RIIZE's fans had an official name for exactly two days. The group announced "Sunz" at its debut showcase in September 2023, then swapped it for "Briize" after people pointed out how else "Sunz" could be read. That's the part most K-pop fandom names lists leave out. The names are chosen, sometimes by agencies and sometimes by fan contests, and some of them get changed. Below are the fandom names of 36 active groups, from BIGBANG's VIP to CORTIS's COER, sorted by generation. Each name has a source, and a meaning appears only where someone on record actually explained it.
Why K-pop fandoms get names at all
A fandom name turns buying albums into belonging. It's printed on membership cards and chanted at concerts, and groups name songs and fan meetings after it: NMIXX's first fan meeting was "Nswer Vacation", NewJeans held "Bunnies Camp". In the recent cases below, the name landed within a few months of debut, once there were enough fans to address. Some names are built from the group's own name, and some are a promise. TWICE explained ONCE as "if you love us even once, we will repay your love with twice of our love". SEVENTEEN's CARAT, per Korean Wikipedia, borrows the unit that measures a diamond. The fans are what make the group's value go up.
K-pop fandom names by generation
Generations are fan shorthand, not an official system. We group by debut year and follow the convention in our 5th-gen explainer, which puts the line around 2023–2024. The last column says where each name is confirmed. "Fan list" means KPOPPOST's compilation, and for those names we found no stated meaning worth repeating.
| Group | Debut | Fandom | What it means | Confirmed by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd generation | ||||
| BIGBANG | 2006 | VIP | — | Fan list |
| Girls' Generation | 2007 | SONE | — | Fan list |
| 2NE1 | 2009 | BLACKJACK | — | Fan list |
| Apink | 2011 | PANDA | The light stick is the "panda stick" | Korean Wikipedia |
| 3rd generation | ||||
| EXO | 2012 | EXO-L | L sits between K and M: EXO-K, EXO-L and EXO-M complete EXO; also "EXO-LOVE" | Korean Wikipedia |
| BTS | 2013 | ARMY | "Adorable representative for youth"; like body armour and an army, always together | Korean Wikipedia |
| MAMAMOO | 2014 | MooMoo | — | Fan list |
| Red Velvet | 2014 | ReVeluv | — | Fan list |
| OH MY GIRL | 2015 | Miracle | From the lyric of the fan song "B612" | Korean Wikipedia |
| SEVENTEEN | 2015 | CARAT | The unit of a gem's weight: fans add to the diamond's value | Korean Wikipedia |
| TWICE | 2015 | ONCE | Love us once, we love you back twice | Wikipedia |
| NCT | 2016 | NCTzen | — | Fan list |
| BLACKPINK | 2016 | BLINK | Black + pink, revealed January 17, 2017 | Wikipedia |
| Dreamcatcher | 2017 | InSomnia | "In" + "somnia" (dreams): together even in dreams | Korean Wikipedia |
| 4th generation | ||||
| Stray Kids | 2018 | STAY | "Stray" without the R, which stands for "reason" | Wikipedia; Koreaboo |
| i-dle | 2018 | NEVERLAND | An imaginary place to live with fans forever | Koreaboo |
| ATEEZ | 2018 | ATINY | ATEEZ + destiny | Koreaboo |
| ITZY | 2019 | MIDZY | Rhymes with ITZY; mideo means "trust" | Koreaboo |
| TXT | 2019 | MOA | "Moment Of Alwaysness", set August 22, 2019 after a fan naming call | Korean Wikipedia |
| SECRET NUMBER | 2020 | LOCKEY | Keys that open the group's locked charm | Koreaboo |
| aespa | 2020 | MY | From "my precious friends" | Korean Wikipedia |
| ENHYPEN | 2020 | ENGENE | Engine + gene | Korean Wikipedia; Koreaboo |
| IVE | 2021 | DIVE | — | Fan list |
| NMIXX | 2022 | NSWER | — | Fan list |
| LE SSERAFIM | 2022 | FEARNOT | — | Fan list |
| NewJeans | 2022 | Bunnies | — | Fan list |
| The 2023–2025 class | ||||
| BOYNEXTDOOR | 2023 | OneDoor | — | Wikipedia |
| KISS OF LIFE | 2023 | KISSY | Announced September 6, 2023 | Soompi |
| RIIZE | 2023 | Briize | Replaced "Sunz" two days after debut | Wikipedia |
