Korea, Brazil's first ladies bond over Korean wave

The first ladies of Korea and Brazil highlighted growing interest in the Korean wave, during President Lee Jae Myung's state visit to Brazil as part of his three-nation tour of South America this week.

Their conversation extended to a child learning Korean even in the remote Amazon region, illustrating the expanding popularity of the language as Korean dramas and other cultural exports gain traction across the country.

According to Cheong Wa Dae, first lady Kim Hea Kyung and Brazilian first lady Rosangela Lula da Silva, also known as Janja, visited an art exhibition at the Cultural Center of the Federal Court of Accounts in Brasilia, Monday.

The conversation turned to the success of the Korean wave, with Janja noting that the “popularity of Korean culture, including dramas, has led to a growing number of Brazilians studying Korean.” “The University of Sao Paulo even has a department of Korean language and literature,” she said, referring to Brazil's largest public university in Sao Paulo.

The Brazilian first lady went on to say that she recently had the opportunity to speak with a ...