Woo (Korean surname) explained
| Woo |
| Meaning: | Different depending on Hanja |
| Origin: | Korean |
| Alternative Spelling: | U |
| Hangul: | 우 |
| Hanja: | and |
| Rr: | U |
| Mr: | U |
| Koreanipa: | [u] |
Woo is an uncommon Korean surname.
Clans
Woo may be written with either of two hanja (and). Each has one bon-gwan: for the former, Danyang, North Chungcheong Province, and for the latter, Mokcheon-eup (목천읍), Dongnam-gu, Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, both in what is today South Korea.[1] The 2000 South Korean census found 180,141 people with these family names.[2] In a study by the National Institute of the Korean Language based on 2007 application data for South Korean passports, it was found that 97.0% of people with this surname spelled it in Latin letters as Woo in their passports, while only 1.6% spelled it as Wu. Rarer alternative spellings (the remaining 1.4%) included U and Wo.[3]
People with the surname
- U Tak (1262-1342), Korean Confucian scholar during the Goryeo dynasty
- U Tong-chuk (born 1942), North Korean politician
- Woo Bum-kon (1955–1982), South Korean police officer and spree killer (responsible for the Uiryeong massacre)
- Woo Chul (born 1978), South Korean swimmer
- Woo Do-hwan (born 1992), South Korean actor
- Woo Eun-joung, South Korean taekwondo practitioner
- Woo Eun-kyung (born 1962), South Korean basketball player
- Woo Ha-ram (born 1998), South Korean diver
- Woo Hee-jin (born 1975), South Korean actress
- Woo Hee-young (born 1963), South Korean footballer
- Woo Hye-rim (born 1992), South Korean singer, former member of girl group Wonder Girls
- Woo Hye-mi (stage name Miwoo, 1988–2019), South Korean singer
- Hyo-Won Woo (born 1974), South Korean composer
- Woo Hyun (born 1964), South Korean actor
- Woo Hyun-jung (born 1977), South Korean former field hockey player
- Woo In-hee (died 1981), North Korean actress and mistress of Kim Jong-il
- Woo Jang-choon (1898–1959), Korean-born Japanese botanist
- Woo Ji-ho (stage name Zico, born 1992), South Korean rapper, record producer, member of boy group Block B
- Woo Ji-hyun (born 1986), South Korean actor
- Woo Ji-won (born 1973), South Korean basketball player
- Woo Jin-won (stage name Masta Wu, born 1978), South Korean rapper
- Woo Jin-yong (born 1986), CrossFit and snowboard athlete
- Woo Jin-young (born 1997), South Korean singer and rapper
- Woo Joo-sung (born 1993), South Korean footballer
- Kevin Woo (born 1991), South Korean-American singer, television host, former member of boy group U-KISS
- Kyu Sung Woo (born 1941), South Korean architect
- Meredith Jung-En Woo (born 1958), South Korean-born American political scientist
- Woo Mi-hwa (born 1974), South Korean actress
- Woo Sang-ho (born 1962), South Korean activist and politician
- Woo Sang-ho (born 1992), South Korean footballer
- Woo Sang-hyeok (born 1996), South Korean high jump athlete
- Woo Sang-kwon (1926–1975), South Korean footballer and coach
- Woo Seung-jae (born 1986), South Korean wrestler
- Woo Seung-je (born 1982), South Korean footballer
- Woo Seung-yeon (1983–2009), South Korean actress
- Woo Sun-hee (born 1978), South Korean handball player
- Sung J. Woo (born 1971), South Korean-born American writer
- Woo Sung-yong (born 1974), South Korean footballer
- Woo Won-jae (born 1996), South Korean rapper
- Woo Won-shik (born 1957), South Korean politician
- Woo Yong-gak (1929–2012), North Korean commando held in South Korea as one of the unconverted long-term prisoners
See also
Notes and References
- Web site: 한국성씨일람. List of Korean surnames. Kyungpook National University. 2003-12-11. 2013-10-30.
- Web site: 성씨인구분포데이터 (Surname population and distribution data). National Statistics Office. South Korea. 2013-05-28.
- Book: 성씨 로마자 표기 방안: 마련을 위한 토론회. Plan for romanisation of surnames: a preparatory discussion. National Institute of Korean Language. 25 June 2009. 22 October 2015. 60.
