As the theme of Two Weddings and a Funeral, this word kept popping up and it would be good for anyone who wants to watch the show.
위장결혼 (wee-jang-kyeo-ron)
위장 means camouflage or disguise and 결혼 means marriage. In Two Weddings and a Funeral, the main characters have a 위장결혼식 to trick the world into thinking they are not queer (as you can imagine, it doesn't work out too well). The word can be translated as a marriage in disguise, sham marriage, or contract marriage.
![]()
위장결혼 are relatively common in Korea. Queercast's second episode had a segment on 위장결혼 and John Cho wrote an article on the phenomenon of contract marriages titled The Wedding Banquet Revisited.
The term recently was used in a report on sham gay marriages in the UK as a way to immigrate into the country. But it doesn't only need to be with same-sex couples; Korea Daily Los Angeles used the term in a report on fake marriages for citizenship reasons. Google image search has it connected to a lot of pictures dealing with female South-Asian brides and brokered marriages to Korean husbands.
![]()
위장결혼 (wee-jang-kyeo-ron)
위장 means camouflage or disguise and 결혼 means marriage. In Two Weddings and a Funeral, the main characters have a 위장결혼식 to trick the world into thinking they are not queer (as you can imagine, it doesn't work out too well). The word can be translated as a marriage in disguise, sham marriage, or contract marriage.
위장결혼 are relatively common in Korea. Queercast's second episode had a segment on 위장결혼 and John Cho wrote an article on the phenomenon of contract marriages titled The Wedding Banquet Revisited.
The term recently was used in a report on sham gay marriages in the UK as a way to immigrate into the country. But it doesn't only need to be with same-sex couples; Korea Daily Los Angeles used the term in a report on fake marriages for citizenship reasons. Google image search has it connected to a lot of pictures dealing with female South-Asian brides and brokered marriages to Korean husbands.
