On the Path to Recognition of Two Koreas?

While North Korea appears to have enshrined the concept of two (albeit hostile) states in its constitution, the first signs of discussion on this matter have begun to appear in South Korea.

Discussions on naming the North

First of all, it is worth noting that the names of the Korean states differ. In the North, the ancient ethnonym ‘Choson’ is used, whereas in the South, ‘Taehan’ or ‘Han’guk’ – which designate Koreans as a nation – predominate. Accordingly, to refer to ‘the part of the peninsula occupied by a hostile entity,’ South Korea has traditionally used the term ‘Pukhan.’ This name does not simply mean ‘North Korea,’ but rather ‘the northern part of Han’guk,’ which underlines the provisions of Article 3 of the country’s Constitution: ‘The territory of the Republic of Korea shall consist of the Korean Peninsula and its adjacent islands.’ Article 4 adds, ‘The Republic of Korea seeks unification and formulates and carries out a policy of peaceful unification based on the principles of freedom and democracy.’

A similar approach was used in the North, where South Korea was designated as ‘Nam Choson’ – ‘the southern part of Choson’.

However, since the end of 2023, when the DPRK abandoned the unification paradigm, instead of ‘Nam Choson,’ the official self-designation of South Korea has been used to refer to it. This indicates recognition of the existence of two separate and hostile states on the Korean Peninsula.

During 2026, the Republic of Korea’s Minister of Unification, Chung Dong-young, repeatedly used the official name of North Korea in his speeches. It instigated a public discussion, one element of which was a conference entitled ‘Choosing a Name for Peaceful Coexistence: Pukhan or Choson?’, organised by the Korean Political Science Association with the ministry’s support.

Of course, the majority of participants in this orchestrated event argued that adopting the official name of North Korea would not jeopardise the South’s Constitution, which defines North Korea as part of South Korean territory and North Koreans as citizens of South Korea. As Professor Kim Sung-kyung of Sogang University stated, the name ‘Pukhan’ did not help unite the two Koreas; on the contrary, it helped entrench division, and therefore ‘it is high time to restore relations (by........

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