How to Make Your Korean Name | Korean FAQ

I wanted to talk about how you can make your own Korean name, and also about why you might want to - or need to. There are several methods, including using Chinese characters (한자), Pure Korean names (such as 하늘, 보라, etc.) combining two names into one, picking a name that sounds like yours, and more.
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Hanja name dictionary: hanja.dict.naver.com/category...
Music by Kevin MacLeod: "Beachfront Celebration," “MJS Strings,” and “Brightly Fancy.” (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)

[@xinibeats]

you gave koreaboos too much power

[@alexfriedman2047]

lmao

[@faustine818]

some people who are wat hing aren't actually koreaboos you know -.-

[@faustine818]

Alex Friedman learning Korean makes you a koreaboo? I never new learning other languages and culture was bad

[@alexfriedman2047]

@@faustine818 I'm just joking geeze. Some people do like to learn other cultures and are interested like myself for example I got into it because I'm hardcore into playing starcraft and all the best players are korean. When I started learning Hangul I was hooked and ordered this guy's book. There are plenty of real Korea boos who are obsessed though lol.

[@nell2674]

Ahaha Yeojin in ur profile ^-^

[@faiza7533]

Hey guys it's me, Pikachu Gonzales Skywalker

[@heavyhead30]

피카추 건사랫 스카이알클?

[@sammie875]

@@heavyhead30 I'd say it's rather 피카츄 곤잘레스 스카이워커

[@panchikofan123]

@@heavyhead30 wrong it's 피카츄 곤잘레스 스카이워커 _nice bfdi reference to ur username tho_

[@GhostTheHost713]

lmao

[@hey__you]

아 ㅋㅋㅋ 피카츄 곤잘래스 스카이워커 ㅋㅋㅋ 개 길어

[@TiinkerBells]

I want to win in life so my name's gonna be Kim Seokjin

[@emilygee6618]

I like how you think ;) **Blows kiss**

[@frogs..sparkles_5886]

Then I really want to dance like Park Jimin 😂

[@knittingarch]

Love this comment!

[@lesliereck]

Koreaboo

[@GhostTheHost713]

@cvtherlne ofc its a joke. sheesh. learn how to tell OBVIOUS jokes ( unless their crazy on an obsessed fan or IS A BOY ) apart from regular statements...no serious offence btw

[@dipitous9647]

When I first went to Korea, I just planned on saying my normal name with a Korean accent, since it was only 2 syllables. Seren became 세렌. Whenever I introduced myself to people, however, they'd always ask me to repeat it a couple of times. It apparently was too weird to pronounce for them, and at one point a guy in my friend group said my name sounded similar to Seryeon (세련), which is a Korean name meaning "refined" or "sophisticated". Now, every time I introduce myself as 세련, people get it on the first try. :)

[@Aldrnari]

Knowing your name makes your KZbin username make a lot more sense! Clever.

[@applesauce1368]

@@Aldrnari True!

[@FrankM]

My Korean name shall be Pikachu Gonzalez Skywalker.

[@heavyhead30]

피카추 건사랫 스카이알클?

[@sammie875]

@@heavyhead30 @피카츄 곤잘레스 스카이워커

[@januzairamli4426]

Hi Merry

[@garliccloves254]

i’m deD

[@ADeeSHUPA]

@@sammie875 레레 루카

[@lusir.]

my korean nickname is 바보야.

[@m_v334]

As in, idiot?

[@chsinskyy]

OMG 🤭🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@jens3098]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂nice name

[@elsannn3877]

Same!!! Looks like it’s a popular name 😂

[@jay-mj3ji]

저도

[@1anna1]

one of the people in my korean textbook is called 김철수🤣

[@prispalos]

There's a real guy named Kim Cheolsoo and he's actually a popular KZbinr. Check out CHANNEL GIMCHEOLSOO. I'm a long time subscriber and was surprised to see his actual real life name is Kim Cheolsoo. How unfortunate but also fortunate at the same time.

[@teerich2011]

Must be the John Brown of S Korea 😂

[@laviedevantsoi2322]

철수 and 영희(Chulsoo and Younghee) are like... Jack and Jill or John Doe in English language. They're kinda old fashioned, in 2019 though.

