Where North Korea is headed: Kim Ju Ae
Language Log 2026-01-10
Androcentric China will have to live with this potentially formidable woman, just as they're having to deal with Prime Minister Takaichi.
"Is North Korea's 'princess' walking a path toward succession?", Nikkei staff writers, NikkeiAsia (11/25/25)
This is a most impressive article, based on AI analytics of more than 14,000 hours of footage that highlights the elevation of Kim Jong Un's daughter.
She's only 12 years old, but is poised, has good graces, and knows how to behave. She appears to be intelligent, curious, and attentive. Look at her gestures, her glances, her movements….
Just judging from this video-visual montage, Kim Jong Un picked the right "respected child" as his successor.
I think she is receiving excellent training from her auntie, Kim Yo Jung, Kim Jong Un's younger sister — Jung Un is a very impressive person, and so is Kim Yo Jung.
The Workers' Party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, features stories about Kim Ju Ae's activities mainly on its front page, referring to her as "loved child," or "respected child." Nikkei picked up references to jajebun, a word used to refer to Kim Ju Ae, from more than 6,500 pages of the newspaper between her public debut and the end of October.
is a Korean honorific term meaning "your child" or "someone else's child," used to show respect for another person's son or daughter, similar to how "Mr./Ms." shows respect in English but specifically for a child. It's a polite way to refer to a child when speaking to their parents or elders, combining the respectful noun "분 (bun)" (person) with "자제 (jaje)" (one's own child, but used respectfully for others). (AIO)
Mark Metcalf said that he was also interested in the significance of how Kim Ju Ae's name has been gradually modified over the years and the significance of such changes. Insofar as he recalls, Kim the Current's honorifics changed to indicate the increasing importance of his role.
BTW, did you know that, on 2/13/17, North Korea had Kim Jung Un's own half-brother, Kim Jung Nam, eldest son of Kim Jung Il, and once considered his presumptive heir, chemically assassinated (at the Kuala Lumpur Airport, no less!).?
They take this matter of succession very seriously. Almost bungled it with Kim Jung Il.
Selected readings
- "VX in Chinese" (2/27/17)
- "In North Korea, it's a dire crime to speak like a South Korean, part 2" (7/3/23)