Song Hye-kyo ( Korean : 송혜교; born November 22, 1981) is a South Korean actress. She gained Asia -wide popularity through her leading roles in television dramas Autumn in My Heart ( 2000 ), All In (2003), Full House ( 2004 ), That Winter, the Wind Blows (2013), Descendants of the Sun ( 2016 ), and Encounter ( 2018 ). Her film work includes Hwang Jin Yi (2007), The Grandmaster (2013), My Brilliant Life ( 2014 ), and The Queens ( 2015 ).
In 2017, she ranked 7th in Forbes magazine 's Korea Power Celebrity list, and 6th in 2018. The success of Song 's television dramas internationally established her as a top Hallyu star.
Early life and education
When Song was born, she was sick and her parents and doctors thought that she would not survive. Upon her recovery, Song 's parents registered her birth on February 26, 1982 (instead of her actual birthdate, November 22, 1981). Song 's parents divorced when she was a young girl, and she was raised by her mother. They moved from her birthplace in Daegu to the Gangnam District in Seoul, where she trained as a figure skater in elementary school but quit when she was in the eighth grade. Though Song considered herself shy and introverted, she was described by her high school teacher as having a "cheerful character, she mixed well with her friends and was always in a bright mood." Song Hye-kyo attended college at Sejong University, where she majored in Film Arts.
Career
1996– 2004 : Debut, breakthrough and international fame
In 1996, the 14-year-old Song, then a third-year junior high school student, won first place in the SunKyung Smart Model Contest, and she made her entertainment debut as a model for the school uniform company.
