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Born in 1989

A closer look at your age if you were born in 1989.

    Your age
  • International age36 or 37
  • Korean age38
  • Year age37
    • Zodiac and cycle
  • tti (Korean zodiac animal)Golden Snake
  • Sexagenary cycleGi-sa (己巳年)
  • Five element Earth (土)
  • Leap yearCommon year
Other Snake years
1953age 72-731965age 60-611977age 48-492001age 24-252013age 12-132025age 0-1

Life timeline for people born in 1989 🗓️

Key milestones by age, year by year.

  1. Born
    1989Age 0
  2. Starts elementary school
    1996Age 6-7 · elementary

    The March after turning 6 - Korean school years start in March, not September.

  3. Starts middle school
    2002Age 12-13 · middle school
  4. Can take a part-time job
    2004Age 15

    Under 15, or under 18 and still in middle school, you need an employment permit (Labor Standards Act, Art. 64).

  5. Starts high school
    2005Age 15-16 · high school
  6. Gets a resident registration card
    2006Age 17

    Issued from the first day of the month after turning 17 (Resident Registration Act).

  7. Can get a driver's licence
    2007Age 18

    Class 2 ordinary licence. Mopeds are allowed from 16 (Road Traffic Act).

  8. Can vote
    2007Age 18

    Must be 18 on election day (Public Official Election Act).

  9. Can buy alcohol and tobacco
    2008Year age 19

    From January 1 of the year you turn 19 - this one uses year age, not your birthday (Youth Protection Act).

  10. Legal adulthood
    2008Age 19

    Adulthood begins on the 19th birthday (Civil Act, Article 4).

  11. Military service examination
    2008Year age 19

    Held in the year a man turns 19 (Military Service Act · year age · men only).

  12. Statutory retirement ageUpcoming
    2049Age 60

    The floor employers must set, not a fixed date (Act on Prohibition of Age Discrimination · reference).

  13. National Pension startsUpcoming
    2054Age 65

    Between 63 and 65 depending on your birth year, with at least 10 years of contributions (National Pension Act · reference).

The year you were born: 1989

Here's what the world was up to that year 👀

📰 What happened that year
  1. January 1✈️ South Korea lifted restrictions on overseas travel for all citizens.
  2. January 7🇯🇵 Japan's Emperor Hirohito died at 87, and Akihito ascended the throne the next day, ushering in the Heisei era.
  3. February 15🪖 Soviet troops pulled out of Afghanistan after 10 years, and civil war soon broke out between forces loyal to Najibullah’s government and the mujahideen.
  4. June 4🇨🇳 The Tiananmen Square incident took place in China.
  5. July 1🏥 Health insurance was extended to cover every citizen.
  6. July 1🕊️ The 13th World Festival of Youth and Students was held in Pyongyang, and Lim Su-kyung traveled there from South Korea to take part.
  7. November 9🧱 The Berlin Wall came down.
  8. December 25⚖️ Romania's dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife, Elena, were tried and executed by firing squad.
🎬 Films and TV from that year
TV drama "The Wangryong Family"TV drama "The Windless Zone"Film "Why Has Bodhi-Dharma Left for the East?"Film "Come, Come, Come Upward"Film "Happiness Does Not Come in Grades"Film "Yeong-gu and Ddaengchil"

Source: Wikipedia · retold from the record

1989 by the numbers

Population and other key statistics.

  • Births in 1989639,431
  • Registered residents in 2025629,083

98% of that year's babies are still here with us. ✨

  • Life expectancy at birth71.2 yrsMen 67 · Women 75.3Born in 2024: 83.7 yrs
  • Births per woman1.56Children per woman over a lifetimeIn 2025: 0.8
  • Sex ratio at birth111.8111.8 boys per 100 girls

Source: Statistics Korea birth statistics and life tables; Ministry of the Interior and Safety resident population(as of 2025)

Famous people born in 1989 ⭐

Lee Jong-sukActorSeptember 14, 1989 · 37 years oldTaeyeonGirls' Generation · SingerMarch 9, 1989 · 37 years oldAileeSingerMay 30, 1989 · 37 years oldKim BumActorJuly 7, 1989 · 37 years oldTiffany YoungGirls' Generation · SingerAugust 1, 1989 · 37 years oldJessica JungSingerApril 18, 1989 · 37 years oldKim Woo-binActorJuly 16, 1989 · 37 years oldKwon Yu-riGirls' Generation · SingerDecember 5, 1989 · 36 years old
Everyone born in 1989
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Frequently asked questions ❓

In 2026, someone born in 1989 is 37 if they've already had their birthday this year and 36 if they haven't. In Korean age they're 38, and their year age is 37.
Counting from 2026, a 36-year-old was born in 1989.
1989 is the year of the Golden Snake. In the sexagenary cycle it's Gi-sa (己巳), and because the heavenly stem carries the element Earth (土), the animal picks up the color Golden. One catch: the tti turns over at ipchun, around February 4, so a birthday before that counts as the previous year's animal.
No. 1989 is a common year - 365 days, and February ends on the 28th.
Korean age starts at 1 the day you're born, and everybody adds a year together on January 1 instead of on their birthday. That makes it one or two years higher than international age. Since June 2023, Korean law, contracts, and official documents all use international age, but you'll still hear Korean age in everyday conversation.

Sources 🌐