Gov’t to change sexist titles to address family members after marriage

The government is planning to change the specific titles such as “doryeonnim” and “cheonam” that people use to address their husband’s and wife’s family members.

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Friday announced The 3rd Healthy Family Plan (2016~2020), which has been complemented, from the perspective of gender equality, to improve the family system and culture in Korea.

The ministry plans to break an old custom, where women use honorific titles such as “doryeonnim” and “Agassi” to address their husband’s younger siblings while men address their wife’s younger siblings casually by using the titles “cheonam” and “cheoje.” “We’re not saying that the title ‘doryeonnim’ itself is inappropriate,” said Kim Sook-ja, head of the Family Policy Department at the ministry. “The problem is only women are forced to use honorific titles to address their husband’s family members.”

The government, however, has not announced new terms to replace the current family titles. It is planning to collect opinions from public hearings and panel discussions.


Chul-Jung Kim tnf@donga.com