Senior PPP official denounces Unification Ministry's proposal on North Korea's name
Published: 29 Apr. 2026, 18:49
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- MICHAEL LEE
- [email protected]
![A forum hosted by the Korean Political Science Association on which name South Korea should use refer to the North takes place at the Seoul Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul, on April 29. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/29/8da13b58-6ec1-4a68-8295-fc7a8cf4c7dd.jpg)
A forum hosted by the Korean Political Science Association on which name South Korea should use refer to the North takes place at the Seoul Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul, on April 29. [YONHAP]
A senior official in the opposition People Power Party (PPP) on Wednesday denounced the Ministry of Unification's proposal to refer to North Korea by its preferred Korean name, calling the idea unconstitutional and a unilateral concession in inter-Korean language politics.
The remarks came as the ministry opened public debate over whether to use “Joseon,” the term dating back to the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) that Pyongyang uses for itself. The standard term for North Korea in the South is “Bukhan,” a portmanteau of the Korean word for “north” and the first syllable of “Hanguk,” the word used by Seoul to refer to both South Korea and the entire Korean nation.
“Calling the North ‘Joseon’ effectively means recognizing it as a separate and equal state under Pyongyang’s ‘two-state theory,’” wrote PPP floor leader Song Eon-seog in a Facebook post, referring to the North’s recent position that the two Koreas constitute distinct countries.
Song argued that adopting the North’s preferred name would violate Article 3 of the Constitution, which defines South Korea’s territory as the entire Korean Peninsula, and Article 4, which defines the North as an entity to be reabsorbed through unification.
“This is not an issue that can be changed through public deliberation,” he said.
He also argued that the proposal constituted grounds to dismiss Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who has previously drawn criticism for suggesting Seoul should consider acknowledging North Korean statehood.
Chung also courted controversy by using terms such as “Han–Jo relations” — derived from the first syllables of Seoul and Pyongyang’s terms for the country — in place of “inter-Korean relations.”
The political backlash coincided with a conference backed by the ministry and hosted by the Korean Political Science Association at the Seoul Press Center on Wednesday, billed as a forum for academic and policy discussion on the merits of adopting the North’s preferred name in official South Korean parlance.
Some scholars, such as Kim Sung-kyung, a sociology professor at Sogang University, said the shift could help reset the tone of Seoul’s efforts to engage with Pyongyang.
![People Power Party floor leader Song Eon-seog speaks during a meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 27. Song has fiercely criticized the Unification Ministry's call for South Korea to consider calling the North by its preferred name, "Joseon." [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/29/96667df9-47f4-4ada-8302-be6424a3b460.jpg)
People Power Party floor leader Song Eon-seog speaks during a meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on April 27. Song has fiercely criticized the Unification Ministry's call for South Korea to consider calling the North by its preferred name, "Joseon." [YONHAP]
“Recognizing North Korean statehood does not in any way mean giving up on reunification,” she said at the conference. “If we begin calling it ‘Joseon,’ we can send a message that we are seeking a new framework for relations based on mutual respect and reality.”
Pyongyang has long rejected being called “Bukhan,” which it views as a South Korean construct. While its official name in both English and Korean is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, state media often refers to the country simply as “the republic.”
It has also recently begun referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea, but often with quotation marks that suggest sarcasm.
Yet Kim cautioned the ministry and government against unilaterally adopting the North’s preferred name in official communications.
“This is not just a matter of legal or policy decisions. It would also require a shift in discourse and cultural practice,” she said. “As such, public debate among academia and civil society should come first.”
Vice Unification Minister Kim Nam-jung struck a similar note in his remarks, framing the issue as one of perspective as much as policy.
“When language and institutions reflect recognition and respect for the other side, we can break the cycle of confrontation and expand the space for peaceful coexistence,” he said. “What we need is a willingness to acknowledge the other side as a real and present reality.”
Kwon Eun-min, a lawyer at the firm Kim & Chang, said adopting the North’s official name would not constitute diplomatic recognition.
“Referring to North Korea as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea does not mean our government is recognizing it as a state or that diplomatic relations are automatically established,” he said. “The use of a state name is a matter of notation, identification and documentation.”
He also addressed concerns that such a move could conflict with Article 3 of the Constitution.
“The territorial clause can be interpreted as a declarative provision defining the scope of the country’s territory after peaceful reunification has been achieved,” he said.
Still, some experts expressed unease that the conference itself suggested a policy direction already taking shape.
“This forum may do little more than provide cover for Minister Chung Dong-young’s proposal,” said a North Korea specialist who requested anonymity. “Regardless of political leanings, there is considerable discomfort within our society with the term ‘Joseon,’ and that cannot be ignored.”
Outside historical contexts and references to ethnic Koreans in China, the term “Joseon” has largely fallen out of everyday use in the South since the establishment of the Republic of Korea in 1948.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHUNG YEONG-GYO, JANG GU-SEUL, MICHAEL LEE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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