Tattoo Meaning: MONSTA X MinHyuk's Whale Knee Tattoo

Welcome to the second article of Kpopmap's new bi-weekly series "Tattoo Meaning"! 

Many Korean celebrities have tattoos and fans are always curious about what they mean or the story behind why they got them. This series will explore the meanings behind some of your favorite celebrities' tattoos.

MAMAMOO's WheeIn opened the series for us. This week we'll be covering MONSTA X MinHyuk's whale knee tattoo. 

If you are a MONBEBE (MONSTA X's fandom) it is no secret that MinHyuk absolutely loves whales. In fact, his Instagram handle (@go5rae) is the romanization for the Korean word for 'whale' (고래 - pronounce go-rae). He also has these whale-related photos on his account. 

When he shared his tattoo with fans he said that, "If they say something about it then I won't say it's a tattoo, I'll say that I went to the sea and a whale suddenly hugged my knee."

https://twitter.com/urmydetox/status/1242130271475871744?s=20&t=W5urP4Uc5j-Gk8jBZvnFcQ

MinHyuk has even done a pictorial and interview with W Magazine that fits with his love for whales and the sea.

When asked what he thought about the concept of the shoot, MinHyuk shared tha