| QWER | 2023 | Bawige | Like the band's name, a nod to games such as League of Legends | Korean Wikipedia |
| BABYMONSTER | 2023 | MONSTIEZ | "MONS" + "ties" | Soompi |
| RESCENE | 2024 | REMINE | From "remind": a scene recalled through a scent | Soompi |
| ILLIT | 2024 | GLLIT | "Glit" as in glitter; replaced LILLY | Soompi |
| Hearts2Hearts | 2025 | S2U | "S2" (a sideways heart) in the name, plus "U" at the centre | Namaste Hallyu |
| KiiiKiii | 2025 | TiiiKiii | From "tiki-taka": effortless back-and-forth | Soompi |
| CORTIS | 2025 | COER | "COR" + "-er", those who stand together; sounds like "core" | K-Pop Newswire |
What the list shows
Three patterns stand out once the names sit side by side. The first is that the new class explains itself. Seven of the ten groups that debuted from 2023 to 2025 announced their name with a stated meaning. For ten of the older names, we couldn't find a meaning anyone official ever gave. The second is that fans increasingly pick the name themselves. TXT's MOA came out of a fan naming call in May 2019. CORTIS's COER was chosen from more than 19,000 entries in a global contest and announced on Weverse at midnight on November 25, 2025. The third is that a name can be taken back. RIIZE dropped "Sunz" in two days, and ILLIT replaced LILLY, announced in April 2024, with GLLIT that September after fans raised concerns about how close LILLY was to other fandom and idol names.
Mina's Take
The best fandom names give fans something to do, not just something to be called. ARMY does that, because it's a team and not a label. So does CARAT, which makes fans the unit the group is measured in. The weakest names are the ones that only rhyme with the group. Those rhymes are everywhere in the 2023–2025 class, and they're the ones that will age worst. The name that'll still be shouted in 2030 is the one with a story attached, like Bawige, which is QWER's in-joke, or COER, which 19,000 fans argued over. A quieter point, from checking these one by one: fandom names drift in databases, including ours. We had four of the newest names wrong until this piece, and we've fixed them.
Where to go next
- New to the 2025 debuts? Our guide to the new K-pop groups worth tracking covers where they came from.
- Rookies from SM: the Hearts2Hearts guide follows S2U's group from debut.
- Browse every group page, lineup and debut date in the groups index.
K-pop fandom names FAQ
What is BTS's fandom called?
ARMY. Korean Wikipedia gives two meanings: "adorable representative for youth", and the idea that, like an army and body armour, the fans and the group are always together.
Why do K-pop groups have fandom names?
A name gives fans a shared identity for chants, fan clubs and events. Groups also address fans by it and name fan songs and fan meetings after it.
Who decides a fandom name?
Either the agency or the fans. TXT's MOA and CORTIS's COER came out of fan naming contests; others were announced by the agency at a showcase or on social media.
What does ARMY stand for?
Korean Wikipedia gives it as "adorable representative for youth". It also plays on the group's name: "bangtan" means bulletproof, and the fans are the army that stays with the group.
Do new groups get a fandom name right away?
Usually within months of debut. KISS OF LIFE, debuting July 2023, announced KISSY that September; CORTIS, debuting in August 2025, announced COER that November.
Can a fandom name change?
Yes. RIIZE replaced "Sunz" with "Briize" two days after announcing it, and ILLIT swapped LILLY for GLLIT after fans raised concerns.
Sources
- Riize — Wikipedia
- ILLIT Announces New Official Fan Club Name — Soompi
- CORTIS Announces Fandom Name After Global Naming Contest — K-Pop Newswire
- Fandom names and meanings of fourth-generation K-pop groups — Koreaboo
- The Ultimate List of Kpop Group Fandom Names — KPOPPOST
