kdrama1-1, Exercise 2: The Korean Wave

Model answer:

The Korean Wave (hallyu) is "the rise in global interest in South Korean popular culture that has spread rapidly since the 1990s", led by K-pop, K-dramas, K-beauty, K-food and films. The article says the Beijing Youth Daily published the first known use of the term on 19 November 1999.

Hallyu 1.0 began in China in the late 1990s and was mainly TV dramas across nearby Asian countries (Winter Sonata in Japan, Jewel in the Palace in Chinese-speaking countries). Hallyu 2.0, the "New Korean Wave", is dated from 2008 and was driven by social media, YouTube and K-pop, with Psy's "Gangnam Style" as a turning point.

The start is argued because the article's own sections disagree: 1997 is "generally considered the start", but the Taiwan section says Korean dramas arrived in the early 1990s and a note cites a drama on Chinese television in 1992. The date depends on whether you count the first export, the first fan base or the first name.

Sources: Wikipedia, Korean Wave (first part of a long article).