[@christiskingfr]

anna NICE BOOK REFERENCE LOL

[@lovekatelynn]

@@laviedevantsoi2322 ty for explaining , I was confused lol

[@unomeyed4406]

Imagine being a korean and someone walks up to you and say "Give me a korean name" lmao

[@MohanKumar-sc4jk]

Lmfaooo

[@sevyel]

Skskskksks-

[@a1inlxc305]

Lmao

[@sammicchi7289]

it happens, and it sucks every time lol

[@gregornaysmith617]

@@sammicchi7289 lmao if i was you id dead ass be like wheeliebin

[@mareemaree5091]

Hi Billy. My real name is Marie. So, I turned the syllables around to MiRae. 미래 I didn't look up the Chinese characters because I did not know about that method. I did know that parents in Korea do look up the characters and choose a beautiful or strong or hopeful name for their child. Anyway, I was delighted to learn afterward that there is a lovely actress with the name. Thank you again for your wonderful videos. I promise to contribute. I have to figure out Patreon.

[@GoBillyKorean]

미래 is a pretty cool name! And I'd agree it matches Marie, so if that feels right to you then go ahead and use it :)

[@bubbleshark]

wow!! As I'm Korean, 미래 is really good name! '미래' means 'Future' in KR. I love it 😍 One of my friends name is 미래 :)

[@jingykim5]

윤미래 is most popular rapper in korea

[@ssataf4045]

Kinda like Kang Mi Rae in *My ID is Gangnam Beauty*

[@rpiereck74]

미래 is a purely Korean word so you won't find the Chinese characters for it. Good choice of name!

[@jimmiscarrey7175]

I speak korean everyday with my friends. But everytime i introduce myself to a new korean, they always laugh coz my name sounds like "your nose battery". They always say "어 니 코 배터리". Thats why i have a korean name. Some of my korean friends dont even know my real name haha. But everytime i introduce myself, i say "제 이름은 ____입니다. 그리고 한국이름은 ______입니다."

[@sophiay193]

Same feels man.

[@suugarush2555]

It sounds like "eonnie ko betery" basically in my language is "my older sister is a battery" 😂

[@Reijnz]

eoni ko baeteori BAHAHAH

[@ADeeSHUPA]

@@suugarush2555 Are You A 韓國분

[@user-xg3fw5fu5j]

어 니 코 배터리 진짜 웃겨 ㅎㅎㅎ

[@pumkin54]

My mom is Korean, but has lived in the US for 40 years and legally changed her name to something American. I always thought her name was beautiful and was sad when she changed it. After searching around online for a while trying to figure out a name, I realized I already have a perfect one: my mom's!

[@x0xNakax0x]

A few years back I decided to find myself a Korean name and came up with 고지영 for several reasons: 고 is the first syllable of my real last name (it fitted well), and my first name Camille comes from the flower camomile, which represent strength in adversity. I tried to pick a name that conveyed kind of the same meaning using a sino-Korean name dictionary and finally found 지영. Also this first name is technically for boys and girls, just as my real name (even though it is more used for girls), and I always liked having a unisex name :)

[@x0xNakax0x]

@Arissa Li the website Behind The Name . Com is a good ressource I believe. I hope you will find what you’re looking for! :)

[@koya_joonie]

I picked 이재미 as my Korean name because that's almost literally my first name: Jamie Lee xD also now I can say 재미가 재미없어 xD

[@testmonkey2535]

deep-thought42 😂 wow genius

[@je2m2]

u have the same name as me lmaooooo even the last name

[@xavier9488]

the pun hit hard

[@oohlalalia]

deep-thought42 if you’re a boy this name wouldn’t be it as the bit is feminine but you can always change it too Jae-min lee

[@atlascorrigan7883]

HAHAHAHAHA

[@annahydahl8840]

My old korean friend (died a few years back) gave me the name 세연 bc he thought my personality matched the name pretty well🥰

[@aayushsharma8735]

I think my name shall be Kim JangSoo 김장수. 😊😊 Because Jangsoo in korean means longevity. I m a boy tho... And my actual name means longevity. 😊 Those who liked it, plz hit a like.

