Hong Kong's "Dim-sum" joins Asian cyclone naming roster alongside quirky new names

The Hong Kong Observatory succeeded in adding "Dim-sum" to the regional cyclone naming list for the western North Pacific and South China Sea. The selection followed a 2023 exercise that attracted over 20,000 participants, helping to build a locally representative pool of names. Alongside "Dim-sum," nine new names were approved, contributed by member nations: a frog from North Korea, a mountain flower from Vietnam, a respectful greeting from Micronesia, a snake and a term meaning "stern" from Japan, a large tree from Cambodia, a wing reference from the Republic of Korea, and an eastward term from Thailand.

The Typhoon Committee, operating under the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, oversees a list of 140 names that are reused unless a storm’s severity warrants retirement. When a name is retired, the originating country must propose a replacement that meets linguistic and cultural guidelines.