거제 야호

Geoje Yaho

The 'Geoje Yaho' meme rapidly gained popularity starting around May 2026 through YouTube Shorts and various social media platforms. It originated from a video featuring Wonhee and Minami, members of the girl group RESCENE, and is notable for going viral organically without major agency planning.

This meme originated from a YouTube video featuring Wonhee and Minami, members of the girl group RESCENE. It began when Wonhee, who is from Geoje and was speaking in her regional dialect, was met with Japanese member Minami exclaiming "Geoje Yaho~!" by combining Wonhee's hometown 'Geoje' with "Yaho," a characteristic interjection often used by Gyaru. This single phrase, with its context-free cheerfulness, brought laughter to many netizens and became popular. While some jokingly interpreted it as "a perverted tiger lives in Geoje," it is essentially used as a lively and cheerful exclamation, similar to Gyaru slang, without any specific deep meaning.

"Geoje Yaho" (거제 야호) is pronounced roughly as "Guh-jeh Yah-ho."

• "Geoje" (거제): Sounds like "Guh-jeh," where "Guh" rhymes with "duh" and "jeh" rhymes with "jet."
• "Yaho" (야호): Sounds like "Yah-ho," where "Yah" rhymes with "yeah" and "ho" rhymes with "hoe."

Primarily used actively among young people in their teens and twenties and within the K-POP fandom. As it spread through YouTube Shorts and social media, generations familiar with digital content are the main consumers, and it is also widely known in university areas.

'Geoje Yaho' is primarily used as an exclamation in unexpected situations or in a cheerful and lively atmosphere. It originated from the original video where Wonhee says, "If you go to Geoje like this, you'll get scolded by the Geoje citizens," and Minami replies, "Geoje Yaho~!"

• When playfully talking with a friend: "Hey, you'll get in trouble if you keep doing that? Geoje Yaho~!"
• When reacting to a situation in an absurd or innocent way: "Geoje Yaho~!"
• Recently, Geoje City has even utilized this meme to create short-form content promoting the city.