The Dynamics of Koreans Adopting English Names: Attachment, Necessity, and Identity

This project investigated the adoption of English names university students at a Seoul university. Qualitative data was collected by interviewing 16 students who had adopted an English name (or names) in various situations. The purpose was to investigate name changes of university students having living abroad experiences, and their influences on the participants' sociocultural and personal backgrounds. To do this, first the participants' awareness and attitude toward their name changes were examined. Second was to investigate how possessing two names affects their perceptions of self and social relationships. It was expected that participants would demonstrate different identity qualities with an English name compared to a Korean name. To provide a cultural context there is a section on the naming practices in Korean with its history of Confucianism. The Discussion section focuses on attachment, necessity and the identity of names. How do students become attached to an English name? Why is taking an English name sometimes needed? An exploration of identity and name adoption did not match expectations, but the richness of the data did reveal significant insight into unanticipated areas. Limitations are noted as well as possible directions for future studies.