hyung line

Etymology

Calque of Korean 형 라인 (hyeong rain), composed of 형(兄) (hyeong, “hyung; elder brother of a man”) and 라인 (rain, “members with a shared characteristic”), ultimately from English line. By surface analysis, hyung +‎ line.

Refer to 라인 (rain, “members with a shared characteristic”) for more information.

Pronunciation

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Noun

hyung line (plural hyung lines)

1. (South Korean idol fandom) The elder members of a male K-pop group as a collective.

   Coordinate terms: unnie line, maknae line

   • 2017 May, “Get 'Suho-fied'”, in Chogitimes, volume 1, page 12:

     Born on 22nd May 1999, belongs to the Hyung line of EXO being the second oldest after Xiumin.

   • 2019, Katy Sprinkel, The Big Book of BTS: The Deluxe Unofficial Bangtan Book, unnumbered page:

     RM, Suga, Jin, and J-Hope comprise BTS's hyung line.

   • 2019, Spike Koarau, "NCT 127 in Paris", HALLYU Magazine, Summer 2019, page 5:

     A break comes with some ment^[sic] from the Maknae line and the Hyung line who decide to show some sexiness.