Hong Kong Observatory Adds Dim-sum to 140-Name Pacific Cyclone List

Q: Which devastating storms forced the retirement of nine cyclone names, paving the way for replacements like Dim-sum?

The nine retired cyclone names were **Kong-rey, Toraji, Man-yi, Usagi, Yagi, Ewiniar, Jebi, Krathon and Trami**. Most were removed because the storms caused heavy casualties and major economic damage, particularly across the Philippines in 2024. According to the Hong Kong Observatory, **Ewiniar, Yagi, Krathon, Trami, Kong-rey, Toraji, Usagi and Man-yi** were all retired under the Typhoon Committee’s convention for especially destructive storms. The deadliest cluster came late in the 2024 season. **Trami and Kong-rey** together caused **159 deaths**, with millions affected and losses exceeding **PHP 18.4 billion** in the Philippines. **Toraji, Usagi and Man-yi** then struck in succession in November 2024, leaving **14 dead** and affecting more than **4.3 million people**. Earlier that year, **Yagi** killed **21 people** in the Philippines, while **Ewiniar** and **Krathon** also caused deaths, injuries and major damage. **Jebi** was the exception: it was retired not because of a specific disaster in this update, but because its meaning was considered inappropriate in another language. Those retirements opened slots for nine replacement names, including **Dim-sum**, which Hong Kong added to the regional cyclone list.

Q: Why was a storm name quietly retired for being linguistically inappropriate, and what did it actually mean?

The quietly retired name was **Jebi**. It was removed not because of a particularly destructive storm, but because the Typhoon Committee determined that its meaning was **linguistically inappropriate in another language**, which conflicted with the naming system’s goal of being clear and culturally workable across the region. **Jebi** is a Korean word that actually means **“swallow,” the bird**. In normal use, it is not offensive in Korean. But because cyclone names circulate across many languages and countries in the western North Pacific, the committee can retire a name if it creates confusion or carries an awkward or inappropriate meaning elsewhere. That is why Jebi was retired alongside other names that were dropped for the more usual reason of being attached to deadly or costly storms. In this update, it was replaced as part of the committee’s periodic refresh of the 140-name rotation.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 5

June brought a new Pacific storm name: Hong Kong Observatory selected “Dim-sum” for the tropical cyclone roster used across the Asia Pacific.
The name enters a 140-name list maintained by the Typhoon Committee, a U.N.- and World Meteorological Organization-backed body that rotates names every four or five years.
Fourteen members — including Hong Kong, China, the United States, the Koreas and Malaysia — each submit 10 names drawn from local language and culture.
Dim-sum follows other Hong Kong-linked choices such as Dolphin, the name now attached to a typhoon forecast to approach Japan and Taiwan this weekend.