Fearing a slip, North Koreans avoid saying “unification”
North Koreans still think of South Koreans as members of the same nation, but many now fear those words could slip out at the wrong moment. That fear has grown as Kim Jong Un’s “two hostile states” doctrine moved from party lecture halls into the country’s revised constitution in 2026. “People still see them as […]
North Koreans avoid using the term "unification" in daily conversation, fearing it may inadvertently imply a united Korea, according to a report by Daily NK. This avoidance stems from the country's revised constitution in 2026, which removed references to unification and introduced a territorial clause defining North Korea's borders for the first time.
While the sense of shared ethnicity and kinship remains, many North Koreans have become cautious about their speech, using euphemisms such as "puppet Republic of Korea" or "the village down below" when referring to South Korea. This shift in language is part of a broader effort to reshape everyday life in North Korea, with education authorities increasingly emphasizing the idea of South Korea as an enemy state.
Despite these changes, the report suggests that the fear of using terms like "unification" alone does not necessarily reflect a change in North Koreans' beliefs about their shared identity.
Written by urgent.news from Daily NK's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
