- Kim Yong-Nam
Kim Yongnam (born February 4, 1928) is a top North Korean official. Although he is not "de jure" head of state of North Korea (as no such office exists), in his capacity as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, he has the role of accepting the credentials of ambassadors, conducting foreign relations and signing treaties, making him the "de facto" head of state. He has held this office since September 5, 1998.
- Guy Delisle
Guy Delisle is a comic book author from province of Quebec, Canada. He studied animation at Sheridan College in Toronto and then worked for the animation studios CinéGroupe in Montreal. He later worked for different studios in Canada, Germany, France, China and North Korea. His experience as a supervisor of animation work of studios in Asia were recounted in two graphic novels, "Shenzhen" (2001) and "Pyongyang" (2003).
- Kang Chol-Hwan
Kang Chol-Hwan is a defector from North Korea. As a child he was imprisoned in the Yodok concentration camp for 10 years; after his release he fled the country, first to China and eventually to South Korea. He is the author, with Pierre Rigolout, of "The Aquariums of Pyongyang" and is a staff writer for the "Chosun Ilbo". Born in Kyoto, Japan, Kang spent his childhood in Pyongyang, …
- Jay Lefkowitz
Jay Lefkowitz is an American politician and lawyer. He is a senior partner at the Kirkland & Ellis law firm, and he also serves as President Bush’s Special Envoy for Human Rights in North Korea. (1) Earlier in the George W. Bush administration, Lefkowitz was general counsel in the Office of Management and Budget and later deputy director of domestic policy at the White House. He crafted Bush’s policy on stem cell research.
- Andrei Lankov
Andrei Nikolaevich Lankov (Russian: Андрей Николаевич Ланьков; born 26 June, 1963 in Leningrad) is a historian of Korea and one of the world's foremost experts on North Korea. He is currently a senior lecturer at the Australian National University as well as a columnist for the Korea Times. He completed his undergraduate and graduate studies at Leningrad State University in 1989 and 1989, respectively; while attending there, …
- Kim Jong-Nam
Kim Jong-nam (born May 10, 1971, Pyongyang, North Korea), is the eldest son of Kim Jong-il, ruler of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). Until recently it was believed that he was being groomed as Kim Jong-il's successor; recent reports suggest he has fallen from favour. Kim was born in Pyongyang, to Song Hye Rim, one of three women known to have had children with Kim Jong-il.
- Norbert Vollertsen
Norbert Vollertsen (born 10 February 1958 in Dusseldorf) is a German doctor and human rights activist. Vollertsen practiced medicine in North Korea from 1999 to 2001 with the Cap Anamur Committee, a non-governmental cooperation organization. In August 1999, he and Francois Large, another aid worker, donated their skin to Pak Jong Thae, a tractor factory worker in Haeju, South Hwanghae, …
- Kim Ok
Kim Ok is a North Korean, occasionally regarded (unofficially) as "North Korea's first lady", and has served as Kim Jong-il's personal secretary since the 1980s. She is reported to have started living with Kim Jong-il at some point after the death of Kim's third consort Ko Young-hee. Ms Kim was previously a musician and was a piano major at Pyongyang University of Music and Dance. Ms Kim has traveled with Kim Jong-il within North Korea and abroad, such as on Mr.
- Choi Hong Hi
Choi Hong Hi was a South Korean army general and is credited with spreading Taekwondo throughout the world. As a retired Majorliujg43dsc-General, he was his country's first ambassador to Malaysia. While he did make several visits to North Korea, he never lived there, returning there for the last time only when he was about to pass away.
- Kim Jong-Chul
Kim Jong-chul (born September 25, 1981) is a son of Kim Jong-il, the leader of North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), and the grandson of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-suk. Reports occasionally suggest he is being positioned to succeed his father as leader of North Korea. Kim Jong-chul is the son of Kim Jong-il by his female companion, Ko Young-hee.
- An Kyong-Ho
An Kyong-ho (b. January 18 1930 in Kangwon) is a North Korean politician. He is a graduate of Kim Il-sung University in Pyongyang. He currently serves as the Chief Directory of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland. He first entered international news in 1988, when he attended South-North preparatory talks. He was a delegate to the 9th and 11th sessions of the Supreme People's Assembly, held in 1990 and 2003.
- Kim Pyong-Il
Kim Pyong-il (born 1954) is the half-brother of the current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il, and the son of former leader Kim Il-sung. Kim Pyong-il was born to Kim Il-sung and Kim Song-ae, Kim Il-sung's former secretary. Kim had one younger brother, Yong-il, and one younger sister, Kyung-hee, born to both parents. He was named after another son with the same name, who was born in Vyatskoye in 1944; that son, also known as Shura Kim, …
- Kye Sun-Hui
Kye Sun-Hi (born August 2, 1979 in Pyongyang) is a North Korean judoka. Kye won three Olympic medals in different weight classes, in 1996, 2000 and 2004. When she won the gold medal in Atlanta 1996 she became the youngest gold medalist in judo.
