2 Given names

Korean given names are usually composed of two characters or syllables. A few people have one- or three-character given names, like the politicians Kim Ku (김구; 金九) and Goh Kun (고건; 高建) on the one hand, and Yeon Gaesomun (연개소문; 淵蓋蘇文; a Goguryeo general) on the other. People with two-character family names often have a one-character given name, like the singer Seomoon Tak (서문탁; 西門卓).

In March 1991, the South Korean Supreme Court (대법원) published the Table of Hanja for Personal Name Use (Inmyeong-yong Chuga Hanja-pyo; 인명용 추가 한자표; 人名用追加漢字表) that restricts the possible Hanja in new Korean given names. Originally the list included the 1,800 Basic Hanja for Educational Use (Hanmun Gyoyuk-yong Gicho Hanja; 한문 교육용 기초 한자; 漢文敎育用基礎漢字) taught in middle and high school plus 1,054 additional characters; since then, the list has been expanded.

Traditionally, given names are determined by a rule called dollimja, (돌림자), which originated in China but fell into disuse there. One of the two characters in a given name is unique to the individual and the other is shared by all people in a family of the same sex and generation, called the generation name.

While the traditional practice is still largely followed, since the late 1970s, some people have given names that are native Korean words, usually of two syllables in length to follow the old 2-character pattern. Popular native Korean given names include Haneul (하늘; "Heaven" or "Sky") and Iseul (이슬; "Dew"). Despite the general trend away from traditional practice, people's names are still recorded in both Hangul and Hanja (if available) on official documents, in family genealogies, and so on.

3 Historical names

3.1 Native names

Prior to the adoption of Chinese-style names, Koreans had indigenous names. They did not have family names, at least as part of personal names. Native given names were sometimes composed of three syllables like Misaheun (미사흔; 未斯欣) and Sadaham (사다함; 斯多含).

Under the strong influence of Chinese culture in the first millennium of the Common Era, Koreans adopted family names. Family names were limited to kings and aristocrats at the beginning, but gradually spread to the commoners during the Goryeo and Joseon periods.

Goguryeo in Manchuria and northern Korea and Baekje in southwestern Korea had many non-Chinese family names. They often consisted of two characters and many of them seem to have been toponyms. Judging from Japanese records, some characters were pronounced not by their Chinese reading but by their reading in the native language (see Hanja#Hun and Eum). For example, Goguryeo General Yeon Gaesomun (연개소문; 淵蓋蘇文) is called Iri Kasumi (伊梨柯須弥) in Nihonshoki. Like cheon (천; 泉) in Chinese, iri would presumably have meant "fountain" in the Goguryeo language.

In contrast, Silla family names were totally Chinese-style ones, which is not likely related to King Muyeol 's Sinicization policy.

The ancient kings of Korea gave their subjects family names. For example, in AD 33, King Yuri gave the tribes of Saro (Silla) names like Bae (배), Choe (최), Jeong (정), Son (손) and Seol (설). Other names given by kings are An (안), Cha (차), Han (한), Hong (홍), Kim (김), Kwon (권), Nam (남), Eo (어), and Wang (왕).

3.2 Mongolian names

Under the domination of the Mongol Empire during the Goryeo Dynasty, Korean kings and aristocrats had both Mongolian and Sino-Korean names. For example, King Gongmin had both the Mongolian name Bayan Temür (伯顏帖木兒) and the Chinese-style name Wang Gi (王祺) (later renamed Wang Jeon 王顓).

Mongolian personal names did not include family names, so some Korean nobility had names that were combinations of Sino-Korean family names and Mongolian given names. For example, Ki Cheol (奇轍), a brother of the Qi Empress, was called Ki Bayan Bukha (奇伯顏不花) and the Qi Empress's eunuch was called Bak Bukha (朴不花).

3.3 Japanese Names

In 1939, during the Japanese Colonial Period ( 1910– 1945) and as part of Governor-General Minami Jiro 's policy of cultural assimilation (同化政策; doka seisaku) [2], Ordinance No. 20 (Commonly called the "Name Order") was issued, which went into law on February 11, 1940, the 2,600th anniversary of the mythical emperor Jimmu's founding of Japan [3].

The ordinance — commonly called Soshi-kaimei (創氏改名) in Japanese — allowed in theory (but compelled in practice) Koreans to adopt Japanese family and given names. Although the Japanese Government-General officially prohibited compulsion, low-level officials practically forced Koreans to get Japanese-style family names, and by 1944, approximately 84 percent of the population had registered Japanese family names ( Nahm 1988 , p. 233).

Soshi means creation of Japanese family name or si (Korean ssi (씨)), which had different system from Korean family name or seong (Japanese sei). Japanese family names represent the families they belong to and can be changed by marriage and other procedures, while Korean family names represent paternal linkages and are unchangeable. Soshi was a dual operation of Japanese and Korean family name systems. A Korean was able to register a new Japanese family name, or his Korean family name automatically became his Japanese family name. A Korean was not allowed to register another Korean family name. For example, Mr. Bak (박; 朴) was allowed to register Arai (新井) or Boku (the Japanese equivalent of Bak) as his Japanese family name but was forbidden to take the name Kim (김; 金). Japanese conventions of creating given names also made their way into Korea, such as putting a character "子" (Japanese ko and Korean ja meaning "descendant" or "son") to make feminine names(like "玉子" - Japanese Tamako and Korean Okja), although this practice is seldom seen in modern Korea, both North and South. See External links for more on the Soshi-kaimei policy.

After Japanese defeat in World War II and the liberation of Korea, the Name Restoration Order (조선 성명 복구령; 朝鮮姓名復舊令) was issued on October 23, 1946 by the American military administration, enabling Koreans to restore their Korean names.

4 References

• Nahm, Andrew C. (1988). Korea: Tradition and Transformation — A History of the Korean People. Elizabeth, NJ: Hollym International.

5 See also

• Courtesy name
• Era name
• Generation name
• Posthumous name
• Temple name
• List of Korea-related topics
• Most popular family names

6 External links

• What's In a Korean Name?
• Table of Hanja for Personal Name Use
• Examples of Koreans who used Japanese names (in Japanese): by Saga Women's Junior College
• Public Figures in Popular Culture: Identity Problems of Minority Heroes — Footnote 16 gives bibliographic references for Korean perspectives on the Soshi-Kaimei policy.

Names by culture Korean names Korean language

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