Popular Korean Names: What Koreans Are Naming Their Kids

Popular names for babies today

Name trackers based on Korea's family registration records, reported by outlets such as The Korea Times, show the same handful of names near the top in recent years. Exact rankings change from year to year and from tracker to tracker, so treat these as names you will hear a lot among young children rather than a fixed top ten.

• Girls: 서윤 (Seoyun), 서아 (Seoa), 하윤 (Hayun), 하린 (Harin), 지우 (Jiu), 이서 (Iseo)
• Boys: 도윤 (Doyun), 하준 (Hajun), 이준 (Ijun), 서준 (Seojun), 은우 (Eunu, often spelled Eunwoo)

Names that sound like a certain generation

Like English names, Korean names reveal roughly when someone was born. 영희 (Yeonghui) and 철수 (Cheolsu) are so classic they were used as sample names in old textbooks. Names like 지은 (Jieun), 수진 (Sujin), 지훈 (Jihun) and 민수 (Minsu) feel typical of people who are adults today.

Gender-neutral Korean names

Some names work for anyone. 지우 (Jiu), 하늘 (Haneul, sky), 유진 (Yujin) and 지안 (Jian) are all used for both boys and girls. Gender is usually signaled by the second syllable: 아, 희 and 연 lean female, while 준, 호 and 석 lean male, though there are many exceptions.

Pure Korean names

Most names use syllables tied to Chinese characters, but some parents choose native Korean words instead. These names feel gentle and poetic.

• 하늘 (Haneul): sky
• 나래 (Narae): wings
• 보람 (Boram): reward, something worthwhile
• 가람 (Garam): river, an old native word
• 다솜 (Dasom): love, an old native word

What do Korean names mean?

For hanja-based names, the meaning depends on the characters the parents chose, not just the sound. 서 can mean auspicious (瑞) or writing (書), and 윤 can mean grace (允) or richness (潤). So when you ask a Korean what their name means, they will often explain each character separately.

• 이름이 무슨 뜻이에요?

  Ireumi museun tteusieyo?

  What does your name mean?

• 이름이 예쁘네요.

  Ireumi yeppeuneyo.

  What a pretty name.

Questions people ask