Korean City Name Generator

Generate Korean city names that sound real: major cities like Busan and Daejeon, historic capitals like Seorabeol and Hanyang, and hundreds of invented Sino-Korean names built from genuine elements such as -cheon, -ju, -san and -po. Ideal for novels, K-drama-style settings, games and worldbuilding.

About Korean city names

Korean city names are almost all two Sino-Korean syllables, and each syllable is a word a Korean reader understands. The first is usually a quality, colour, direction or virtue, such as cheong (clear), baek (white), dae (great), sin (new), nam (south), an (peaceful), yeong (glory) or hwa (flower), and the second says what kind of place it is. The endings are the tell: -ju marks an old provincial capital (Gyeongju, Jeonju, Cheongju, Wonju), -san is mountain (Busan, Ulsan, Gunsan), -cheon is stream (Incheon, Chuncheon, Gimcheon), -po is port (Mokpo, Gimpo), -seong is fortress (Hwaseong, Boseong), -yang is a sunny riverside (Anyang, Goyang, Miryang), -won is a plain (Suwon, Changwon) and -hae is sea (Donghae, Namhae).

That structure is why invented names such as Cheongpa, Yongju or Namgang sit comfortably beside Daegu and Pohang. Historic names add another flavour: Seorabeol and Gyerim for old Silla, Hanyang and Hanseong for Joseon-era Seoul, Ungjin and Sabi for Baekje, Gaegyeong for the Goryeo capital. A few native-Korean names survive too, like Hanbat (Daejeon) and Dalgubeol (Daegu).

For fiction, pick an ending that matches the geography (a harbour city should end in -po or -hae, a mountain town in -san or -ryeong), and use the standard Revised Romanization so the name looks like it belongs on a real map.

How to choose Korean city names

• Match the ending to the terrain: -po or -hae for coastal cities, -san for mountain towns, -cheon for river valleys, -ju for an old regional capital with history.
• Keep it to two syllables for a city; three-syllable names (Dongducheon, Namyangju, Uijeongbu) are real but rarer and read as smaller or compound places.
• For a fantasy or alternate-history Korea, borrow a historic capital name like Seorabeol, Gaegyeong or Ungjin rather than a modern one.
• Use Revised Romanization consistently (eo, eu, ae, ui): mixing in older spellings like Pusan or Taegu makes a fictional map look inconsistent.
• Check your invented name is not already a famous real city if the story is set in a fictional country; Cheongpa is safe, Gwangju is not.

Frequently asked questions

What do common Korean city name endings mean?

-ju (주) is an old administrative seat, -san (산) mountain, -cheon (천) stream, -po (포) port, -seong (성) fortress, -yang (양) the sunny side of a hill or river, -won (원) plain or source, -hae (해) sea, -jin (진) ferry crossing and -gang (강) river. Knowing these lets you read a Korean map like a local.

Are the names in this generator real Korean cities?

Some are (the list includes all the major cities of South and North Korea plus historic capitals), but most are invented names built from the same Sino-Korean elements, so they sound authentic without clashing with a real place. Check a map if you need a name that is guaranteed fictional.

Why are North Korean cities spelled differently, like Kaesong and Pyongyang?

North Korea uses the McCune-Reischauer system, which writes k, p, t and ch where South Korea's Revised Romanization writes g, b, d and j. The same syllable appears as Gae in Gaeseong and Kae in Kaesong. Pick one system and stick with it for a fictional setting.

What was Seoul called historically?

Seoul has had many names: Wiryeseong under early Baekje, Hanyang and then Hanseong under Joseon, and Gyeongseong (Keijo in Japanese) during the colonial period. 'Seoul' is a native Korean word simply meaning capital, adopted officially in 1945.

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