#jungkook droppimg honorifics

[stormblessed95]

I wonder what the deal was with Jungkook and dropping honourifics so early on with jimin then wanting to stay formal/hourifics with Hobi, Jin, Namjoon ect.

By 2014 (after two years? Of knowing each other) you see in Bangtan bombs Jungkook is testing it and dropping honorifcs with Jimin where even the translator is like he’s dropping honorifics. Jimin is like I can’t even scold him/get mad? In response when he comes for him. Then from then on it gets a lot more prominent and casual. Saying jiminie/jimin-ssi like it’s second nature by 2016ish. You have multiple moments of jimin telling him to use honorifics like that run episode with the old game show games and Jungkook is like “jimin come out” a jimin replies “use honorifics”. And then jimin even did the same last year during their vlive where he did it and jimin was like don’t address me like that, and Jungkook is like “how should I address you?” While grinning. Like it’s something only maybe asks him to do for show/on camera.

That’s not even taking into account the times he’s snuck in Jimin-ah, it’s even more blatant when he says jimin without the hyung and then mentions like Jin with the hyung right after. Bonus, even uses his tone in a manner like jimin is YOUNGER than him. It’s so……

Hello!! So let's talk honorifics. I'm starting this off with a language lesson. Lol I know it's not really what you asked, but it relates and it's important information to know. And I have multiple asks about honorifics in general. So we are doing it all here! Let's get it!

To start, something we should all be very very aware of is what honorifics in the Korean language even are. Please keep in mind that I am NOT Korean, nor do I speak the language. This is what I have learned from my own observation and research into it. That said, always believe a native speaker of the language first and foremost before anyone else when it comes to what things mean or how saying things can be meant with different intentions. If I get anything wrong, please correct me! Here is a fairly basic chart with some of the most common honorifics used in Korean:

And what isn't included here is the reverse for Hyung/Oppa/Nuna/Unni... which is dongsaeng. Dongsaeng is the same for male or female, essentially simply meaning a younger person that I am close to. The closest translations for all of those in English typically tend to be older brother/sister or younger brother/sister. But that is not at all what they actually mean. When addressing and referring to your actual younger siblings, you would say Chindongseang for younger brother and Yeodongsaeng for younger sister. Some people use them, some don't. But if they attach the Chin- or Yeo- you can assume they are saying along the lines of biological sibling. The honorifics for older siblings remain the same as the ones for older person that I am close to. Another common example we hear BTS or other Kpop artists use is Sunbaenim which combines two of the ones we see in the chart above. You will see them refer to Artists who have been in the field longer and are older than they are this way. We also see many rookies or younger but well established groups now refer to BTS this way. Such as TXT (who now mostly just call them hyungs). It's a way to show respect to their seniors in the industry who they don't really know personally or super well yet, so the extra level of respect is added. When adding -ssi to someone's name, such as Jimin-ssi, it is essentially the same thing as the English Mr. So when BTS or anyone else refer to them as "Jin-ssi" they are essentially saying "Mr. Jin." It is the same for women. So the one -ssi essentially covers the entirely of the words Mr, Mrs, Miss, etc in English.

Now let's talk about WHY Honorifics are generally used. Honorifics are used to convey respect between the speaker and the listener. They are also used to essentially communicate the relative hierarchy between parties, usually to show respect to those who are higher in status or in the hierarchy than you. Status/Age hierarchy are a very big deal in Korean Culture. It is also a way to indicate your relationship to each other in terms of hierarchy, age, gender and intimacy. For instance you would probably address a coworker who you only speak to on occasion with -ssi or sunbae or -nim or some combination. Where as you would address a coworker who is also a very close and personal friend with hyung which shows that you do have a closer relationship together.

