unnie

Unnie is Korean for “older sister,” used by girls and women. It’s also a warm way to address any woman a little older than you, and in K-pop it means the older members of a girl group.

What unnie means

In Korean, unnie (언니, romanized eonni) is how a female speaker addresses her older sister. Wiktionary records the wider use: an affectionate term for any somewhat older woman, and, in K-pop fandom, the older members of a girl group. Female fans often call idols they admire unnie too.

The “unnie line” is the older half of a girl group, the counterpart to the maknae line. A man would never call his sister unnie; he’d say noona.

Examples

• “Unnie, your makeup today is perfect.”
• “The unnie line looked after the youngest member during the tour.”
• “She’s only a year older, but I still call her unnie.”

Spelling

You’ll see unnie, unni, eonni and eonnie. Eonni follows the official romanization of Korean; unnie and unni are closer to how English speakers hear it. All of them mean the same thing.

Where it came from

It’s a borrowing of Korean 언니. Wikipedia’s article on Korean honorifics explains that these sibling words reflect age hierarchy and aren’t limited to real family. International fans picked up unnie through K-pop variety shows, beauty videos and K-dramas.

Related terms

• Noona: older sister, said by a man.
• Oppa: older brother, said by a woman.
• Dongsaeng: a younger sibling or friend.
• Aegyo: acting cute.

See more terms like this in our K-pop slang guide.