[@Dani_1012]

I like Jangsoo

[@areyoued6120]

That’s a nice name

[@alessandrovialpando609]

That's cool because JangSoo also means commander in ancient/medieval times

[@alessandrovialpando609]

One of my squadron-mate was Han JangSoo and he was very strong. Everyone thought that name is perfect for his image.

[@saik2286]

wah yo fella indian!

[@noasmr4273]

I have actually never thought about having a korean name, because my first name has two and my last name has just one syllable. And every time I introduced myself with my real name to a Korean, he or she seemed always fine with it and had no problems at all to pronounce it. So I’ll just stay with the name 널노엘, but very interesting video though! Fun fact: Noëll (my first name) means Christmas in French 😅

[@llenomu]

In turkish too

[@jingykim5]

Christmas =성탄

[@AKADriver]

One tip I'd also give especially to the older people watching this: when you google people who have the name you're thinking of, check their ages. Korean names go in and out of style just like English ones. If you're over 30, avoid the pure Korean names; if you're under 40, avoid names like 영길 or 미자. I've seen a lot of Korean people not do this when picking English names, and it's slightly funny to me as a middle aged guy to meet people my age who call themselves Jayden and Hailey. Not that they're bad names, but they're names that didn't become popular until the late '90s. Wikipedia has a list of the most popular Korean names by year. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_most_popular_given_names_in_South_Korea

[@skitt42]

Haha, I know a Korean Jayden and I've always thought the same thing!

[@jingykim5]

@Haley Ducharme 이해일

[@aEquanimity]

You make a good point. I had a friend from Taiwan whose brother, probably in his teens or early 20s, used Gilbert as an English name... I've also met Asian-Americans in their late teens whose Chinese parents named them Betsy and Alastair.

[@user-ld1sz2dn9e]

Why am I here I’m Korean? Great video though!!!! 잘했어요👍

[@phanchanminea8593]

I really love all the ways that you teach my beloved teacher.

[@VincentJamesSL]

3:41 hey hey hey c’mon man what’s so fancy about the name Vincent? 🤨

[@brianbaker9286]

김 강산 ! My mom is Korean (김영자), dad American. I’m actually Brian, but never had a Korean name. I was given one by some Korean Catholic religious sisters whom I had just met recently. Over lunch, when they found out I didn’t have a Korean name, they spent the rest of lunch, excitedly whispering to each other, to decide. Then they revealed it to me, and explain the meaning. (Literally, means River Mountain… But I think the meaning is peaceful and strong?) I asked my mom if she liked it and she approved! But I never knew receiving a Korean name was a thing to do, until your video!

[@ToonMageChannel]

I picked 남동준 as my (not official) Korean name because I wanted to have the meaning of "a talented person from the southeast". Hahaha.

[@flor_the_dinosaur1748]

Not offical?

[@ToonMageChannel]

@@flor_the_dinosaur1748 yup, it's not official because i didn't register that to be a korean name. And I haven't lived in korea to actually use that. Haha.

[@hadeel.92]

This is very interesting , i like the idea of having a korean name , i will check the link and try to make one .. thank you billy you are amazing

[@Meyra_]

So interesting, really! Thanks Billy 👍✨

[@zerddrez235]

Why is this video so perfect. Now I really want to have a GOOD korean name

[@georginaturner3856]

My name is Georgina, so my Korean friend named me 조진아 :’)

[@GoBillyKorean]

Awesome~!

[@ihateallrace.soimnotracist550]

Wow. Your friend gave you a cool name!

[@makeda6530]

I've done one of those fill in ones, 'if you were born in this month/day/year etc.' And got 한 은민 as a korean name. When I was on HelloTalk for a bit, a year or so ago, I just had my name phonetically spelled with 한글, 마키다. I was asked how I got my Korean name once though. I guess they were curious because my given name is 3 syllables already.

[@marylara9058]

I still wonder about one thing! Are women names different from men names when it comes to creating one? Or it just doesn't matter?

