| Hangul: | 한국 혼혈 |
| Hanja: | 韓國 混血 |
Multiracial people in South Korea, or Multiracial South Koreans, are residents or citizens of the Republic of Korea of mixed race origins, being of only partial Korean descent.
While intermarriage occurred between Goryeo royals and leading families of the Yuan court during Mongol rule from the 13th century,[1] a persistent concept of Korea as ethnically and culturally homogenous has prevailed in Korea, and continues as Korean ethnic nationalism.[2] Multiracial non-royal individuals have lived in Korea since at least the Joseon period, with one of that era's best-known cases being the first descendants of the Byeongyeong Nam clan, founded by a Dutchman who accompanied Hendrik Hamel.[3] Centuries later, the population of multiracial Koreans, in particular "Amerasian" war babies, rose drastically during and shortly after the Korean War.[4]
Since the mid-2010s, South Korea has seen a rise in interracial relationships between native Koreans and foreign residents and subsequent births of multiracial children. It is believed that this phenomenon is a result of the popularization of South Korean media abroad (Korean Wave), and its ongoing population crisis.[5] [6]
There are several common terms multiracial South Koreans to identify or label themselves, or monoracial Koreans use to refer to such individuals. The most prevalent term is 혼혈 ('honhyeol'), a Sino-Korean word that comes from the Hanja 混血, meaning 'mixed blood'.[7] From this first term, several others have emerged. Multiracial individuals of African and Korean descent may use terms such as 한흑 혼혈 (; Hanja: 韓黑 混血), which adds 韓한 (; Korea) and 黑/흑 (; black (color)) or 블래시안, which is the word "Blasian", a portmanteau of 'black' and 'Asian', transliterated into the Korean alphabet. Individuals of European and Korean descent might use terms such as 한백 혼혈 (; Hanja: 韓白 混血), adding 韓白/한백 (white Korean), or 와시안 (Wasian) and 유라시안 (; 'Eurasian'). Western, and specifically American terms, such as Amerasian, Afro-Asian, and Eurasian, are also used.