Why and when is it okay to drop honorifics with someone? Essentially that comes down to the person who is higher in the hierarchy and their personal relationship with you. The older person in the relationship essentially doesn't have to use honorifics. It is the youngers responsibility to show respect to those higher in age than they are. It is also considered rude to ask to stop using honorifics. Depending on the relationship, it's okay, but it changes person by person. Essentially, in order to truly stop using honorifics on a casual basis, the older person has to offer it and say it's okay for the younger to speak in Banmal with them (or informally). So in the case with BTS, all the members would have essentially had to let JK know speaking informally with them was okay. And speaking informally to a person older than you really showcases the intimacy and closeness you have with that person, whether it is as friends or as lovers. Essentially what it comes down to is that the default should always be to use polite and formal speech, if and when that changes needs to be worked out between the individuals it is being changed with. And the way you speak to each other is and can be a good indicator of how close your relationship with each other is.

Now let's talk about BTS, and Jungkook using (or not using) honorifics specifically. Now I will say that ALL of BTS are insanely close and have almost no boundaries together. Over the years, I am POSITIVE that all 6 of his hyungs have given him permission to use banmal with them on occasion, or off camera. And I could find examples of JK dropping honorifics with every single member if I wanted to (but that's a lot, send another ask if yall want that. This is already an essay. Just trust me for now please). But we also know that using honorifics is his norm for the most part, and especially during the early years, he wanted to keep that up. He wanted to show his respect for his hyungs in that way. During his ITS talk with Tae, we learn that Tae asked him to use banmal with him and that JK refused in the early years.

The majority of the times we see him drop honorifics with his hyungs, it's in a teasing manner. It's being a giant brat on purpose. It's to get a reaction and make everyone laugh. Because he isn't really being disrespectful, his hyungs don't mind and they love and trust each other to pieces. But it's not him TRULY dropping honorifics as it's more of a tease. We do see him genuinely drop them sometimes, normally in celebratory excitement. Like when he dropped them for Jin in his excitement over congratulating him on his solo release. Or when he called Taehyung TaeTae during a game in a variety show. And he often drops honorifics or just uses -ssi when addressing the members by their stage names (Rap Monster, V, JHope). They did bring up JK dropping honorifics with Yoongi during Butter interviews, saying he shouts his name in the halls sometimes just going "YOOOONGGGIIIII" at the top of his lungs. Lol and yes, the fact that he DOES and CAN do that, speaks to the incredibly close relationship he has with his hyungs. But again, that specific example reads more teasing and joking that a serious drop of honorifics. Or it's different because it's their stage name, not truly their name. But with Jimin... with Jimin, it's different and it's often...

In this gif you see the rest of the members immediately crack up and laugh, because JK spoke to Jimin like HE was the hyung and was scolding him. In a way that would be entirely inappropriate for a dongsaeng to typically do. He is teasing him. He slips in Jimin-ah and Jiminie often. It started out more teasing and then slipped into the Jimin-ssi stuff and got progressively more flirty and causal as time went on. If you haven't heard it, listen carefully to the difference in how JK says Jimin-ssi vs how literally anyone else says it. Hell, you shouldn't even have to. Jimin literally told us that the way JK says it is very flirty. He literally walked a fan step by step in how to say it if she wanted to say it like Jungkookie. He said he says it much flirtier than than that. Lol With Jimin, we see JK push for and Jimin accept and encourage, more of an equal standing in their relationship with each other. With Jimin, he wants to be on equal footing and not have a hierarchy between them.

To the point where he is okay with not just dropping honorifics on BTS only shows/stages, but on national television during an award show. He is okay scolding and taking care of Jimin like a hyung (or equal partner) would. Normally the maknae GETS taken care of. We see this in how BTS excuse all of JKs brattiness in the early years. We see it in how they brush off the never buying them birthday presents for awhile after a bit of teasing. But then we also see how he DID buy presents for Jimin. How he offers to do things with Jimin often. How he takes care of him whenever he can. How he scolds him and doesn't always feel the need to be obedient and toe the line as the youngest. He views himself and Jimin on equal ground, and that says PLENTLY about how close their relationship to each other is.

