Symbol of DPRK-Cuba Friendship

One day in November Juche 79 (1990) Chairman Kim Jong Il received a letter of thanks from a couple of Cuban linguists working in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. In the letter they requested him to name their son newly born at the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital.

There was a moving story behind the reason for this request.

The couple had no child after eight years of marriage because of the wife’s habitual abortion. She got pregnant again while staying in the DPRK and was admitted to the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital.

They were delighted, but in part worried because their visa would expire after three months. Then, she might miscarry.

Their anxiety grew as the days went by.

Informed of this, Kim Jong Il ensured that their stay was extended to allow her to continue to receive medical treatment at the hospital and they would be treated in the same way as they had been even after their visa expired.

Afterwards, the woman gave birth to a son.

The Cubans wrote a letter of thanks to Kim Jong Il, in which they requested him to name their baby in the Korean fashion.

Delighted to learn that the foreign couple had had their first son, Kim Jong Il said that it would be good to name him Saeppyol (morning star in Korean), and sent the baby presents including suiting, children’s garments, quilts, condensed milk and sugar.

There are similar examples. Jindallae of Palestine and Sol Gwang of China were children named by Kim Jong Il himself.

2023-09-28