[Korean Culture & Language] Strong Unni

Hello, this is Uptempo Marketers!


Because the Korean standard of beauty favors innocence and naivety, many Koreans, especially women, try to avoid looking too strong. Being cute, thin, and even skinny rather than being fit and healthy is a beauty goal for many Korean women.

Numerous videos and writings discuss ‘why men don’t like strong women (쎈 언니)’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNwBOS5oU2c


The followings are how this YouTuber (연애상담원 석봉이) describes 쎈 언니:

- They are usually too set in their ways. 

- They say whatever they want, regardless of if their words hurt or offend others.

- They swear a lot.

- They are aggressive.

- They like to portray themselves as ‘cool’ and ‘honest’.

- They don’t mind talking about their sexual fantasies in public. 

- They put on a lot of make-up.

- They wear revealing clothes (or leopard print clothes)

By being ‘masculine’ themselves, most ‘쎈 언니’s are known to make men feel emasculated around them.

While some ‘쎈 언니’s are criticized, others are idolized. Many girls have a 걸 크러쉬(Girl-crush) on these ‘언니’s because they are ‘사이다(https://uptempom.blogspot.com/2021/12/korean-culture-language-cider.html)’.

Jessi, a Korean-American rapper, singer, and songwriter based in South Korea, is recognized as the country’s top ‘쎈 언니’. Her song, ‘눈누난나,’ sets an excellent example of ‘쎈언니’. 

The word ‘눈누난나’ is a modification of ‘룰루랄라,’ a humming noise(onomatopoeia) someone makes when they are in a good mood. However, it is used to mean ‘누나’ in this song. ‘누나’ means ‘an older sister’. Due to age hierarchy and Confucianism in Korea, calling herself ‘누나’ puts her in a higher position. 

The following are some parts of the lyrics to ‘눈누난나’:

I'm still Jessi from the block
You know I got the keys to the lock
안 봐 남의 눈치 I just do me (I don’t see noonchi – I don’t walk on eggshells around anyone)
날 보기 위해 들어 뒤꿈치 (Everyone stands on tiptoe to see me)

Do you consider yourself a ‘쎈(assertive)’ person?

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