# Kim Jong Il

_Supreme Leader of North Korea from 1994 to 2011_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/kim-jong-il
Last updated: 2026-11-05

> Kim Jong Il was a North Korean politician and dictator who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from the death of his father Kim Il Sung in 1994 until his own death in 2011. Posthumously, Kim Jong Il was declared an eternal leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 16 February 1941 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Vyatskoye ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P19))
- **Died:** 17 December 2011 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P570))
- **Place of death:** Pyongyang ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P20))
- **Citizenship:** North Korea ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P27))
- **Occupation:** politician; military personnel; film producer; film actor; voice actor; television director ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P106))
- **Political party:** Workers’ Party of Korea ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P102))
- **Education:** Kim Il-sung University; University of Malta; Mangyongdae Revolutionary School ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P69))
- **Spouse:** Hong Il-chon; Song Hye-rim; Kim Young-sook ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P26))
- **Positions held:** General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (8 October 1997 – 17 December 2011); Supreme Leader of North Korea (8 July 1994 – 17 December 2011); President of the State Affairs Commission (9 April 1993 – 17 December 2011); member of the Supreme People's Assembly; Eternal leaders of North Korea ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P39))
- **Awards:** Jubilee Medal "50 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"; Jubilee Medal "60 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"; Jubilee Medal "65 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"; Hero of the Republic; Order of Kim Il Sung; Order of the National Flag; National Order of Merit; Order of the Republic, 1st Class; Jubilee Medal "Forty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"; Grand Cross of the National Order of Mali; National Order of Niger; Order of Independence; Royal Order of Cambodia; Order of the Nile; National Order of the Leopard ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665#P166))

## Questions

**When was Kim Jong Il born?**  
Kim Jong Il was born on 16 February 1941 in Vyatskoye.

**What positions has Kim Jong Il held?**  
Positions held by Kim Jong Il include: General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (1997–2011); Supreme Leader of North Korea (1994–2011); President of the State Affairs Commission (1993–2011); member of the Supreme People's Assembly; Eternal leaders of North Korea.

**Where did Kim Jong Il study?**  
Kim Jong Il was educated at Kim Il-sung University, University of Malta, Mangyongdae Revolutionary School.

## Related

- [Kim Il Sung](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-il-sung)
- [Kim Jong Un](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-jong-un)
- [Kim Il](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-il)
- [Kim Tok-hun](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-tok-hun)
- [Pak Song-chol](https://diginpl.com/people/pak-song-chol)
- [Choe Yong-rim](https://diginpl.com/people/choe-yong-rim)
- [Hong Song-nam](https://diginpl.com/people/hong-song-nam)
- [Kim Jae-ryong](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-jae-ryong)
- [Kim Yong-il](https://diginpl.com/people/kim-yong-il)
- [Pak Pong-ju](https://diginpl.com/people/pak-pong-ju)
- [Yon Hyong-muk](https://diginpl.com/people/yon-hyong-muk)

## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Kim Jong Il](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Jong_Il) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikipedia (Nepali): किम जोङ् इल](https://ne.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%AE_%E0%A4%9C%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%99%E0%A5%8D_%E0%A4%87%E0%A4%B2) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q10665](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10665) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Kim Jong-il on August 24, 2011.jpg by Presidential Press and Information Office (CC BY 4.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kim_Jong-il_on_August_24,_2011.jpg)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Kim Jong Il, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Kim Jong-il on August 24, 2011.jpg — Presidential Press and Information Office, CC BY 4.0.

## Cite this page

"Kim Jong Il". DigiNepal. Last updated 5 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/kim-jong-il. Retrieved 10 November 2026.