Kim the younger is now “Brilliant Comrade”

Kim Jong-il’s son Kim Jong-un, thought to be next in line as North Korea’s leader, has a new name: U.S. and South Korean intelligence authorities disclosed during a meeting this week that 26-year-old Kim Jong Un is now being referred to in the secretive regime as "Yongmyong-han Dongji," which translates roughly as "Brilliant Comrade," South ...

By , a former associate editor at Foreign Policy.

Kim Jong-il's son Kim Jong-un, thought to be next in line as North Korea's leader, has a new name:

Kim Jong-il’s son Kim Jong-un, thought to be next in line as North Korea’s leader, has a new name:

U.S. and South Korean intelligence authorities disclosed during a meeting this week that 26-year-old Kim Jong Un is now being referred to in the secretive regime as "Yongmyong-han Dongji," which translates roughly as "Brilliant Comrade," South Korea’s mass-circulation JoongAng Ilbo newspaper reported.

An unidentified intelligence official quoted by the newspaper said the title means the North will engineer a cult of personality for the younger Kim _ much like it was done for his father and grandfather, Kim Il Sung, the only two leaders North Korea has seen. […]

Kim, who was referred to as the "Great Leader," died in 1994, paving the way for the first hereditary transfer of power in a communist nation. His son, Kim Jong Il, became the "Dear Leader."

I can’t help thinking that the progressive downgrading from "Great Leader" to "Dear Leader" to Brilliant Comrade" could become problematic. What comes next? Decent Administrator? Qualified Manager? Righteous dude? 

Joshua Keating was an associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating

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