When Your First Name Is Not Used In Korea

Published: June 12, 2018, 10 p.m.

Have you ever wondered why Koreans use social titles even among close family members, calling someone “so-and-so’s father” instead of saying their first name? This phenomenon can be found in other cultures, too, but perhaps this happens more frequently in Korean. There are three possible reasons for this: 1) Literally saying “you” can be more tricky and awkward in Korean if you are speaking formal language. 2) Just using the same title over and over again in many sentences in a row doesn’t bother most people. 3) To an extent, It shows on what the relationship is based and where it was formed.