{"id":4497,"date":"2020-03-12T10:19:14","date_gmt":"2020-03-12T01:19:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.01.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=4497"},"modified":"2020-03-23T10:07:28","modified_gmt":"2020-03-23T01:07:28","slug":"bad-name","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2020\/03\/recommendations\/bad-name\/","title":{"rendered":"\uff1cInside N. Korea\uff1e Giving Socialism a Bad Name: Kim Jong-un Bans \u2018Capitalist\u2019 Baby Names While Citizens Covet \u2018Cool\u2019 South Korean Style"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The increased influence of South Korean and Chinese culture can be seen through the fashion of North Korea\u2019s youth. Photograph taken in Hyesan, Ryanggang Province, in October 2013 by ASIAPRESS<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25a0 Names containing the characters 'Man' (10,000) and 'Bu' (rich) banned for being too capitalist<\/h2>\n

This year, \u2018guidance\u2019 was passed down from Kim Jong-un, commanding the North Korean people to no longer give their children names that do not match the values of socialism. From now on, names of newborns must be registered in Chinese characters, with authorities reviewing names to ensure they are in accordance with socialism. Names that are not deemed to be appropriate will not be allowed to be registered.<\/p>\n

A reporting partner living in the northern region of the country explained, \u201cKim Jong-un\u2019s \u2018guidance\u2019, banning \u2018anti-socialist\u2019 baby names, was passed down to residents through various agencies, enterprises, and at the inminban (local political unit) meetings. This problem came about because people were increasingly giving their children South Korean or foreign-style names, as well as giving their children names with wealth-associated meanings such as \u201810,000 won Park,\u2019 \u2018Rich Man Kim,\u2019 or \u2018Money Han,\u2019 etc.\u201d<\/p>\n

In North Korea, \u2018guidance\u2019 refers to direct instructions from Kim Jong-un. In accordance with this particular piece of \u2018guidance,\u2019 the resident registration division of the police department have blocked residents from registering names that are not written in Chinese characters or that do not match the values of socialism, forcing residents to rename their children.<\/p>\n

There are no major differences in the traditional naming cultures of South and North Korea. Children of the same generation in a family will usually all receive the same Chinese character as part of their name. However, given the prolonged division of the Korean peninsula, a gap is beginning to develop between the two naming cultures, with more and more South Korean parents naming their children using native Korean words rather than Chinese characters.
\nNext page :After watching dramas, North Korean citizens believe...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25a0 After watching dramas, North Korean citizens believe South Korean-style names are \u2018cool\u2019<\/h2>\n

For over 2 decades, South Korean dramas, movies, and music have made their way, despite strong controls, into North Korea, influencing the naming of children.<\/p>\n

Touching this topic, the reporting partner said, \u201cUntil now, in North Korea, men have been typically been given names such as Yeong-cheol and Geum-cheol which contain the character \u2018cheol,\u2019 mainly written in Chinese characters as either \u9244 or \u54f2 (meaning \u2018iron\u2019 or \u2018wise,\u2019 respectively). Many women are given names containing the character \u2018sook,\u2019 written in Chinese as \u6dd1, (meaning \u2018pure\u2019 and \u2018virtuous\u2019). There are so many people with the same name, so we are tired of having to keep using the same old Chinese characters for names.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reporting partner further explained, \u201cBecause North Korean people have been so impoverished and lived such hard lives, parents are giving money-related names to their children in the hopes that the children will become rich. In addition, there has been a significant increase in the number of children with \u2018cool\u2019 South Korean-style names. Having been told that everyone with such names must now be renamed, there has been a strong public backlash though, with people complaining, \u2018I can\u2019t even name my own child the way I want.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u25a0 A disavowal of North Korean socialism<\/h2>\n

It is said that police are now calling for parents to rename any of their children who possess \u2018inappropriate\u2019 names, with the order not just applying to newborns.<\/p>\n

The increasing number of children with South Korean-style names means that South Korean influence has already made a considerable mark on the North Korean people. It can also be said that the regime, by forcing citizens\u2019 names to be changed, is reacting very strongly to the phenomenon of \u2018anti-socialist,\u2019 money-related names, and must be extremely wary of the public straying from or rebelling against the Joseon ideology. (Kang Ji-won)<\/p>\n

\u203b ASIAPRESS contacts reporting partners in North Korea through smuggled Chinese mobile phones.<\/p>\n

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