Korean Wave 韩流

I've been working on a presentation for Chinese class about ethnic Koreans who are Chinese citizens. Reading about the 朝鲜族/조선족 (chaoxianzu/joseonjok) has been really interesting, and part of my the presentation is about how the Korean Wave has affected their position in China.

Korean dramas are really popular around eastern Asia. Asians find them easier to relate to than American shows like "Sex in the City," and yet still interestingly modern. According to this article, Korea acts as a sort of filter between East and West. So while American shows are a bit too controversial for the Chinese audience, Korean shows like Winter Sonata are OK.

The term for this surge in popularity is the "Korean Wave" 韩流. It's a Chinese pun that come from the word for "cold front," 寒流, and translates perfectly into Korean. The two words are pronounced exactly the same way -- "hallyu" (한류) and "han2liu2" in Korean and Chinese, respectively.