Korean

Choe is a Korean surname, representing an alternate transcription of the Korean Hangul 최 (see Choi). The name is shared by millions of Koreans, and its Romanization varies in different regions: in English-speaking count...

C

Choi Korean Korean

Choi is a common Korean surname, derived from the Sino-Korean character 崔 (choe), which means "high, lofty, towering." The name is also found in Chinese communities, though with a different etymology: in Cantonese, it i...

C

Chung Korean Korean

Chung is a Korean surname, an alternate transcription of the Korean Hangul 정 (see Jeong). The Romanization “Chung” follows the McCune-Reischauer system, which was widely used in Korea during the 20th century. This spell...

G

Gim Korean Korean

Gim is an alternate transcription of the Korean surname 김 (Gim), more commonly rendered as Kim. It originates from the Korean word for 'gold,' ultimately derived from the Chinese character 金. This surname is particular...

H

Han Chinese Korean Chinese Korean

韩 (Han) is a Chinese surname that originated from the ancient state of Han (韩), a major state during the Warring States period (5th–3rd centuries BC) in what is now Shanxi and Henan provinces. The state of Han was one...

I

I Korean Korean

I is a Korean surname, a variant of the more common romanization Lee (also spelled Yi). Like Lee, it is derived from the Sino-Korean character 李 (i), meaning "plum". This character is a Korean form of the Chinese surnam...

I

Im Korean Korean

Im (임) is a common Korean surname with two distinct origins in Sino-Korean characters. The more frequent is from 林 (im), meaning "forest", making it the Korean equivalent of the Chinese surname Lin. The other origin is...

J

Jang Korean Korean

Jang is the most common Korean surname, derived from the Sino-Korean characters 張 (jang) and several other hanja. It corresponds to the Chinese surnames Zhang, Chang, and others, but is more frequent per capita in Korea...

J

Jung 2 Korean Korean

Jung is an alternate transcription of the Korean surname Jeong (Hangul: 정). This spelling is commonly used by Korean communities in English-speaking countries, reflecting a different Romanization system than the Revised...

K

Kang Korean Korean

Kang is a Korean surname that derives from the Sino-Korean character 姜 (gang), which is also the source of the Chinese surname Jiang. The character 姜 originally meant "ginger," reflecting the agricultural origins of th...

K

Kim Korean Vietnamese Korean Vietnamese

Kim is a Korean and Vietnamese surname, derived from the Chinese character 金 meaning "gold." It is the most common surname in both South and North Korea, where it is borne by approximately one-fifth of the population. I...

L

Lee 2 Chinese Korean Chinese Korean

Lee 2 is a Korean surname derived from the i element, written as 李 in Sino-Korean characters. It is the Korean form of the Chinese surname Li 1, which has various original meanings including "reason, logic" (理), "stand...

M

Ma M Chinese Korean Chinese Korean

Ma is a common Chinese and Korean surname, derived from the Chinese character 马 (mǎ), meaning "horse". This surname is widely distributed across East Asia, particularly in China and Korea. In Chinese, the character 马 c...

N

Namgung Korean Korean

Namgung (also spelled Namkoong) is a Korean compound surname, the most common of its kind in Korea. It is derived from the Sino-Korean characters 南 (nam) meaning "south" and 宮 (gung) meaning "palace, house," ultimately...

O

O Korean Korean

O is an alternate transcription of the Korean surname Oh (Hangul 오). It is a character name with roots in the Kangxi radical form, used especially among speakers of Romanized Korean names. The name is Romanised in Korea...

O

Oh Korean Korean

Oh (sometimes also romanized as O) is a common Korean surname, derived from the Chinese surname Wu (吳). According to the 2015 South Korean census, there were 763,281 people with the surname Oh, making it one of the most...

P

Park 1 Korean Korean

Park 1 is a Korean surname derived from the bak element from Sino-Korean 樸 or 朴, meaning "plain, unadorned, simple". It ranks as the third most common surname in South Korea. Etymology and History The character 朴 (bak...

R

Rhee Korean Korean

Rhee is a Korean surname, representing the North Korean form of Lee. While in South Korea the surname is romanized as Lee (from 이, I), North Korea uses the transliteration Rhee, reflecting differences in romanization st...

S

Son Korean Korean

Son is a Korean surname, representing the Korean form of Sun. It originates from the Sino-Korean 孫 (son) meaning "grandson" or "descendant." This surname is prevalent in Korea and is among the most common Korean family...

S

Song Chinese Korean Chinese Korean

Etymology and HistoryThe surname Song (宋) is one of the most common Chinese surnames, with its origin tracing back to the ancient state of Song and later the illustrious Song dynasty, which ruled China from 960 to 1279....

Y

Yoon Korean Korean

Yoon is an alternate transcription of the Korean surname Hangul 윤, commonly Yun in Revised Romanization. This surname, which ranks among the most common in South Korea, carries diverse meanings derived from its Chinese...

Korean Surnames