Discover 5 tracks released by K-pop groups whose titles have different meanings in English and Korean
As one of the methods that gained strength with the popularity of South Korean culture across the globe, it is common to find excerpts in English in K-pop tracks, or even titles written in the most spoken language in the world, in order to connect the works of the South Asian country with the international audience.
However, some songs by K-pop groups and soloists have completely different titles in their country of origin and abroad. With this in mind, RECREIO has put together a list of 5 of these songs; check them out:
1. “Rough” by GFRIEND
Titled “Rough” (something like “Cruel” in Portuguese), the track that belongs to GFRIEND’s album “Snowflake” is “시간을 달려서” (“Run through time”), in Korean. The music video was released on January 24, 2016.
2. “Boy With Luv” by BTS
“Boy With Luv”, a partnership between Halsey and BTS that can be found on the album “Map of the Soul: Persona”, has the Portuguese meaning “boy in love”. The title in the language spoken in Korea is “작은 것들을 위한 시”, which can be translated to “A poem for small things”. The track was released on April 12, 2016.
3. SHINee’s “Replay”
With the Korean title “누난 너무 예뻐”, romanized as “Noona Neomu Yeppeo” (“Noona [palavra é utilizada pelos homens para se dirigir a irmãs ou amigas mais velhas]you are so beautiful”, in Portuguese), the track from SHINee’s debut EP, released on June 2, 2011, is titled “Replay” outside of South Korea.
4. “Genie” by Girls’ Generation
Released in 2009 by Girls’ Generation for the group’s second self-titled mini-album, “Genie” (“Genie”, in Portuguese) is known as “소원을 말해 봐” (“Tell Me Your Wish”, in English and “Me Conte Seu Desejo” in free translation).
The MV was released on February 25, 2010, and the first scene alludes to the English title by showing the members in front of the golden lamp known for housing a genie in the story of “Aladdin”, one of the most famous in the Arabic collection “A Thousand and One Nights”.
5. “Run Away” by TXT
From TXT’s album “The Dream Chapter: MAGIC”, the track “Run Away”, released on October 21, 2019, is found as “9와 4분이 3 승강장에서 너를 기다려” (“Waiting for you at platform 9 3/4”) in Korea.
The title alludes to Platform 9 3/4 at King’s Cross Station, famous among fans of “Harry Potter”, a saga written by J.K. Rowling which gained a film franchise in the cinema.
Source: Recreio
