Dongsaeng (동생) is a Korean honorific. As defined on the Dramabeans website, “Meaning ‘younger sibling,’ [1] can refer to a true blood sibling, or a close friend whom you treat as a younger sibling.” Something worthy of note is that this term, as opposed to similar terms such as oppa and unnie (which are gender specific), can be applied to both genders.

Knowing someone’s age is of utmost importance in Korea, since it allows people to know how to address each other. Thus, being labeled as a dongsaeng will impact what is expected of you and how other people treat you. As a dongsaeng, you must respect your elders. Keith Kim from the Seoulistic website expands on this:

“Because you’re younger, many older Koreans will generally feel the need to take care of you. And that can mean a bunch of things. If you’re hanging out with Koreans, an older Korean friend might feel the need to go out of his/her way to drive you home, even if you’re at the opposite end of the city. Having a hard time at work might make your older Korean friends feel the need to take you out to a super relaxing spa. Sometimes being cared for means you’ll be treated out to a meal. Being younger than everyone can be pretty awesome in Korea.”