The number of clubs dedicated to Hallyu numbered 1,248 from 79 countries in December 2014. (image: Republic of Korea/flickr)
SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Just how many Hallyu (Korean Wave) fans are out there? According to a report published on January 12 by the Korea Foundation under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the number of clubs dedicated to Hallyu numbered 1,248 from 79 countries in December 2014. The number of overall club members stood at 21,822,402. The number of members in 2014 increased massively from 9 million in 2013.
The number of clubs in 23 Asian and Pacific countries also increased. The number of overall fans in the region was 17 million, and has increased by 2.5 times from 6.8 million in 2013. The Korea Foundation reported that these figures are mostly due to the increased popularity of the drama ‘My Love from the Star’ in Chinese speaking countries.
The number of clubs in the Americas was 715, which doubled from 464 in 2013. The number of club members in the region, 2.6 million, also increased by 108 percent from 1.2 million in 2013. According to the Chosun Ilbo, Hallyu even has a very unlikely follower, too. Fidel Castro‘s son, Alex Castro, visited the Korean booth at the 2014 Havana International Fair, and said that he watched Korean dramas at home with his wife. Dramas such as ‘Queen of Housewives’ and ‘Jewel in the Palace’ have been successful on Cuban television.
The number of clubs in the European region decreased to 182 from 213 in 2013. However, the number of members increased to 1.4 million from 1.1 million in 2013.
Due to the increasing popularity of Hallyu in Egypt and Tunisia, the number of clubs in Africa and the Middle East increased to 84 in 2014 from 76 in 2013, while the number of fans increased to 100,000 from 60,000 in 2013.
By M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