[@ayszhang]

Yes they are different

[@user-wk2or2cj6c]

We usually know who is the boy or girl when we heard someone's name but there're some names that we cant divide exactly

[@serene9532]

@@user-wk2or2cj6c thanks for the info :)

[@alessandrovialpando609]

Some names are male, some names are female and some names are unisex

[@ihateallrace.soimnotracist550]

방탄소년단 박지민은 저한테는 여자이름처럼 들립니다. BTS JIMIN is female name in korea. Haha

[@shaneklz]

Mine is 황크리스티나 Hwang sounds really cute with Christina so I tried doing it. Nickname is 린린

[@ROKN267]

황리나 would be nice. Or 권리나

[@kateblais--9396]

I looked up korean name meanings on a website and I picked 현주. I don't remember what the chinese characters qere but I have a screenshot of it somewhere. Based on the characters it sadi it meant "virtuous, worthy, and able"

[@sjeoendiowksbsjsel]

Maybe 李玄珠 The meaning of 玄珠 is black jewelry.

[@sjeoendiowksbsjsel]

Virtuous...worthy? Maybe 賢珠

[@elvyelios8051]

Why you pick "Lee" as your Korean family name? Why not Kim? Park? Haha.. im confused about which what Korean family name i'll choose

[@kateblais--9396]

@@elvyelios8051 It just seemed to flow nicely, no particular reason.

[@kimhyoly6631]

I will need this is future because I'll live in Korea later,your videos are so helpful,thanks❤

[@agustmint5437]

Kpop fans are coming in. Skksksks

[@serene9532]

Can't tell if you said that in a negative/deprecative manner?

[@kpoptrash2674]

Only came here because I'm learning Korean and don't know if I need another name because I see koreans with English names that are completely different to their Korean names.

[@chaveekarodgers4077]

@ice cream yoongi is in her pfp and her user is Sugas Swag so I’m guessing it’s in a positive way lol

[@lywc8882]

Skkskskskkk

[@caseyhamilton5007]

lol fax

[@diouranke]

I have your books n they make Korean pretty fun.

[@YiPeaches]

If I were ever asked for my Korean name, I'd probably go with 하늘. It sounds similar to my first name (Hannah) but has a similar meaning to my middle name (Celeste).

[@KoreaWithKids]

I met a family that had two girls named 하나 and 한나. Blew my mind, but they had no trouble differentiating.

[@ihateallrace.soimnotracist550]

하늘 means sky in korea. Your name is cool!

[@BrittanyNicole]

i tried giving myself a korean name by picking ones that I've heard and liked the sound of, but using the chinese characters is a really good way to do so...i don't need one, but maybe when i do ill use that method. right now i just focus on the korean pronunciation of my real name and how to write it with hangul. thanks for this though Billy!

[@cecec00]

i chose 채빈 because 채 with the right hanja (also it starts with c when romanized lol) can mean color and 빈 can means bright which is what claire means.

[@elijahproto]

My first name is Elijah, my nickname is Eli, and my mom and dad call me "E". I'm as short as short can get. Actually i'm 6'0, so, nevermind.

[@goldpawluciano3786]

Thanks for sharing the video! I'm half Korean and felt happy when I was able to make a Korean name! :) Also, aren't there any Korean traditions for making names? My mom said her and her brothers had a certain structure to their name based on their prior generation family members? Maybe I misunderstood? I combined my uncle and cousin's names to make my own name.

[@KoreaWithKids]

There's often a syllable for that generation, where all the kids in the family will have one syllable in common. I think there was a four-generation rotation or something, that would be kept in the family records. It might have been used for only the boys in the old days, but I could be wrong about that. There are people who still use this but not everyone.

[@Kojichama]

My name is already 3 syllables in english so it's pretty easy to switch over since all 3 have near the same pronunciation in korean, just have to mess around with the order of them to make it sound right.

