Born in 2001

A closer look at your age if you were born in 2001.

    Your age
  • International age24 or 25
  • Korean age26
  • Year age25
  • Zodiac and cycle
  • tti (Korean zodiac animal)White Snake
  • Sexagenary cycleSin-sa (辛巳年)
  • Five element Metal (金)
  • Leap yearCommon year

Life timeline for people born in 2001 🗓️

Key milestones by age, year by year.

  1. Born
    2001Age 0
  2. Starts elementary school
    2008Age 6-7 · elementary

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

  3. Starts middle school
    2014Age 12-13 · middle school
  4. Can take a part-time job
    2016Age 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
    2017Age 15-16 · high school
  6. Gets a resident registration card
    2018Age 17

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

  7. Can get a driver's licence
    2019Age 18

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

  8. Can vote
    2019Age 18

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

  9. Can buy alcohol and tobacco
    2020Year 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
    2020Age 19

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

  11. Military service examination
    2020Year age 19

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

  12. Statutory retirement ageUpcoming
    2061Age 60

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

  13. National Pension startsUpcoming
    2066Age 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: 2001

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

📰 What happened that year
  1. January 1⚽ Guus Hiddink was hired as head coach of South Korea's national soccer team.
  2. January 15📖 Wikipedia, the wiki-based online encyclopedia, was born.
  3. March 29✈️ Incheon International Airport opened.
  4. April 3📚 A Japanese history textbook criticized for distorting history was approved for use in Japanese schools.
  5. August 23💵 South Korea paid off the last of its $19.5 billion IMF bailout, ending the IMF program.
  6. September 11🏢 Airliners hijacked by al-Qaeda struck the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon, killing about 3,000 people.
  7. October 7💥 The United States began its invasion of Afghanistan, targeting the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
  8. October 25💻 Microsoft released Windows XP.
🎬 Films and TV from that year
TV drama "Ladies of the Palace"TV drama "Empress Myeongseong"TV drama "Piano"Film "Friend"Film "My Sassy Girl"Film "One Fine Spring Day"

Source: Wikipedia · retold from the record

2001 by the numbers

Population and other key statistics.

  • Births in 2001559,934
  • Registered residents in 2025556,150

99% of that year's babies are still here with us. ✨

  • Life expectancy at birth76.5 yrsMen 72.9 · Women 80.1Born in 2024: 83.7 yrs
  • Births per woman1.31Children per woman over a lifetimeIn 2025: 0.8
  • Sex ratio at birth109109 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 2001 ⭐

Everyone born in 2001
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Frequently asked questions ❓

In 2026, someone born in 2001 is 25 if they've already had their birthday this year and 24 if they haven't. In Korean age they're 26, and their year age is 25.
Counting from 2026, a 24-year-old was born in 2001.
2001 is the year of the White Snake. In the sexagenary cycle it's Sin-sa (辛巳), and because the heavenly stem carries the element Metal (金), the animal picks up the color White. One catch: the tti turns over at ipchun, around February 4, so a birthday before that counts as the previous year's animal.
No. 2001 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 🌐