[I LUV K-POP] IU(아이유), Lee Jieun(이지은), Lee Jigeum(이지금)-The secrets of IU's name

K-POP star IU

In Korea, people like to use the word 'national(국민)' for the best celebrities.

If a Korean celebrity has a 'national' is like a medal.

As such, not everyone is given 'national'.

In particular, this 'national' is given only to one or two people in one genre.

It is a great honor.

For example, Yoo Jae-seok, the Korean's favorite MC, was given the honor of being a "national MC." Actor Song Kang-ho, who is well known overseas for the movie Parasite, is a "national actor."

Singer and actor IU was also given the honor of 'national'.

She is not a 'national singer' but has been recognized as a 'national sister'.

IU was born in 1993 and debuted as a singer in 2008. She was 15 years old at the time. And two years later, IU became a "national sister" as "Good Day" became a national hit.

IU, who turned 29 in 2022, has grown too much to be a 'young sister'.

However, Koreans still remember her as the 'national sister'.

IU, the "forever sister" of Korean brothers and sisters.

Today, we're going to talk about the name of IU.

1) IU's meaning

IU is written as '아이유' in Korean.

IU is I + YOU. It has the meaning of "me and you become one with music."

Of course, it won't just be 'music'. You can use any necessary words such as love, friendship, and happiness.

The important thing is that I and you are one.

2) Her real name : Lee Jieun

IU's real name is Lee Jieun.

LEE is the last name and Jieun is the given name.

In Korea, Jieun is a common female name.

You can easily find girls named 'Jieun' in elementary school classrooms.

In fact, there was a famous movie star named Lee Jieun.

IU also plays a leading role in TV dramas. She is a singer and actress.

When she acts as an actress, she tends to act as Lee Jieun, not IU.

3) alternative character: Lee Jigeum

Since a few years ago, the '부캐' craze has been blowing in Korea.

'부캐' means alternative character.

Famous celebrities' activities as another self are called alternative characters.

For example, Yoo Jae-seok, the "national MC," also served as an alternative character called Yoo San-seul.

Yoo San-seul is a trot singer.

Of course, Yusanseul is also the name of my favorite Chinese dish.

Lee Jigeum is the alternative character of the IU.

Anyone who is quick-witted will find that Lee Jigeum is similar to her real name Lee Jieun.

Eun and Geum have only changed.

"Eun" has the same pronunciation as the Korean word for Silver.

Geum is GOLD. There are so many Geum(Kim)s in Korea, which means GOLD.

Koreans love GOLD so much. Ha ha!

So why is the alternative character of IU Lee Jigeum?

Lee Jigeum, it is not a fan or media, but a nickname made by IU.

It means, "I want to be gold rather than silver."

IU has her own YouTube channel. Lee Jigeum is also a nickname used by YouTube.

The name of IU's Instagram account is dlwlrma.

Not many people know the secret of this bizarre spelling.

If you type 이지금(Lee Jigeum) on the English keyboard, you will get dlwlrma.

IU included the song "이 지금(Lee Jigeum)" in her fourth album in 2017.

The English title of this song was 'dlwlrma'.

4) Onomatopoeia IU

IU is written as '아이유' in Korean.

아이유 is also an onomatopoeia in Korea.

아이유(IU)! Good.

아이유(IU)! So pretty.

아이유(IU)! It's delicious.

I don't know if IU intended it, but "아이유" is a pretty cool onomatopoeia.

아이유! Good. IU