Korean Last Names: Why So Many Koreans Are Kim, Lee and Park
The most common Korean last names are Kim, Lee and Park. Learn how common they are, why surnames are so concentrated, clan origins, and why spellings vary.
By a native Korean teacher · · 2 min read
The most common Korean last names are 김 (Kim), 이 (Lee) and 박 (Park). In the 2015 census, Kim made up about 21.5% of the population, Lee about 14.7% and Park about 8.4%, so these three alone covered roughly 45% of South Koreans.
Word at a glance
성seong
- Literally
- family name
- In natural English
- last name, surname
The most common Korean surnames
Korea has only a few hundred surnames in common use, and a handful dominate. After Kim, Lee and Park come names such as Choi, Jeong, Kang, Jo, Yun, Jang and Im. Together the top ten cover well over half the population.
- 김 Kim (Gim): about 21.5%
- 이 Lee (I, Yi, Rhee): about 14.7%
- 박 Park (Bak): about 8.4%
- 최 Choi (Choe), 정 Jung (Jeong), 강 Kang (Gang), 조 Cho (Jo), 윤 Yoon (Yun), 장 Jang (Chang), 임 Lim (Im)
Why are surnames so concentrated?
For much of history, many ordinary Koreans had no surname at all. As surnames spread more widely, especially in the late Joseon period and after the 1894 reforms, many families adopted the names of prestigious lineages. A popular explanation is that choosing a well-known name brought social standing, which helped a few names grow very large.
Not all Kims are the same: bongwan
Koreans distinguish families by 본관 (bongwan), the ancestral seat of a clan. Two people named Kim might be a Gimhae Kim and a Gyeongju Kim, which are different lineages. When Koreans ask 본이 어디예요?, they are asking which clan you belong to.
성이 어떻게 되세요?
Seongi eotteoke doeseyo?
May I ask your family name?
저는 김해 김씨예요.
Jeoneun Gimhae Gimssiyeyo.
I'm a Gimhae Kim.
Why the spellings vary
Under the official Revised Romanization, 김 is Gim, 이 is I and 박 is Bak. But most people keep older spellings on passports, such as Kim, Lee and Park, because they look familiar in English. That is why you will see the same surname written as Lee, Yi or Rhee, or as Jung, Jeong and Chung.
Surnames and marriage
Korean women traditionally keep their own family name after marriage. Children usually take the father's surname, though since 2008 parents can agree to give a child the mother's surname instead.
Questions people ask
What is the most common Korean last name?+
Kim (김). About one in five South Koreans has it.
Why do Koreans say Kim-ssi?+
씨 (ssi) is a polite suffix added to a name. With a surname alone it can sound distant, so people usually use the full name plus 씨, like 김하나 씨.
Do Korean women change their last name when they marry?+
No. They traditionally keep their own family name.
Can a foreigner choose a Korean last name?+
Yes, for a nickname-style Korean name you can pick any surname. Common ones like Kim, Lee and Park sound the most natural.