Korean converts to Islam
The Seoul Central Masjid in Itaewon, March 8, 2025 / Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar
An estimated 45,000 ethnic Koreans born and raised in South Korea have changed their faith to Islam. Among them is Yusuf, an ethnic Korean in his 30s who converted to Islam in 2014.
“Most of the men do it to find wives," Yusuf said.
Disillusioned with Korea's competitive dating culture, especially in Seoul, many of the men seeking out Islam are also seeking a return to what Yusuf described as a simpler path to marriage.
At Seoul Central Masjid in Itaewon, between five and 25 new converts arrive every month for the training course in basic Islamic tenets. Students may choose to recite the Shahada — the Muslim declaration of faith and the first of the five pillars of the religion — and officially convert to Islam at the end. Most of them are men.
Female converts, while not explicitly motivated by marriage, also cited “simplicity” when asked about why they became Muslim. Two interviewees said they found the basic premise of Islam — one God — appealing. Areum, a Korean follower in her 30s, said Islam’s respect for elders also aligned well with her native Korean culture, making her conversion easier to explain to her parents.
Yusuf, Areum and other Korean converts cited a sense of not feeling fulfilled by their native culture alone. Islam is one of many paths young Koreans see as a way out of the complexities of traditional Korean culture.
Tackling stereotypes around Islam, for many of the converts interviewed, was an exercise in purposefully embracing people and values that Korean media might portray in a negative light. A representative from the Seoul Central Masjid said a majority of interested Koreans who stop by are in their 20s and 30s, reflecting a growing trend among young Koreans disenchanted with mainstream societal expectations.
The history of Korean Islam reflects the rise and fall of the nation's political fortunes. In times of increased exchange with the world, Muslim traders and workers have migrated to the peninsula. A native Muslim community in Korea has never taken hold continuously, meaning previous Muslim populations are not the direct predecessors of contemporary Korean Muslims.
The first recorded Muslim immigrants to Korea were traders from the Middle East during the 57 B.C.-935 A.D. Silla Dynasty. Since then, Muslim communities formed recurrently during the 918-1392 Goryeo Dynasty and 1392-1910 Joseon Dynasty, as well as under the 1910-45 Japanese occupation, surrounding the 1950-53 Korean War and in the 1970s during the oil crisis.
Although their integration and assimilation has always been inconsistent, rather than existing in complete segregation, Muslim groups have had significant cultural exchange with Korean society. For example, the Huihui, a Chinese Muslim group, are credited with introducing the distilling techniques that led to the creation of soju, a popular Korean alcohol.
The existence and status of Muslim communities in Korea has reflected politics since their inception. At various points in Korean history, the practice of Islam has been restricted, including under King Sejong (1397-1450), who forbade public rituals, effectively forcing assimilation. Likewise, acceptance of Muslim migrants and native converts is marked by opportunity. The first 250 native converts in contemporary South Korean history were influenced by the presence and aid from Turkish Muslim troops committed to the Korean War.
The latest chapter of native Korean conversion to Islam since the 1990s reflects a national trend in religiosity, with the total proportion of native South Koreans who subscribe to any religion growing steadily since the 1960s. However, the success of other imported religions in Korea, such as Christianity, has always followed a “Koreanization” of that religion to accommodate societal norms. Contemporary Muslim communities, including native converts, in Korea today are distinct in their visible and conceptual distance from Korean culture. This distance is also a basis for the appeal of Islam to potential native followers.
However, this sharp contrast between Islam and Korean culture may be softening. Parallel to the small but steady flow of Koreans converting to Islam also comes the rise of Korean Muslim influencers. Among the Indonesian community in Korea, certain Korean husbands of Indonesian wives are popular for their TikTok channels. Korean convert influencer accounts have thousands of followers, such as those with content about their Muslim "oppa” — a Korean term that can be used for a romantic partner. Female Korean Muslim influencers have similar followings for their channels on lifestyle, and are popular for mixing hijab and traditional Korean hanbok fashion.
The hybridization of Islamic and Korean styles might increase the religion’s potential to stick with native converts.
Take Ayana Jihye Moon, for example. Originally from Korea, she converted to Islam in her teenage years, citing curiosity about the religion after hearing mentions of it as a child during the Iraq War. She went on to pursue higher education, eventually settling in Indonesia as a Korean Muslim fashion influencer. Another Korean Muslim figure with a significant following is Daud Kim, whose YouTube videos explain his life as a convert. Both influencers have both Korean and international audiences. Their niche identity and willingness to share have made the religion more accessible to their Korean peers that traditional proselytizing may not otherwise have reached.
Although Yusuf questioned the authenticity of these converts, he said all are welcome to explore Islam, whatever their initial motivation might have been. He first developed an interest in Islam after meeting Muslim friends at an English-speaking club. He said learning a foreign language, and then a new religion, was a way for him to break out of the confines of Korea's “insular” culture.
While some worry that converting to Islam could lead to isolation or ostracization, the converts themselves reported finding a greater sense of community. Some Korean converts do report discrimination or exclusion by Korean acquaintances and coworkers, but cite their newfound community of likeminded Muslims as more than enough support to make the leap.
As Areum put it, despite living in Korea her whole life, visiting the Seoul mosque for the first time “finally felt like I came home.”
Nathalie M. Kwon is a visiting researcher at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. Her specialty is in migration and exchange between Central Asia and Korea.