[@keziae6497]

Hey Billy! My real name is kinda difficult to spell and pronounce even in my own country so when I started having East Asian friends I figured I can use an easier name. I have a Chinese name thanks to my mixed bloodline and when I started getting interested in Korean I tried to translate it to a Korean name. The hanja is 蘇桂英 (Su Guiying). The meaning and pronounciation fits my real name and I'm satisfied to know that it's still the case when I change it to the Japanese reading (I am also more familiar with Japanese so I know it sounds like a proper name). If read with Korean readings it becomes 소계영. However after watching your video it hit me that it's possible Koreans don't use this name, or it could sound like something else like the cases you mentioned. Unfortunately I hardly understand Korean at all and spotting that kind of flaw is still beyond my capability. I tried searching google with the korean readings and I only ended up finding sites with full hangul, which I can read but not understand. I also tried to put it on instagram but the names that popped out are with different order (계소영) which I know changed the name completely. So can I ask you (and anybody reading this who knows) if this name can be a proper Korean name? Or should I just go with the Chinese reading?

[@samscatsandcrochet]

I picked out 하성아 based on my Chinese name.

[@nadhurahman8247]

Team Kim SeokJin💜💜💜does anyone remember this one🤭

[@xiao9500]

This vid really helped me, I went for the name 김정연 (Kim Jeong-Yeon/Kim Jeongyeon) Jeong-Yeon means loyal, beautiful and graceful🥰 thank you!

[@mayah2805]

so i’ve been doing my research on creating a korean name as i have a slightly hard to pronounce hebrew first name and i intend to move to korea once i’ve gotten better at the language and so the name i came up with is 추성현 or written out Choo Seong-Hyun

[@annenelson5784]

I’m lucky that my English name (first + last) is exactly 3 syllables and corresponds roughly with Korean sounds. So it was really easy for my friend to come up with my Korean name - 송하늘! I’m *fairly* sure it sounds normal enough... ㅋㅋ

[@alondranino423]

I’ve been trying to figure out how I’d just find a good way to romanize my first name but my middle name is Violet so 보라 is so much easier for me :)

[@sue4341]

Koreans don't have middle names. So don't worry about it. Some have a middle name if they are of the Catholic religion.

[@cobbaltmadinchi3103]

My name koreanized is 룩마눌 파르한 빈 무하르디, pretty long and I've been longing to simplify it. This video is very useful.

[@agilarasir3746]

Thank you

[@silverdandylmao]

I'm making my alias Lee Gayeun, since my real name is pronounced as gee-yan and my surname is De Leon, hence, "Lee". This was a very entertaining activity~

[@myfcknmelody]

My korean name is Kim Soo-Ri, my german name is Anne-Kathrin but its too hard to pronounce

[@sjeoendiowksbsjsel]

I'll make your name have Chinese characters. How about 金首利? The meaning is benefit of head hahaha sounds good~~

[@lily-9141]

my korean friend helped me make my korean name. she let me choose between two names, and i chose 소영 (i'm pretty sure she said it means "pure, beautiful flower") and my surname in korean is 인, which she also helped me figure out by playing with my last name a bit.

[@chloe8387]

i found the closest korean name to my english name by rearranging 클로이 enough until i ended up getting something close to 록희, so i decided i'd use that name since it's unique and i'd seen it in a web-drama before... the hanja i chose for it is 사슴 록 and 빛날 희 ! i love it hehe

[@sakurasea1074]

Why is the Korean name (i) pronounced in the west as "Lee"?

[@amullergm]

さくらSakura Sea I don’t really know but probably because (i) in english could be confused with I as in: I am X.

[@jimmiscarrey7175]

I dont know the real cause, But "I" on its own would be pronounced as "eye" (아이). And i think Lee is more suitable for the english language than Ee. And also, in chinese the last name "lee" is "Lǐ ". So the pronounciation of Lǐ in english is Lee

[@elsannn3877]

Korean really doesn’t have a R or a L pronounced like the way English is spoken. That’s why when Koreans speak English the R and the L is struggled at.

[@KoreaWithKids]

I saw someone who spelled it as Ee. Made me happy. ^^

[@cheryltheblackarmymom9465]

I saw in another video, I can remember who it was, but the reason on Lee, Park ect... is because when koreans met the British their English accent made it sound more like Lee and Park when they tried to replicate the sounds of korean names.

