Opppaa ?? !

May 3, 2011 12:23 am

what does it mean ... why is it that girls in dramas call boyfriend and Older BROTHERs OPPA .. am confused to who you can call OPPA :S ...

shbeckles

May 3, 2011 12:27 am

Well, you pretty much got it already ^^ It means older brother, but I guess you also use it for guys that are older than you (but not TOO old) or that you like (boyfriends/crushes).

It seems weird to me to use the same title for your brother as your boyfriend, but... xD

boredandtwitchy

May 3, 2011 12:31 am

Here ya go: http://www.dramabeans.com/2010/06/glossary-oppa/

The post is a pretty detailed explanation of the term "oppa" and its significance within both Korean culture and, more in keeping with the theme of this site, Korean dramas. I highly recommend Dramabeans as a good blog resource for K-dramas!

LibradaJ

May 3, 2011 01:19 am

Effonsnup wrote: Here ya go: http://www.dramabeans.com/2010/06/glossary-oppa/

The post is a pretty detailed explanation of the term "oppa" and its significance within both Korean culture and, more in keeping with the theme of this site, Korean dramas. I highly recommend Dramabeans as a good blog resource for K-dramas!

I concur on this. Very helpful.

Bi a

May 3, 2011 01:46 am

it was very helpful thanks boredandwitchy ...

i also find it weird how older bro and boyfriend both can OPPA :S ..

Mary-x

May 4, 2011 02:31 pm

What I don't get is why sometimes in dramas boys will call girls older than them Unnie, when they should be saying Noona. At first I thought it might be as a joke, but then I realized they were all serious about it.

Anyone have any idea why?

shbeckles

May 4, 2011 02:57 pm

Taspsopelaupe wrote: What I don't get is why sometimes in dramas boys will call girls older than them Unnie, when they should be saying Noona. At first I thought it might be as a joke, but then I realized they were all serious about it.

Anyone have any idea why?

Do you have any examples? The only one I can think of is in Personal Taste, with the guy who was pretending to be LMH's character's boyfriend; he called the female lead's friend "unni" as he was trying to act as effeminate as possible to keep up the whole "he's gay!" ruse. xD

Can't think of anymore though...

Mary-x

May 4, 2011 09:25 pm

Hmmm....I can't remember any right now. Next time I see it I'll remember to note the time and drama.

Bi a

May 5, 2011 01:17 pm

i just find it interesting that for a guy its only OPPA and for girls it is unnie and nuna.. :)

Ashu

May 5, 2011 01:21 pm

So the way I got it:

Boys call their older brothers/older boys 'Hyung'.
Girls call their older brothers/older boys 'Oppa'.

Boys call their older sisters/older girls 'Noona'.
Girls call their older sisters/older girls 'Unnie'.

The older sibling/older person calls the younger person 'Dongsaeng', no matter what gender.

A more experienced person or upperclassman is called 'Sunbae', and the less experienced person or underclassman is the 'hoobae'.

These are the basic rules, or at least the way I got it. Maybe they were kidding around or parodying someone when they said it ?