Korean slang profile

SNS

Social networking services

Online services where people connect and share photos, personal updates, and messages.

Expanded form: Social Network ServiceSocial networking services
Other spellings: —
Earliest source found: Jan 17, 2007
Documented trend period: Not verified

This is the earliest source we have verified, not the date the term was coined.

01Examples, with English translations

Example by Julimmal
SNS에 여행 사진을 올렸어.
I posted my travel photos on social media.
Quoted from a source
SNS는 네티즌끼리 사진·일기·각종 메시지·블로그 등을 공유할 수 있는 사이버 세상의 사교 공간이다.[1]
SNS are online social spaces where users share photos, diary entries, messages, blogs, and other content.
English translation by Julimmal.

02Documented history

January 2007SNS are online social spaces where users share photos, diary entries, messages, blogs, and other content.[1]
April 2012KDI Economic Education and Information Center: “The combination of these, ‘Social Network Service,’ is abbreviated as SNS.”[2]

03Origin & word formation

Short for “Social Network Service.” The 2007 source from Electronic Times explicitly gives this explanation. Who first used it and when have not been verified.

Evidence for the origin explanationHigh

The explanation is explicit in the sources, and at least two sources use the same meaning. When it was first used is unknown.

04Sources

Original titles and links are preserved. An English translation does not replace the original source.

[글로벌 IT이슈 진단]SNS, 모바일로 진화한다 (전자신문)Published Jan 17, 2007Original source checked Nov 5, 2026
SNS로 통하는 시대 (KDI 경제교육·정보센터)Published Apr 30, 2012Original source checked Nov 5, 2026