Children of Korean-foreign couples now allowed to register longer names

Foreign tourists take part in a traditional Korean wedding ceremony during the Bukchon Craft Festival at Cheonggye Plaza in Jongno District, Seoul, on June 7. Yonhap

Children born to Korean and foreign parents will now be able to register foreign-style names in full, such as “Kim Alexandriana” or “Park Cristiano,” without being restricted by a character limit.

The Supreme Court’s Registration Office announced Tuesday that it revised the family registry regulations on Friday, lifting the previous five-character limit (excluding the family name) for names of children born to mixed-nationality couples.

Until now, names exceeding five characters were only allowed if the child took the surname of their foreign father.

With the revision, children who take their Korean parent’s surname can also use longer foreign-style given names that reflect their multicultural heritage. Previously, names like “Alexandriana” or “Cristiano” had to be shortened to “Alexandra” or “Christian” due to the limit.

Children who were previously registered under abbreviated names can also update their records through a supplementary registration process, as long as the name matches what appears on the foreign parent’s national identity documents.

“This revision ensures that children with a foreign mother are treated equally to those with a foreign father when it comes to name registration,” a court official said. “Regardless of which parent is foreign or whose surname the child takes, families now have greater freedom to reflect cultural diversity in their children’s names.”

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.