My Brother? My Boyfriend?: Use of Korean Kinship Terms for Non-Familial Relationships

This presentation investigates the various sociocultural uses of the Korean kinship term "oppa." Oppa is one of four sibling-related kinship terms, meaning "older brother (from a female perspective)," and it is therefore... [ view full abstract ]

This presentation investigates the various sociocultural uses of the Korean kinship term "oppa." Oppa is one of four sibling-related kinship terms, meaning "older brother (from a female perspective)," and it is therefore inherently gendered. However, it is also used outside of the family context. One such use is by a girl in a heterosexual relationship to refer to her boyfriend, and another is how a fangirl refers to a Korean male celebrity, often a K-Pop idol or boy group member. My work examines why oppa is the only kinship term that has multiple indexical meanings and why it can only be used in a heteronormative context. By surveying and interviewing both Korean-Americans and Koreans who currently live in Korea, I seek to understand the difference in attitudes I have observed between these two groups of people, and to demonstrate a global comparison in the use of a kinship term such as oppa that has multiple meanings in context.