Yoo (Korean Name)

Yoo or You, or sometimes Ryu or Ryoo is the English transcription of several Korean surnames written as or in hangul. As of 2000, roughly a million people are surnamed Yoo in South Korea, making up approximately 2% of the population. Of those, the most common is Ryu (Hanja: , Hangul: ),A rank 19th with 603,084 people, KOSTAT (Korea National Statistical Office), 2000. with more than six hundred thousand holders, whereas Yoo (Hanja: , Hangul: ) accounts for about one hundred thousand.

The family name Yoo can be represented by any of the four hanja: (), , and , each with a different meaning. In Korean, the characters and refer to (Ryu) or (Yoo) and are spelled as such because of the first initial sound rule () in Korean, whereas the characters and refer only to (Yoo). Some of these characters are used to write the Chinese surnames Liu ( or ) and Yu().

Notable (Ryu) clans include the Munhwa Ryu clan and the Pungsan Ryu.

History

In Korea, the Yoo lineage traces to the Xia, Han, and Joseon dynasties. Holders of the surname Yu or Yoo had a reputation for charity and diligence.

The largest Ryu (which is a separate clan from Yoo, but pronounced differently), the Munhwa Ryu, was founded by a man named Ch’a Tal. Ch’a's fifth great-grandfather had been involved in an attempt to overthrow the Silla king. To avoid prosecution, the ancestor fled to Munhwa and changed his surname, first to that of his maternal grandmother, Yang, and then to Ryoo. Many years later, Ch’a Tal assisted Wang Kŏn to establish the Koryŏ Kingdom. Ch’a was recognized for his support and was rewarded accordingly. However, the historic claims that the Ch'a clans are derived from the same progenitor as Ryu Ch'a-dal have been disproven. The Munhwa Ryoo clan, along with the Andong Kwŏn clan, possess one of Korea's oldest clan genealogies. Only the character is commonly pronounced ''Ryu'' or ''Ryoo'' (). (See Munhwa Ryoo) The surname "Ryu" comes from the character meaning willow tree. Hence, the lineage is also sometimes called "willow Ryu" ().

Notable individuals

Historic

* Ryu Cha-dal (b. circa 880)
* Yu Seong-won (d. 1456), one of the Six martyred ministers during the Joseon period.
* Yu Eung-bu (d. 1456), of the Gigye Yoo clan originally from Pohang, one of the Six martyred ministers during the Joseon period.
* Ryu Seong-ryong (1542–1607). Well known for his JingBiRok.
* Yu Hyeong-won (1622–1673). He was an early silhak scholar.
* Yu Deuk-gong (1749–1807), historian about Balhae.
* Yu Kil-chun (1856–1914), of the Gigye Yoo clan originally from Pohang. Independence activist.
* Il-han New (1895–1971). Independence activist and entrepreneur.
* Ryu Gwan-sun (1902–1920). She was a Korean independence activist.

Contemporary

* Yoo Ah-in (born Uhm Hong-sik), South Korean actor, creative director, and gallerist
* Yu Anjin, South Korean poet
* Yoo Ara, South Korean actress and singer, former member of girl group Hello Venus
* Yoo Byung-eun (1941-2014), South Korean businessman, inventor, and photographer
* Yoo Byung-hoon South Korean Paralympian athlete
* Yoo Byung-jae, South Korean television personality, actor and screenwriter.
* Yoo Byung-ok