Jimin has proclaimed himself that he has a "habit" of getting scolded by Jungkook. And while this sometimes done more teasingly, it's a much flirtier tease than JK does with the rest of his hyungs when he drops honoritics with them. It's a power play tease, not a "I'm being a silly brat" tease. We also see that Jimin enjoys it's sometimes, that he sometimes acts up specifically to get JK to "scold" him. When he teases and drops honorifics with everyone else, it prompts group laughter and funny moments. Sometimes it's like that when he does it with Jimin, and other times we simply see Jimin smile and chuckle to himself, or look quite pleased with himself. It's more.... personal. Like I said, it's them playing with power dynamics and joking around/teasing, but also... not. They will flirt by either dropping honorifics totally or getting OVERLY formal instead the other way. You can almost ALWAYS tell by the tone of voice they use when they do it.

And one of my personal favorites, where even Jin felt the need to intervene and change the topic as smoothly as possible while on camera:

As much as Jimin enjoys provoking JK and getting scolded by him, he also very much so enjoys being the hyung. He has a natural inclination to want to take care of people and be reliable for them. He enjoys being in control of things too. He is very smart and very dependable. And as much as the members tease him for acting the most like a baby of the group sometimes, they have all also said that they all sometimes view HIM as the hyung instead. They know they can go to him for advice, for comfort and for love, and that Jimin will always give it to them. The same goes for JK. He looks up to Jimin alot and Jimin goes out of his way to take care of him a lot. While this is more typical for a hyung/dongsaeng relationship, the amount of times JM puts himself below or on equal ground with JK is not. And we don't see him really doing that with anyone else. He allows his hyungs to dote on him and love on him. He listens to what they tell him to do. He doesn't allow them to see him truly vulnerable though very often,, and let them take care of him that way. They have mentioned how getting Jimin to share his worries and concerns could essentially be like pulling teeth. He doesn't like to lean on his hyungs that way. We have seen him seek out JK though when he needs encouragement. And sometimes Tae and RM too. But even with Tae, his same age friend, we don't see a lot of Jimin letting Tae push him around or "scold" him like he let's JK. And Tae is one who can and should be able to get away with that.

He often drops honorifics in the most natural of ways with Jimin too. No teasing involved. It just... happens. And we see no one react to it, like JK speaking in banmal to JM is one of the most common occurrences. When it's over the top and teasing, it gets a laugh. When it's overly flirty, it draws attention in a "watch it, you're on camera" way. When he just drops honorifcs in causal conversation, no one bats an eye. It just shows how common and natural that type of speech is between them, everyone is used to it. Meaning, this is probably how they have been speaking to each other for years. Above in the ITS gif, JK says it's Jiminie's turn, very informally. And in response Hobi simply turns his attention to JM then for his turn. No one reacted to the lack of formal speech at all. We don't see him drop the honorifics so casually and so often with the other members. He does sometimes, but with Jimin, it happened first and it happens often.

And even when Jimin calls him out on his lack of honorifics, he never is super serious about it. He jokes, he teases, he goes "aish, what a brat," but he has never once seriously told JK to address him formally. Which shows how fine he really is with it. Or how sometimes the reminders might just be for the camera. Or the reminders might just be more of how they play with their power dynamics. But overall, Jimin does not mind and even encourages the lack of formality. And Jungkook pursues that equal footing with Jimin more than he does with anyone else. And he doesn't just want to be taken care of by Jimin, but he wants to be the one who takes care of Jimin too.

So, yes. All of the Tannies are super close and have no problem with the dropping of formalities at times. They all love each other and trust each other. They are bound together for life at this point I'm sure. But Jimin and Jungkook do not have a normal hyung/dongsaeng relationship at all, and it's because they want it that way. Theirs is one of give and take. One of equality. It's interesting to see at the very least. This doesn't technically have anything to do with romance at all. But it DOES show how intimate, close and wonderful their bond is with each other, no matter what the nature of it is. They are obviously one of the closest pairs in the group. It highlights how much love they share between them, friendship or otherwise, to allow that type of relationship. It's truly, very beautiful.

Hope that helps and hope this all made sense!