Here Are 11 K-Pop Idols With Some Of The Rarest Korean Surnames In The Industry
As many K-Pop fans know, the most common surnames in South Korea, by far, are Kim, Lee, and Park. In fact, these three surnames alone make up a little more than half of all the surnames of the country’s population — over 25 million people! Countless idols have these surnames, which is unsurprising given their frequency, but there are a number of K-Pop idols that have much rarer last names. The following 11 idols have surnames that aren’t as common in the population, with some belonging to as little as 2,000 people or less!
1. Seungkwan (SEVENTEEN)
Seungkwan’s full name is Boo Seungkwan. Interestingly, the surname “Boo” is most common on Jeju Island, which is where Seungkwan is from! Less than 10,000 people have this name, which may sound like a lot, but with South Korea’s population at around 51 million people, this is a pretty small number!
2. Ong Seongwoo
Seongwoo goes by his real name as his stage name! The surname “Ong” is extremely rare, with less than 1,000 people having it as their surname. Because of this rarity, Seongwoo has introduced himself as “Korea’s first celebrity with the last name Ong.”
3. Huihyeon (DIA)
Huihyeon’s full name is Ki Huihyeon. The surname “Ki” belongs to about 26,000 people, which again might sound like a lot, but compared to the most common surnames, it’s still pretty rare!
4. Taeyang (BIGBANG)
Taeyang’s real name is Dong Youngbae. The surname “Dong” belongs to about 5,000 people in South Korea — a pretty small number!
5. Jaehyun (Golden Child)
Jaehyun’s full name is Bong Jaehyun. The surname “Bong” belongs to a little more than 10,000 people in South Korea, giving him a much rarer surname than some of the other Jaehyuns in the K-Pop industry! For example, NCT‘s Jaehyun, whose real name is Jeong Yoonoh, shares a surname with about 2.2 million people.
6. Sungjae (BTOB)
Sungjae’s full name is Yook Sungjae. The surname “Yook” belongs to a little over 20,000 people in Korea, so while it’s not the rarest on this list, it’s still pretty uncommon!
7. Taecyeon (2PM)
Taecyeon’s full name is Ok Taecyeon. The surname “Ok” also belongs to a little over 20,000 people in South Korea. As a fun side note, the surname “Ok” also translates to “jade”!
8. P.O (Block B)
P.O’s real name is Pyo Jihoon. The surname “Pyo” belongs to about 28,000 people in South Korea, which is a fair number, but he’s still the only idol with that surname!
9. D.O. (EXO)
D.O.’s real name is Do Kyungsoo. The surname “Do” belongs to a little over 50,000 South Koreans, so it is one of the more common names on this list, but still one of the rarer surnames in the Korean entertainment industry!
10. Baekhyun (EXO)
Baekhyun’s full name is Byun Baekhyun. The surname “Byun” is the most common on this list, belonging to about 130,000 South Koreans, but Baekhyun is the only idol with this surname!
11. Haein (LABOUM)
Haein’s full name is Yeom Haein. The surname “Yeom” belongs to about 60,000 South Koreans, and Haein is the only currently active idol with this surname, though there was a member of past K-Pop group Bob Girls, Yeom Jina, who also shared this surname.
