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Kwagŏ
The () or ''kwagŏ'' were the national civil service examinations under the Goryeo (918–1392) and Joseon (1392–1897) periods of Korea. Typically quite demanding, these tests measured candidates' ability of writing composition and knowledge of the Chinese classics. The form of writing varied from literature to proposals on management of the state. Technical subjects were also tested to appoint experts on medicine, interpretation, accounting, law etc. These were the primary route for most people to achieve positions in the bureaucracy. Based on the civil service examinations of imperial China, the first arose in Unified Silla, gained importance in Goryeo, and were the centerpiece of most education in the Joseon dynasty. The tutelage provided at the ''hyanggyo'', ''seowon'', and Sungkyunkwan was aimed primarily at preparing students for the and their subsequent career in government service. Under Joseon law, high office was closed to those who were not children of officials ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Imperial Examination
The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in History of China#Imperial China, Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the Civil service#China, state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by merit rather than by birth started Imperial examination in Chinese mythology, early in Chinese history, but using written examinations as a tool of selection started in earnest during the Sui dynasty (581–618), then into the Tang dynasty (618–907). The system became dominant during the Song dynasty (960–1279) and lasted for almost a millennium until its abolition during the late Qing reforms, late Qing dynasty reforms in 1905. The key sponsors for abolition were Yuan Shikai, Yin Chang and Zhang Zhidong. Aspects of the imperial examination still exist for entry into the civil service of both China and Taiwan. The exams served to ensure a common knowledge of writing, Chinese classics, and literary style among state officials. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Goryeo
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korea, Korean Peninsula until the establishment of Joseon in 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians as it not only unified the Later Three Kingdoms but also incorporated much of the ruling class of the northern kingdom of Balhae, who had origins in Goguryeo of the earlier Three Kingdoms of Korea. According to Korean historians, it was during the Goryeo period that the individual identities of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla were successfully merged into a single entity that became the basis of the modern-day Koreans, Korean identity. The name "Korea" is derived from the name of Goryeo, also romanized as Koryŏ, which was first used in the early 5th century by Goguryeo; Goryeo was a successor state to Later Goguryeo and Goguryeo. Throughout its existence, Goryeo, alongside Unified S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Idu Script
Idu () was a writing system developed during the Three Kingdoms period of Korea (57 BC-668 AD) to write the Korean language using Chinese characters ("hanja"). It used Hanja to represent both native Korean words and grammatical morphemes as well as Chinese loanwords. The script, which was developed by Buddhist monks, made it possible to record Korean words through their equivalent meaning or sound in Chinese. It was used primarily to write official documents and the imperial examinations from 958 AD-1894 AD. The term ''idu'' may refer to various systems of representing Korean phonology through hanja, which were used from the early Three Kingdoms to Joseon periods. In this sense, it includes '' hyangchal'', the local writing system used to write vernacular poetry and ''gugyeol'' writing. Its narrow sense only refers to ''idu'' proper or the system developed in the Goryeo (918–1392), and first referred to by name in the '' Jewang ungi''. History The Idu script developed du ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cheonmin
''Cheonmin'' (), or "vulgar commoners", were the lowest caste of commoners in dynastical Korea. They abounded during the Goryeo (918–1392) and Joseon (1392–1897) periods of Korea's agrarian bureaucracy. Social class system In the caste system in Korea, this social class was largely hereditary and based on certain professions considered "unclean" by the upper classes. This list of unclean professions included butchers, shamans, shoemakers, metalworkers, prostitutes, magicians, sorcerers, jail-keepers, and performers (like the '' kisaeng''). '' Nobi'' (slaves) were servants taken from the cheonmin class to serve '' yangban'' (aristocracy) and royalty, but like slaves, they were considered the property of their owners and could be given away to other high-ranking people. '' Kisaeng'', female entertainers for ''yangban'', were in this class, educated but not respected by others in society. The hereditary nature of the caste system bred institutionalized discrimination and pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yangmin
''Sangmin'' (), short for ''p'yŏngsangjimin'' (), is a Korean-language term for commoners of the Joseon Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ... period (1392–1897). Synonyms for the term include ''sŏin'' (), ''sangin'' (), ''yangmin'' (), ''p'yŏngmin'' (), and ''p'yŏngin'' (). ''Sangmin'' was also sometimes used to describe innocent people, in contrast to criminals. History The term ''sangmin'' was used as an informal or legal designation depending on the time period. It refers to everyone who is not of noble background. In the latter half of the 17th century, a two-class system called ''yangch'ŏnje'' () was enacted, and ''sangmin'' made the lower class. However, ''sangmin'' were still de facto divided into various subgroups. ''Sangmin'' were systemically disad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaesong
Kaesong (, ; ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close to the border with South Korea and contains the remains of the Manwoldae palace. Called Songdo while it was the ancient capital of Goryeo, the city prospered as a trade centre that produced Korean ginseng. Kaesong now functions as North Korea's light industry centre. During the Japanese occupation from 1910 to 1945, the city was known by the Japanese pronunciation of its name, "Kaijō". Between 1945 and 1950, Kaesong was part of South Korea and under its control. During the Korean War, North Korea captured the city, and the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement left the city under North Korean control. Due to the city's proximity to the border with South Korea, Kaesong has hosted cross-border economic exchanges between the two countrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Later Zhou
Zhou, known as the Later Zhou (; ) in historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty and the last of the Five Dynasties that controlled most of northern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Founded by Guo Wei (Emperor Taizu), it was preceded by the Later Han dynasty and succeeded by the Northern Song dynasty. Founding of the dynasty Guo Wei, a Han Chinese, served as the Assistant Military Commissioner at the court of the Later Han, a regime ruled by Shatuo Turks. Liu Chengyou came to the throne of the Later Han in 948 after the death of the founding emperor, Gaozu. Guo Wei led a successful coup against the teenage emperor and then declared himself emperor of the new Later Zhou on New Year's Day in 951. Rule of Guo Wei Guo Wei, posthumously known as Emperor Taizu of Later Zhou, was the first Han Chinese ruler of northern China since 923. He is regarded as an able leader who attempted reforms designed to alleviate burdens faced by the p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Encyclopedia Of Korean Culture
The ''Encyclopedia of Korean Culture'' () is a Korean-language encyclopedia published by the Academy of Korean Studies and DongBang Media Co. It was originally published as physical books from 1991 to 2001. There is now an online version of the encyclopedia that continues to be updated. Overview On September 25, 1979, a presidential order (No. 9628; ) was issued to begin work on compiling a national encyclopedia. Work began on compiling the encyclopedia on March 18, 1980. It began publishing books in 1991. The encyclopedia's first version was completed, with 28 volumes, in 1995. It continued to be revised beginning in 1996. In 2001, the digital edition EncyKorea was published on CD-ROM A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains computer data storage, data computers can read, but not write or erase. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold b ... and DVD. It launched an online version in 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jinseong Of Silla
Jinseong (–898), personal name Kim Man, was the fifty-first ruler of the Korean kingdom, Silla from 887 to 897.Lee Bae-yong, Women in Korean History, Ewha Womans University Press, 2008, pp. 145-147, . She was also Silla's third and last reigning queen after Seondeok and Jindeok. Her reign saw the weakening of Unified Silla and the beginning of the Later Three Kingdoms period. According to her older brother Jeonggang, she was smart by nature and tall like a man. Life Jinseong was the only daughter of King Gyeongmun and . Being the younger sister of Heongang and Jeonggang, she rose to the throne when both of her brothers died without issue. When King Jeonggang was dying in 887, he appointed his sister Jinseong as his heir, justifying the choice of a female monarch by pointing at Seondeok's and Jindeok's successful reigns. Though Seondeok and Jindeok's successful reigns were invoked to help Jinseong secure the throne, Silla's third queen regnant ultimately did not li ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Confucian Classics
The Chinese classics or canonical texts are the works of Chinese literature authored prior to the establishment of the imperial Qin dynasty in 221 BC. Prominent examples include the Four Books and Five Classics in the Neo-Confucian tradition, themselves an abridgment of the Thirteen Classics. The Chinese classics used a form of written Chinese consciously imitated by later authors, now known as Classical Chinese. A common Chinese word for "classic" () literally means ' warp thread', in reference to the techniques by which works of this period were bound into volumes. Texts may include ''shi'' (, ' histories') ''zi'' ( 'master texts'), philosophical treatises usually associated with an individual and later systematized into schools of thought but also including works on agriculture, medicine, mathematics, astronomy, divination, art criticism, and other miscellaneous writings) and ''ji'' ( 'literary works') as well as the cultivation of '' jing'', 'essence' in Chinese medic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gabo Reform
The Kabo Reform () describes a series of sweeping reforms suggested to the government of Korea, beginning in 1894 and ending in 1896 during the reign of Gojong of Korea in response to the Donghak Peasant Revolution. Historians debate the degree of Japanese influence in this program, as well as its effect in encouraging modernization. The term ''Kabo'' () comes from the name of the year 1894 in the traditional sexagenary cycle.Kabo Reforms at Nate Britannica Korea Background The disarray and blatant corruption in the Korean government, particularly in the three main areas of revenues – land tax, military service, and the state granary system – weighed heavily on the Korean peasantry. Of special note is the ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yangban
The ''yangban'' () were part of the traditional ruling class or gentry of dynastic Korea during the Joseon period. The ''yangban'' were mainly composed of highly educated civil officials and military officers—landed or unlanded aristocrats who individually exemplified the Korean Confucian form of a " scholarly official". They were largely government administrators and bureaucrats who oversaw medieval and early modern Korea's traditional agrarian bureaucracy until the end of the dynasty in 1897. In a broader sense, an office holder's family and descendants, as well as country families who claimed such descent, were socially accepted as ''yangban''. In contemporary Korean language, the term ''yangban'' can be used either as a compliment or insult. Etymology ''Yangban'' literally means "two branches" of administration: ''munban'' () which comprises civil administrators and ''muban'' () which comprises martial office holders. The term yangban first appeared sometime during late ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