- Ruth Graham
Ruth Bell Graham (June 10 1920 - June 14 2007), wife of Evangelist Billy Graham, was born at Qingjiang, Kiangsu, China, in June 1920, as Ruth McCue Bell, the second of five children. Her parents, Dr. and Mrs. L. Nelson Bell, were medical missionaries at the Presbyterian Hospital 300 miles north of Shanghai. At the age of 13 she was enrolled in high school in Pyongyang, North Korea, where she studied for three years. Ruth completed her high school education at Montreat, …
- Konishi Yukinaga
Konishi Yukinaga was a Japanese (Christian) daimyo under Toyotomi Hideyoshi. He was the son of a wealthy merchant, Konishi Ryusa. In 1587, during the Invasion of Kyushu, he quelled the local uprising in Higo province and was awarded a fief in that province. Yukinaga led the initial forces under Toyotomi Hideyoshi to invade Korea in the Seven-Year War. He was noted for his role in the capture of Busan and Seoul and the defensive at Pyongyang.
- Paik Sun-Yup
General Paik Sun-yup is a Korean military officer of Manchukuo and the Republic of Korea. He is known for his service during the Korean War and the first 4-star general in the history of ROK Armed Forces. He was born in Kangso-gun, South P'yŏngan (currently the city of Nampo) in 1920. His family soon moved to Pyongyang and he graduated Pyongyang Normal School in 1939. Instead of getting into teaching, he entered Mukden Military Academy of Manchukuo.
- Ko Young-Hee
Ko Young-hee was one of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's consorts and rumoured to be his favourite. She was born in a Koreatown, Tsuruhashi, Osaka, Japan and moved to North Korea in the early 1960s. In the early 1970s, she began to work as a dancer at Mansudae Art Troops in Pyongyang. She was the mother of two of Kim Jong-il's sons, Kim Jong-chul and Kim Jong-woon who were both considered as successors. On August 27 2004, various sources reported that she had died, …
- Dylan Jones
Dylan Jones is a singer/songwriter from Glen Burnie, Maryland. Jones's first job was as an additional guitarist and back-up vocalist for the band The Violent Femmes. He began a solo career due to supposed friction between himself and other members of the band. His solo career got mixed reviews from the media and he soon began The Wayco Kids; a punk/country band. The Wayco Kids released one album and promptly split up without even touring.
- Kim Yong Suk
Kim Yong Suk (born June 12, 1979 in Pyongyang, North Korea) is a North Korean figure skater. She earned fourth place at the 2003 Winter Asian Games. She represented North Korea at the 2006 Winter Olympics, where she finished 27th.
- Cho Yong-Pil
Cho Yong-pil is a South Korean pop singer born in 1950. He is considered one of the most influential singers of all time. His debut single "Come Back to Busan" brought him to national attention when it was released in 1975, and later became a hit in Japan. His first album, "The Woman Outside the Window", was released in 1980 and has been follow by many others. Cho performed a concert in Pyongyang, North Korea, in 2005, an extremely rare event for a South Korean singer.
- Li Rusong
Li Ru-song (1549-1598) was the Commander-in-chief of the Ming Empire's army that was sent to defend Korea at the request of Korean King Seonjo against the Japanese invasion masterminded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His father was Li Chengliang, a famed Ming army commander who was of Korean Descent.
- Choi Yong-Kun
Choi Yong-Kun was the North Korean defense minister between 1953-1957 and Korean People's Army chief commander from 1948-1953. the President of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea, the highest post held by a North Korean politician, from 1957 to his death in 1972. Choi Yong-Kun was born in T'aech'ŏn County in North Pyongan, Korea, in 1900 or 1903.
- Oleg Shenin
Oleg Semyonovich Shenin is a Russian presidential candidate for the Presidential election of 2008 and the leader of the reconstituted Union of Communist Parties - Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Shenin is a former member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and was a member of the Politburo from 1990 to 1991.
- Kim Chol-Su
Kim Chol-Su (born 12 September 1982) is a North Korean judoka. He finished in joint fifth place in the lightweight (73 kg) division at the 2006 Asian Games, having lost to Rasul Boqiev of Tajikistan in the bronze medal match. He currently resides in Pyongyang.
- George M. McCune
George McAfee "Mac" McCune was co-developer, with Edwin O. Reischauer, of the McCune-Reischauer romanization of Korean. He was born in P'yŏngyang as the son of an American educational missionary, George Shannon McCune. His brother, Shannon Boyd-Bailey McCune (born 1913), was a geographer who authored several books on Korea for the general public.
- Won Pil Kim
Won Pil Kim is an early follower of Sun Myung Moon. He first met Moon in July 1946 in Pyongyang, North Korea, when Kim was 18 years old. Members of the Unification Church consider him to be Moon's first disciple. Kim played a significant role in Rev. Moon's life on several occasions. He nursed him back to health in October 1947 after Moon was nearly beaten to death by communist prison guards.
- Kim Myeong-Won
Kim Myeong-won (1534-1602) was a high official of the Joseon Dynasty, who served King Seonjo during the Seven Year War. Born to a yangban family of the Gyeongju Kim lineage, he was the son of another high-ranking official, Kim Man-gyun. He passed the civil service examination with the highest score in 1561, and was made "jwachamchan", a post of the second junior rank under the State Council.
