The supreme leader () is the de facto hereditary leader of the Workers' Party of Korea, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Korean People's Army. The title is honorary, given only after death in the first two cases. More broadly it can also refer to the "Supreme Leader system" (Suryeong-je), which is defined as "a system that aims to ensure continuous leadership by the Supreme Leader across generations." Different titles were used in North Korean propaganda that could be translated from Korean as "Great Leader", "Dear Leader", or "Supreme Leader". Similar to other one-party states, the post of General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (titled as chairman from 1948 to 1966, as First Secretary from 2012 to 2016, and Chairman again from 2016 to 2021) is the first priority political position of the supreme leader.
"Supreme Leader" was originally a designation used for Kim Il Sung only, and only after his death. During his lifetime he was known as "Great Leader" (), a title that to this day is most often used to refer to him. His son, Kim Jong Il, was known as "Dear Leader" () during his lifetime, and only after death did North Korean media begin calling him "Supreme Leader", in the tradition of his father. The grandson, Kim Jong Un, was first called "Supreme Leader" in a North Korean newspaper article dated October 3, 2020, with the frequency increasing since then, including sometimes "great Supreme Leader". He was the first to be frequently called "Supreme Leader" while still alive, and at the relatively young age of 37. The 2020 newspaper article was part of the official preparations to appoint Kim Jong Un as the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea i.e. leader of the Workers' Party, the sole political body in the country and the top leader position. Since November 2021, South Korean media have all reported that Kim Jong Un is called "Supreme Leader" (Suryeong) in North Korea. Starting from January 2026, North Korea stopped calling Kim Jong Un âÂÂsupreme leaderâÂÂ. In that month, the 8th WPK Congress changed the provision regarding he general secretary from "the supreme leader of the Party" to "the head of the WPK". Starting from September 2024, North Korean state media has referred to Kim Jong Un as the "head of state".