[@hocuspocus111]

is 련 a name per say? i for some reason came to 련 유리 as a name and it kinda stuck with me, and i don't know any koreans so i am in doubt, also cause yuri is also a russian name and i am trying to learn both

[@Ampetasia1]

if ur in north korea 련 유리 is fine. but in south ㄹ -> ㅇ so it change 연 유리

[@lovekwangsuu3872]

I settled with 박준호. The hanja meaning is Bright Sky. My Chinese name is Junhao so it's practically the same name but for different countries.

[@sinanonline2077]

I am a lucky person that's firstname has two syllables in roman alphabets, it's Sinan, so Si-nan basically (read as "see-nun", "see" like seeing and "nun" like the religious woman). It's original meaning is "spearhead". I've looked up to find what the syllables 시 and 난 mean. 시 means "poetry" or "poem" and 난 means "orchid". Kinda weird combination. 😂 I'm not too much into grammar yet, just finished learning 한글 basics. But 난 can also be a short form of 나는, so basically "I" or "I am" if I'm not mistaken. Spearhead would be 창끝, I think 창 would be fine as first syllable, but 끝 doesn't seem like a syllable one would use in a name. Does 시난 make any sense or does it sound weird somehow? Would love to use my given firstname also as my korean name (although the 시 is read as "she" and my "Si" normally is read as "see", but oh well, I can live with that) but I'm unsure with the meaning. Can anyone with deeper korean knowledge say a few words about it? Would be extremely appreciated! 😊 And Billy, I love your videos! I ordered all three episodes of your books yesterday, they'll be in Germany on wednesday. I'm diving really deep into the korean culture and language and your videos helped a lot until now! Thank you for all the work you put into them.

[@k.baewon..8309]

I choose my Korean name using the first syllable of my first and second name in hangeul Valentine→ 배랜타인 Oana→완아 so it came out Baewon (actually it should be Baewan but it soumded weird so yeah) And Kim just sound cool so yeah,here I am: 김배원

[@alessandrovialpando609]

배원 also sounds like you learn something everyday because of 배워(Learn)

[@ootwpublishingmedia7894]

I got lucky! My name was one of the examples: 수정 😆

[@mecurry187]

I’m thinking of choosing my name to be 성규리 last name meaning Succeed and name meaning strides towards success

[@ivanaldwincristobal7739]

I just decided to go with 김이반. Kinda on the redzone though, since 이반 is basically an english name, and not a lot of koreans use it.

[@BengVideo]

Hahahhaha Im glad you didn’t fall for those Korean name hahahahaha Props to that guy who tried to name you 안경테 😂😂😂😂

[@LouisaKloe]

This was interesting 😁

[@aadibagul]

My Korean name is Yeom Seomin. I did some google searching as you suggested, and found people with Seomin as their first name with another last name, or Yeom with a different first name. Never both at the same time. Is it okay to keep this name or should I change it?

[@thalia.tenebris]

Is 한수라 a good one? I looked this name up and saw some really pretty girls online, and one of them had a very androgynous style like mine!

[@jhn.hkmn0621]

I'm here bc my name just means "one" in korean and that would be awkward when introducing myself 😂

[@MiuXiu]

hannah hekman I have used 핸아 or 핸나 for a while, but I have a couple names starting with 희 that I’m looking to use so it’s not just my name and sounds more korean. Koreans will understand 핸아 as Hannah better than they would 하나 or 한나

[@user-te6iw5wh1j]

When I found out my first and last names, which are IslAmiC, were both korean names as well I was very relieved because I've heard lots of horror stories from people in korea with difficult names loll.

[@alejandrabadillodominguez7781]

My Korean name is 배아름 :) my Korean friend help me to choose it and I love it! ^^

[@user-pc2xz6wo4g]

Your good at Korean!

[@nouraalmeqbaali8114]

I would like my Korean name to be Lee sooji even though I don't even know what does it mean 😂 (if only I lived in Korea) 😒😅😭

[@muna3196]

my real name Muna and i swear every Korea boo i met said "omg u have a korean name!" how tf does my name sound Korean? anyways my Korean name is Min Yuna

[@isla_usa708]

Always interested in names and how they’re made/chosen, but considering my actual name is Elsa I don’t think pronunciation would be too hard.

