Soo, also spelled Su, is a

Korean family name This is a list of Korean surnames, in Hangul alphabetical order. Note: (S) denotes South Korea. (N) denotes North Korea. The most common Korean family name (particularly in South Korea) is Kim, followed by Lee and Park. These three family na ...

, a single-syllable

Korean given name A Korean name (Hangul: ; Hanja: ) consists of a family name followed by a given name, as used by the Korean people in both South Korea and North Korea. In the Korean language, ''ireum'' or ''seongmyeong'' usually refers to the family name (''seo ...

, and an element in many two-syllable Korean given names. Of Sino-Korean origin, its meaning differs based on the

hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, ...

used to write it.

Family name

As a family name, Soo may be written with two different hanja, each indicating different lineages. The 2000 South Korean Census found a total of 199 people and 54 households with these family names. The more common name means "water" (; 물 수). The surviving ''

bon-gwan Bon-gwan (or Bongwan) is the concept of clan in Korea, which is used to distinguish clans that happen to share the same family name (clan name). Since Korea has been traditionally a Confucian country, this clan system is similar to ancient Chinese ...

'' (origin of a clan lineage, not necessarily the actual residence of the clan members) as of 2000 included

Gangneung Gangneung () is a municipal city in the province of Gangwon-do, on the east coast of South Korea. It has a population of 213,658 (as of 2017).Gangneung City (2003)Population & Households. Retrieved January 14, 2006. Gangneung is the economic ...

, Gangwon Province (46 people and 12 households); Gangnam,

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

(41 people and 9 households); Gimhae,

South Gyeongsang Province South Gyeongsang Province ( ko, 경상남도, translit=Gyeongsangnam-do, ) is a province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World H ...

(17 people and four households); Gosan (today

Wanju County Wanju County (''Wanju-gun'') is a county in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. It almost entirely surrounds Jeonju. This county should not be confused with Wonju, in Gangwon-do. History ○ Mahan Baekje Kingdom Wansanju 16th year of King Gyeon ...

North Jeolla Province North Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollabuk-do''), also known as Jeonbuk, is a province of South Korea. North Jeolla has a population of 1,869,711 (2015) and has a geographic area of 8,067 km2 (3,115 sq mi) located in the Honam region in the southwes ...

(11 people and three households); and nine people with other or unknown ''bon-gwan''. According to the ''Joseon Ssijok Tongbo'' (조선씨족통보; 朝鮮氏族統譜), the name originated in Wuxing (today

Wuxing District Wuxing District () is the central district of the prefecture-level city of Huzhou, Zhejiang, China. Administrative divisions As of 2020, Wuxing District has 13 Subdistricts and 5 Towns and 1 Townships under its administration. Wuxing District's ...

, Huzhou),

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

, China. The less common name means "shore" or "bank" (; 물가 수). For the 75 people with this family name, the surviving ''bon-gwan'' as of 2000 included

Dalseong County Dalseong County (Dalseong-gun) is a ''gun'' occupying much of south and western Daegu, South Korea. A largely rural district lying along the Nakdong River, it makes up nearly half of Daegu's total area. It is divided in half by a narrow piece o ...

, Daegu (46 people and 15 households);

Miryang Miryang (perhaps pronounced as Milbeol using Idu script), formerly also spelled as 推火郡 (probably pronounced as Milbeol or Miribeol using Idu script), Milbeol (密伐) and Milseong (密城), is a city in Gyeongsangnam-do Province, South Ko ...

, South Gyeongsang Province (24 people and eight households); and five people with other or unknown ''bon-gwan''.

Given name

There are 67

with the reading "soo", and variant forms of seven of those, on the South Korean government's official list of hanja which may be registered for use in given names; they are listed in the table at right. People with the given name Soo include: *

Go Soo Go Soo (born October 4, 1978), also known as Ko Soo, is a South Korean actor. He has appeared in television series such as ''Piano'', '' Green Rose'' and '' Will It Snow for Christmas?'', as well as the films '' White Night'' and '' The Front Lin ...

(born 1978), South Korean actor Korean names which begin with this element include: *

Soo-kyung Soo-kyung, also spelled Soo-kyeong or Su-kyung, is a Korean unisex given name, predominantly feminine. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 67 hanja with the reading "Soo (Korean name), soo" and ...

* Soo-geun *

Su-mi Su-mi, also spelled Soo-mi, is a Korean feminine given name. The meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 67 hanja with the reading " su" and 33 hanja with the reading "mi" on the South Korean governmen ...

Soo-min Soo-min, also spelled Su-min, is a Korean unisex name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 67 hanja with the reading " soo" and 27 hanja with the reading "min" on the South Korean government's officia ...

Su-bin Su-bin, also spelled Soo-bin, is a Korean unisex given name. In 2008, Su-bin was the 9th-most-popular given name for baby girls in South Korea, with 2,069 being given the name. Hanja and meaning The meaning of the name Su-bin differs based on the ...

Soo-ah Soo-ah, also spelled Su-a, is a Korean feminine given name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 67 hanja with the reading " soo" and 29 hanja with the reading "ah" on the South Korean government's of ...

Soo-yeon Soo-yeon, also spelled Su-yeon or Soo-yun, is a Korean unisex given name, primarily feminine. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 67 hanja with the reading " soo" and 39 hanja with the reading ...

* Soo-young *

Soo-jung Soo-jung, also spelled Soo-jeong, or Su-jeong, Su-jung, Su-jong, is a Korean feminine given name. The meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 90 hanja with the reading "'' soo''" and 84 hanja with the ...

* Su-ji * Soo-jin * Soo-hyun * Soo-hee Korean names which end with this element include: * Deok-su * Dong-soo *

Sung-soo Sung-soo, also spelled as Seong-soo, Seong-su, or in North Korea as Song-su, is a Korean masculine given name. The meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 27 hanja with the reading "seong, sung" and 6 ...

Young-soo Young-soo, also spelled Young-su or Yeong-su, is a Korean unisex given name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 34 hanja with the reading "young" and 67 hanja with the reading " soo" on the South Ko ...

* Yi-soo * In-soo *

Eun-soo Eun-soo, also spelled Eun-su, or Un-soo, is a Korean unisex given name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 26 hanja with the reading "'' eun''" and 67 hanja with the reading "'' soo''" on the Sout ...

* Jung-soo * Jong-soo *

Ji-su Ji-soo, also spelled Ji-su, Jee-su, or Jee-soo, is a Korean unisex given name. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 46 hanja with the reading "Ji (Korean name), ji" and 67 hanja with the reading ...

Jin-soo Jin-soo is a Korean unisex given name. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 48 hanja with the reading "jin" and 67 hanja with the reading "Soo (Korean name), soo" on the South Korean government' ...

* Kwang-su * Man-soo *

Myung-soo Myung-soo () is a Korean masculine given name. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 19 hanja with the reading "myung" and 67 hanja with the reading " soo" on the South Korean government's officia ...

* Min-soo *

Moon-soo Moon-soo is a Korean masculine given name. Its meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 14 hanja with the reading "moon" and 57 hanja with the reading " soo" on the South Korean government's official li ...

* Beom-soo * Chul-soo * Tae-soo *

Hye-su Hye-su, also spelled Hye-soo, is a Korean feminine given name. Its meaning depends on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 16 hanja with the reading " hye" and 67 hanja with the reading " su" on the South Korean government' ...

* Hyun-soo * Kyung-soo

References

{{given name, type=both Korean-language surnames Korean given names Chinese given names

Family name

Given name

See also

References