- Paek Son Haeng
Paek Son-haeng was a Korean businesswoman known for her massive charitable donations. The name "Son Haeng" means virtuous deeds, and was a nickname bestowed on her due to her contributions. North Korean sources claim that she was born in modern-day Chung-kuyŏk, Pyongyang, but South Korean sources claim that she was born in Suwon. She was widowed at the age of 16 or 20, and spent the rest of her life saving money while spending very little.
- Ri Song Chol
Ri Song Chol is a North Korean figure skater. He was born on August 1, 1986 in Pyongyang, North Korea.
- Choe Myong-Ho
Choe Myong-Ho is a North Korean footballer currently playing for Russian Premier League club FC Krylya Sovetov Samara as a midfielder. Born in Pyongyang and a member of his country's U-17 national team, Choe Myong-Ho took part in the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship (scoring three times in four games) and the AFC U-17 Championship 2006, where his side finished runners-up. He was selected as the 2005 AFC Youth Player of the Year.
- Sosurim Of Goguryeo
King Sosurim of Goguryeo (?-384, r. 371-384) was the 17th ruler of Goguryeo, the northernmost of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was the son of King Gogugwon. He was made crown prince in 355. He became king when his father King Gogugwon was killed by the Baekje King Geunchogo's assault on Pyongyang Castle. He is considered to have strengthened the centralization of authority in Goguryeo, by establishing state religious institutions to transcend tribal factionalism.
- An Kum-Ae
An Kum-Ae (born 3 June 1980) is a North Korean judoka. She won a bronze medal in the half-lightweight category (52 kg) at the 2005 World Judo Championships, having defeated Lyudmila Bogdanova of Russia in the bronze medal match. She won the gold medal in the same weight category at the 2006 Asian Games, having defeated Bundmaa Munkhbaatar of Mongolia in the final match. She currently resides in Pyongyang.
- Hong Ok-Song
Hong Ok-Song is a North Korean judoka. Participating in the half-middleweight category (63 kg) at the 2004 Olympic Games, she finished seventh, having lost the repechage semi-final to Driulis González of Cuba. She won a bronze medal in the lightweight category (57 kg) at the 2006 Asian Games, having defeated Erdenet Od Khishigbat of Mongolia in the bronze medal match. She currently resides in Pyongyang.
- Jang Keum-Song
Jang Keum-song is the niece of Kim Jong-il by his younger sister Kim Kyong-hee (김경희) and her husband Chang Sung-taek (:ko:장성택). Joongang News reported that she died due to ingestion of alcohol following an overdose of sleeping pills, possibly a suicide attempt related to family opposition to her relationship with her boyfriend. She had reportedly refused an order to return to Pyongyang.
- Kyong Wonha
Kyong Wonha is a nuclear scientist who may have participated in developing the North Korean nuclear program. In North Korea, Kyong was a student at Kim Il-sung University in Pyongyang. During the Korean War, he fled to South Korea, and eventually immigrated to Brazil and then Canada. He got a master's degree at Montreal's McGill University in 1969, and finally a doctorate at the same institution. He later accepted the invitation from Pyongyang and returned to North Korea, …
- Gogugwon Of Goguryeo
King Gogugwon of Goguryeo was the 16th king of Goguryeo, the northernmost of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He was the son of King Micheon and Lady Ju. He was made crown prince in 314 and became king upon his father's death. He was called Emperor Soyeol (Soyeol-je, 소열제, 昭烈帝) in the Chinese history text Suishu, but this appears to be a mistaken transcription of the earlier Weishu. He ruled at a time when the kingdom was quite weak, and had an ill-fated reign.
- Won Ok-Im
Won Ok-Im (born 6 November 1986) is a North Korean judoka. She won a bronze medal in the half-middleweight category (63 kg) at the 2006 Asian Games, having defeated Battugs Tumenod of Mongolia in the bronze medal match. She currently resides in Pyongyang.
- Han Jong In
Han Jong In (August 9, 1978 in Pyongyang, North Korea) is a North Korean figure skater. He represented unified Korea at the 2006 Winter Olympics, where he had the honor of bearing the special Unification Flag alongside South Korean speed skater, Bora Lee. At the Olympics, he placed last in the short program and did not advance to the long program.
- Seonjo Of Joseon
King Seonjo ruled in Korea between 1567 and 1608. He was the fourteenth king of the Joseon Dynasty. At first, King Seonjo was a caring king who loved the people, but in later years, he became greedy and corrupt. During the Seven-Year War, the Japanese general Hideyoshi Toyotomi tried to conquer Korea. Although this attempt failed, King Seonjo and his retinue were forced to flee north of Pyongyang, until the Ming Dynasty Emperor Wanli came to Joseon's aid.
- Elmer Noble
Elmer Ray Noble, (b. 16 January1909 - d. 8 March, 2001) was professor of zoology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an internationally recognized protozoologist and parasitologist. Noble was born in Pyongyang, Korea, to American Methodist missionary parents, William Arthur Noble and Mattie Wilcox Noble. He lived with his family in Korea until 1927, when he and his identical twin brother, Glenn Arthur Noble, …