[@TheRainbowDragoness]

My Korean friends just use my normal name but the way they pronounce it is cool.

[@mylifeismiserableandsoami953]

Is giving yourself a korean name disrespectful to koreans though? It's kinda koreabooish to me??lmao

[@GoBillyKorean]

I talk about that question in this video.

[@cjt8469]

I'm not a big fan of this. Or English names for Koreans.

[@teerich2011]

I don't either. Would rather learn the person's birth name.

[@sodu5698]

My korean nickname is 천형국 Since im part japanese my last name uses chinese characters 中川 and 川 is pronounced cheon Hyeongguk is done like 亨國 which means lucky country

[@rpiereck74]

My Korean name is 렌대사(仁大使), Ren is half of my western first name, and Desa is the last two syllables of my western family name. The hanja for Ren means benevolence or charity in Chinese (자선), and Desa means ambassador. So I am Benevolence Ambassador! The name was picked by my wife. For my son we wanted a middle name that could be used both in English or Korean. We ended up with Ewan in English and 이완 in Korean, which is perfect as it is pronounced similarly on both languages. His first name is Arthur, which is a name familiar to most Koreans thanks to General Douglas McArthur. In his Korean elementary school he is known as 이완, but at home omma calls him 아더.

[@Anja379]

Im in quarantine so ive got all the time in the world 🙌 my new name coming soon

[@melodythai8927]

so actually im studying korean and i recognized that my last name thai is actually pronounced as chai ( but in english it's supposed to be thai ( the h is silent ) but in chinese it's pronounced as chai ), which sounds a lot like the surname 최, so I thought about picking 최 as my korean surname. but there is actually something I wanted to try out- i do have a Chinese name, chai jin yuan, I think it's supposed to mean along the lines of beauty, so imma try to see what the equivalent of my chinese name is in korean

[@ehdksfl]

My Korean name is 안리즈 (Ahn Liz). I just went with my nickname because I really had nothing in mind. Though, It's kind of weird to pronounce in English, but meh.. I like it anyways. I chose Ahn as my last name because it's derived from the Chinese character 'An' which means 'Piece' and well... I'm a very peaceful person, so I guess it suits me well. Edit: After thinking for awhile, I came up to the name Ahn Doah! I very much like it. It's a combination of the first syllables of my first and last name. And if you put it back wards (Last, First) it becomes Doah!

[@sarahlamarre4621]

My Korean name is 상미 I think it means the one who sees beauty. Or something like that, a Korean teacher gave it to me. He’s a wonderful guy

[@sjeoendiowksbsjsel]

I choose hanja for your name. 1. 常美 the meaning is always beautiful 2. 尚美 respect the beauty 3. 想美 think of the beauty How about? Haha haha sounds good

[@rodrigolualde1861]

I choose 성혁 or seong hyuk. With the hanja meaning of shining and star. It just sounded nice and i really liked it. But i have another one that i liked and has the same meaning as my real name (rodrigo means glorious and powerfull) so i found a name with that meaning kang byun-ho 강병호

[@annmichelle2612]

My korean name is 전 채용 as it very similar to my native name. And because it is really similar to my japanese and chinese names. And also because my korean friend said that i will look good in it.

[@chrissworen1454]

I've already got a Chinese name, which was given to me by my Mandarin teacher. Do you think it could be in any way transformed, let's say, to a Korean name (since Korean was heavily influenced by Chinese throughout history)?

[@chrisbabystay5780]

My Korean name is 서 규현 My last name is so hard for Korean’s to pronounce (the Koreans i’ve spoken to at least,) So I went ahead and made a first name too. The romanization of my Korean name can differ but I perfer Gyuhyeon despite the fact that when my korean friends try to write my korean name in English it looks like Kyuhyun. So overall it’s Seo Gyuhyeon/Kyuhyun.

