Kim Tae-ryong
Overview
Kim Tae-ryong (김태룡) is a Korean personal name formed by combining the surname Kim (金) with the two-syllable given name Tae-ryong (泰龍, 太龍, etc.). It is a form in which one of Korea's most common surnames meets a traditional naming element, and because people bearing this name exist across many different fields, it is customary to identify them by occupation and area of activity when handling biographical information. Descriptions of any specific individual require verification through individual sources, and this document focuses on the composition of the name itself, the classification of namesakes, and points to note when searching for and recording it.
Main Content
Composition and Meaning of the Name
'Kim' is the surname with the highest population share in Korea, and it is known to be used by roughly one fifth of the total population. The given name 'Tae-ryong' is frequently formed from a combination of the Chinese characters 泰 (tae) or 太 (tae) with 龍 (ryong, "dragon"). 'Tae' carries meanings such as "great," "peaceful," or "large," while 'ryong' means dragon, a character traditionally favored in male names. The actual Chinese-character rendering may appear variously as 泰龍, 太龍, or 泰容 depending on family conventions regarding the generation-name character (dollimja) or preferences at the time of naming, and even when the Hangul spelling is identical, different Chinese characters are treated as different names on the family register.
Naming Trends and Generational Characteristics
Characters of the '泰 (tae)' group appeared relatively often in the names of men born between the 1960s and the 1980s. In birth registrations from the 2000s onward, as native Korean names, short two-syllable names, and English-style spellings increased, combinations such as 'Tae-ryong' became difficult to find in the upper ranks of newborn name rankings. As a result, this name tends to be found relatively more often among the middle-aged and older population, and this naming trend is reflected in the generational population distribution as well.
Classification of Namesakes
When writing a namesake article or searching for a person, it is customary to distinguish them according to the following criteria.
- Academia and research: Cases identified through publications and books while affiliated with a university or research institute. Listing the affiliated institution together with the field of specialization is effective.
- Culture and the arts: Practitioners in literature, fine arts, music, and the performing arts. Their body of work and the year of their literary debut or first presentation are noted together.
- Sports: Athletes, coaches, referees, and the like. Specifying the sport, affiliated team, and period of activity helps reduce confusion.
- Public office, politics, and the legal profession: Distinguished by position and term of office.
- Religion and social organizations: The affiliated organization and region of activity are recorded together.
When there are many namesakes in this way, it is a widespread practice to append an identifier such as occupation or birth year in parentheses to the title of a biographical article.
Points to Note in Records and Searches
Identifying a person by name alone easily leads to errors in which the careers of different people are conflated. It is therefore necessary to verify ① birth year or period of activity, ② occupation and affiliation, and ③ sources for major achievements together. In addition, even when the Hangul spelling is the same, differing Chinese-character renderings, or Romanizations that diverge as 'Kim Tae-ryong' or 'Kim Tae-yong,' are factors that reduce search accuracy.
Recent Trends
In 2024–2025, as generative AI search and conversational search services became widespread, cases in which namesakes are incorrectly merged into a single description in name-based person searches have emerged as a social issue. Accordingly, there is a continuing trend toward strengthening editorial guidelines in wiki- and encyclopedia-type documents by maintaining separate namesake articles and requiring reliable sources for each individual entry. In addition, the principle that biographical information should be described by distinguishing publicly available information on public activities from private information is being emphasized, and for older records, the practice of re-verifying with the latest materials—since periods of activity and affiliations may have changed—has taken hold. In terms of name statistics, the diversification of newborn names and the preference for short names continue, and the share of traditional two-syllable names is expected to decline gradually in the future.
Related Topics
- [[Korean names]]
- [[Namesakes]]
- [[Kim (surname)]]
- [[Naming]]
- [[Guidelines for writing biographical articles]]