to express the resulting state: 놓여+있다 → 놓여 있다 (“is placed”).
In polite speech you add -요: 놓여 있어요.

Why is it 놓여 and not 놓인다 or 놓이?

놓이다 is a ㅣ-irregular verb. Instead of 놓이아, the ㅏ/ㅓ rule produces 놓여.
놓인다 would be the dynamic passive (“to get placed”), but here we use the stative/resultative form 놓여 있다.

What’s the difference between 놓여 있어요, 놓아 있어요, and 두어 있어요?

놓아 있어요 = 놓다
- 아/어 있다: emphasizes that someone (you or another person) has actively placed it and it remains there.
두어 있어요 = 두다
- 아/어 있다: often implies “to leave something in a certain spot.”
놓여 있어요 (stative passive) neutrally states “it is in the state of having been placed” without stressing who did it.

Is 놓여 있다 just the same as the English passive voice?

It’s similar but called a “stative” or “resultative” passive in Korean.
It describes the state resulting from an action (the bowl is in a placed state), rather than focusing on the action itself or the agent.

Why isn’t the agent (who placed the bowl) mentioned?

In stative/passive constructions like 놓여 있다, the doer is often omitted when they’re irrelevant or obvious.
The sentence focuses on the current state/location of 그릇, not on who placed it.

Could I say 식탁 위에 그릇이 놓여 있어 (without 요)?