[@xfemkeplx]

I made this name i think two years ago 서채연 (seo chae yeon ) but havnt found hanja characters for it haha

[@nabi_]

Hi Billy! I chose 박기쁨 Park Gippeum, it means joy, am I right? Is it OK? Sounds "natural" or not? 🥺🙏🏻

[@jjuune]

Okay so I need help. My real name is "Farrah June", June being the 2nd particle. Now I would like to keep it in my Korean name as it's also used in Korean as "joon" or "jun" but I've seen it's a male name, so can I still use it or would it be weird?

[@finbaromen2245]

Hello, I have a question concerning translating last names into Korean. I am German and my last name would be literally translated to 'King' or '왕' in Korean, but using that as a last name in Korean would sound quite weird and conceited, wouldn't it? Even though it's literally my last name in the German language? :D

[@GoBillyKorean]

You don't need to translate last names in Korean, unless you get lucky and there's a last name with a similar meaning or sound. Your first name is much more important in Korean.

[@blake3242]

I just translated my last name and transliterated my first. I have my reasons for not taking on a Korean first name, even if it looks/sounds weird. I like it though. Kinda do want a Korean name now though ahaha.

[@HotPotato9922]

Short question if your second name is Maria and your last name Kielbasa Is it okay to make your ‘’ Korean name” like Ki (shorten last name) Maria ?

[@nyameowmeowmeow]

i wanted to get a korean name bcs korean ㄹ is somewhat different from greek ρ. and 하늘 is the translation of my actual name^^ i was hesitant itd sound weird. but im glad u provided this info. :))

[@jingykim5]

so many koreans use the name 하늘

[@ileniaaaaaaaaaaa]

if I know the meaning of my name can I try and make something similar with chinese characters and make a korean name that way? or if I have a chinese name can I just look up what the characters are in korean?

[@teerich2011]

Yes. You're halfway there

[@ecstacie34]

my korean name is 박시애 (Park Si Ae), meaning someone who gives or grants (시) love (애)...

[@hanagara1907]

My nickname is Hana and has been for YEARS but I worry in Korea telling people to call me 하나 bc I'm like "does that sound too proud like I'm trying to say I'm number 1 or something"

[@Sk0lzky]

I went with mine the most roundabout way i could, translating my first and second name to their original meaning (one's an adjective and one's a fitting noun so works 10/10), translated into chinese and then koreanised it. The issue occured when I tried to check famous people who held it and it seems now I'm on a path to genocide. BTW not exactly related but having a sino-korean syllable name is really useful if you're ever planning to spend more time in China (and especially do business there) since they generally require you to have a "Chinese name" for administrative purposes. It's also cool to be able to use a different name than the one in your passport when spending time in a totalitarian police state >

[@AliciaRodriguez-os1ix]

What is the accurate verb to express, i try to do something?

[@sue4341]

Yes Billy I was working on my Korean name all day yesterday. The first name I have no problem with except that I read it was an unisex name. Can you tell me if the name 수진 is a unisex name? My last name meaning is Crane like the bird... Not sure if I would want to go with this... Because I read that certain images are connected to shamanistic practices...and the crane is one of them... Still working on the last name... 트랜냇. This is very close to my real last name... But it really doesn't have any meaning. ㅋㅋㅋ. 😆. PS I just looked up the name sujin and it is a unisex name... Think I'll go with 수아... Or 수 + something else. Still working on it.

[@sAbr1na2000]

Do korean have repeated/common names, for example in america there is so many guys named Jacob, aiden, blake... or girls named madison, sarah, taylor.... in other coutries like turkey, canada,middle east there are so many common repeated names, so I was wondering if in korea there is such a thing ?!

[@hanzaril]

My name Is Emmanuel, and my other name is long so I tend to choose than which in the middle of it, so I pick 임하늘. Is dat okey?

[@moones2012]

Good. not bad!

[@AnRuixuan]

I learned Chinese first, so I just use the Korean reading of my Chinese name, 안예헌. I think it might sound weird for Koreans though because I'm pretty sure 예 is more common in girl's names and 헌 is more common in boy's names, at least in my experience. Might just Korean-ize my English name because it's not that hard for Koreans to say.

[@user-eg5mx1pw7j]

I think its pretty name and sounds good for korean. resently neutral name is popular in korea