Im or Lim is a common Korean family name. The surname is identical to the Chinese character of the same name.[a] According to the initial law of the Korean language, both "Im" and "Lim" are interchangeable.

Lim, Yim, or Im (林)
Pronunciation[im] or [ɾim]
Language(s)Korean
Origin
Language(s)Chinese
Meaningforest
Region of originNorth and South Korea
Other names
Variant form(s)Lin
Hayashi
Yim or Im (任)
Pronunciation[im]
Language(s)Korean
Origin
Meaningdependable, allow, appoint
Region of originNorth and South Korea
Im
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationIm
McCune–ReischauerIm

History edit

The first clan branch is the Supul Rim (수풀 림, meaning "Forest-Rim") and its Hanja character is 林. The Supul Rim or Lim or Im branch consists of two large clan houses; the first is Naju (early Hoijin) and the second, which is the elder branch, is Pyeongtaek. Members of this branch often write their names as both 임 (Im; more common) and 림 (Rim or Lim; initial law). The character 林 means "forest".

The second clan branch is the Matgil Im (맡길 임) or Mateul Im (맡을 임) and its Hanja character is 任. The Matgil Im/Mateul Im branch consists of one large clan house called Pungcheon Im clan and a smaller clan house called Jangheung (장흥). Members of this clan branch both write and pronounce their names as 임 (Im). The character 任 means "trusted/to bear, duty".

Romanization edit

When 林 (림 or 임) is romanized, it is spelled as "Rim" or "Im" in McCune–Reischauer and Revised Romanization of Korean, as "Lim".

When 任 (임) is romanized, it is spelled as "Im" in McCune–Reischauer and Revised Romanization of Korean, or sometimes spelled "Yim".

Statistics from the year 2000 show that there were 762,767 수풀 림 (林, Rim) and 172,726 맡길 임 (任, Im) in South Korea.[1]

Notable people of the past edit

The following is a list of notable people of the past with the Korean family name Im/Lim/Rim. People should only be included in this list if they have their own Wikipedia articles or if they are discussed in a non-trivial fashion in Wikipedia articles on notable groups or events with which they are associated. Pratt's list contains 8 names.[2]

  • Im Sahong (1445–1506)
  • Im Kkeokjeong (fl. 1559–1562), leader of the Hwanghae peasant rebellion (Noklimdang).
  • Im Che (1549-1587), pen name "Paekho", poet of the Joseon period.
  • Im Gyeong-eop (1594 – 1646), general of the Joseon period, instrumental in protecting Korea from Manchu invasion.
  • Im Yunjidang (1721-1793), she wrote the Yunjidang Yugo.
  • Im Sang-ok (1779–1885), a major ginseng trader of Joseon.

Notable people of the recent times edit

See also edit

Notes edit

References edit

  1. ^ "행정구역(구시군)/성씨·본관별 가구 및 인구". Archived from the original on September 7, 2006. Retrieved January 22, 2006.
  2. ^ Pratt, p.548