한국어

Born in 2002

If you were born in 2002, you're 23 or 24 in 2026 - and your tti (Korean zodiac animal) is the Black Horse.

    Your age in 2026
  • International age23 or 24
  • Korean age25
  • Year age24
    • The year 2002
  • tti (Korean zodiac animal)Black Horse
  • Sexagenary cycleIm-o (壬午年)
  • Five element Water (水)
  • Leap yearCommon year
Was this page helpful?
Black HorseIm-o (壬午年) · Water (水)

In the sexagenary cycle, 2002 is Im-o (壬午年). Its heavenly stem carries the element Water (水), and that element decides the color - which makes it a year of the Black Horse (午).

Born 12 years apart - same Horse
1966age 601978age 481990age 362014age 122026age 0

The year you were born: 2002

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

📰 What happened that year
  1. January 1💶 The European Union officially put euro banknotes and coins into circulation.
  2. January 29🗣️ In his first State of the Union address, U.S. President George W. Bush named North Korea, Iraq, and Iran an 'axis of evil'.
  3. June 13🕯️ Two middle school girls were crushed to death by an armored vehicle in Gwangjeok-myeon, Yangju, Gyeonggi Province.
  4. June 22⚽ South Korea beat Spain 5-3 on penalties in the 2002 FIFA World Cup quarterfinals and moved on to the semifinals.
  5. June 29🚢 North and South Korean forces clashed in the Yellow Sea, leaving 6 South Korean sailors dead and 18 wounded. (Second Battle of Yeonpyeong)
  6. August 31🌀 Typhoon Rusa swept across the Korean Peninsula, leaving 246 people dead or missing and causing more than 5 trillion won in property damage.
  7. October 12💥 The Bali bombings in Indonesia killed 202 people and injured 209.
  8. December 19🗳️ Roh Moo-hyun won the 16th presidential election, beating Lee Hoi-chang of the Grand National Party.
⭐ Born that year
An Se-young, badminton playerLee Young-ji, rapperYeo Seo-jeong, gymnastPedri, Spanish soccer playerAlina Zagitova, Russian figure skater
🎬 Films and TV from that year
TV drama "Winter Sonata"TV drama "Rustic Period"TV drama "Ruler of Your Own World"Film "The Way Home"Film "Painted Fire"Film "Oasis"
🏆 Nobel Prizes that year
  • EconomicsDaniel Kahneman, Vernon Smith
  • LiteratureImre Kertész
  • PhysicsRaymond Davis Jr., Masatoshi Koshiba, Riccardo Giacconi
  • Physiology or MedicineSydney Brenner, H. Robert Horvitz, John Sulston
  • PeaceJimmy Carter
  • ChemistryKoichi Tanaka, John Fenn, Kurt Wüthrich

Source: Wikipedia · retold from the record

Life timeline for people born in 2002 🗓️

What someone born in 2002 becomes eligible for, year by year.

  1. Born
    2002Age 0
  2. Starts elementary school
    2009Age 6 · elementary

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

  3. Starts middle school
    2015Age 12 · middle school
  4. Can take a part-time job
    2017Age 15

    Ages 13-14 can work only with an employment permit (Labor Standards Act).

  5. Starts high school
    2018Age 15 · high school
  6. Gets a resident registration card
    2019Age 17

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

  7. Can get a driver's licence
    2020Age 18

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

  8. Can vote
    2020Age 18

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

  9. Can buy alcohol and tobacco
    2021Year 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
    2021Age 19

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

  11. Military service examination
    2021Year age 19

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

  12. Statutory retirement ageUpcoming
    2062Age 60

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

  13. National Pension startsUpcoming
    2067Age 65

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

Ages follow international age unless noted. Buying alcohol or tobacco and the military service examination use year age - the calendar year you turn that age - so they can land a year earlier than you expect. School entry, retirement and the National Pension are general rules and can differ case by case.

2002 by the numbers

What Korea's statistics office recorded about 2002.

Babies born in 2002

496,911babies

Then and now
  • When they were born496,911
  • Today (2025)491,854

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

  • Life expectancy at birth76.8 yrsMen 73.4 · Women 80.3Born in 2024: 83.7 yrs
  • Births per woman1.18Children per woman over a lifetimeIn 2025: 0.8
  • Sex ratio at birth109.9109.9 boys per 100 girls

Source: Statistics Korea - Birth Statistics(1970~2025) and Life Tables(~2024); Ministry of the Interior and Safety - Resident Registration Population(as of 2025) (KOSIS)

Famous people born in 2002 ⭐

SamuelSingerJanuary 17, 2002 · 24 years old🖤 Black HorsePark Sung-hoonSingerDecember 8, 2002 · 23 years old🖤 Black HorseChoi Hyun-wookActorJanuary 30, 2002 · 24 years old🖤 Black HorseNam Da-reumActorJune 13, 2002 · 24 years old🖤 Black HorseBang Ye-damSingerMay 7, 2002 · 24 years old🖤 Black HorseKim Hwan-heeActorAugust 25, 2002 · 23 years old🖤 Black HorsePark Ji-sungSingerFebruary 5, 2002 · 24 years old🖤 Black HorseLilySinger, ActorOctober 17, 2002 · 23 years old🖤 Black Horse
Who else was born in 2002?Everyone born in 2002

Frequently asked questions ❓

In 2026, someone born in 2002 is 24 if they've already had their birthday this year and 23 if they haven't. In Korean age they're 25, and their year age is 24.
Counting from 2026, a 23-year-old was born in 2002.
2002 is the year of the Black Horse. In the sexagenary cycle it's Im-o (壬午), and because the heavenly stem carries the element Water (水), the animal picks up the color Black. One catch: the tti turns over at ipchun, around February 4, so a birthday before that counts as the previous year's animal.
No. 2002 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 🌐