Bonguk geom (

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

본국검 "

national National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

", also ''singeom'' 신검 "Silla sword") in

Joseon era Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

Korean martial arts Korean martial arts (Hangul: 무술, Hanja: 武術, ''musul'' or Hangul: 무예, Hanja: 武藝, ''muye'') are fighting practices and methods which have their place in the history of Korea but have been adapted for use by both military and non- ...

(17th to 18th centuries) referred both to a type of

and a style of

swordsmanship Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to a ...

. The term was introduced in the ''

Muyesinbo The ''Muyesinbo'' (or ''Muyeshinbo'', meaning "new compendium of martial arts") is a Korean martial arts manual published in 1759.Ehwa University Press 2008, Sippalgi: Traditional Korean Martial Arts, Dr. B.K. Choi The book is a revision of th ...

'' of 1759, and the system was supposedly a creation of

Crown Prince Sado Crown Prince Sado (Hangul: 사도세자, Hanja: 思悼世子; 13 February 1735 – 12 July 1762), personal name Yi Seon (Hangul: 이선, Hanja: 李愃), was the second son of King Yeongjo of Joseon. His biological mother was Royal Noble ...

. It contrasts with

Jedok geom Jedok geom or ''Admiral sword'' or ''Commander sword'' is a sword-skill originating from China and used during the Japanese invasions of Korea during the 16th century. The techniques required the use of both a sharp sword and a waist sword. The ...

, or "admiral sword", a system supposedly introduced by the Chinese admiral

Li Rusong Li Rusong (1549–1598) was a Ming dynasty general from Tieling, Liaodong. He was a Ming army commander in the first half of the Imjin War that took place in the Korean peninsula. Upon the request of the Korean King Seonjo of Joseon, the Ming Wa ...

during the 16th-century

Imjin War The Imjin River ( in South Korea) or Rimjin River ( in North Korea) is the 7th largest river in Korea. It flows from north to south, crossing the Demilitarized Zone and joining the Han River downstream of Seoul, near the Yellow Sea. The river i ...

(the "national sword" system is conspicuously absent from the older ''

Muyejebo The ''Muyejebo'' (''Compendium of Several Martial Arts'') is the oldest extant Korean martial arts manual, written during the reign of King Seonjo (d. 1608). The king died before the compendium was complete, and it was first published, with ...

'' manual of 1610). The ''Muyesinbo'' stresses the antiquity of this "national" Korean system by including the narrative of a Silla " Flower Youth" called ''Hwangchang'', who killed

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

's king while performing a

sword dance Sword dances are recorded throughout world history. There are various traditions of solo and mock-battle (Pyrrhic) sword dances from Africa, Asia and Europe. General types of sword dance include: *solo dancers around swords – such as t ...

, known as

Geommu Geommu (also transliterated ''Gummu'', ''Kommu'') is a traditional sword dance practiced in Korea. Geommu is performed with special costume, dance moves, and music. The dance is known for its grace in performance. Extra emphasis is placed on the m ...

, at the court. The historical swords of the Silla period would have been double-edged and comparable to those of the

Eastern Han The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

dynastic period (see also

Hwandudaedo ''Hwandudaedo'' ("ring-pommel sword") is the modern Korean term for one of earliest original types of Korean sword, appearing in the Proto–Three Kingdoms of Korea. These swords were at first symbols of a ruler's power, but their availability ...

). However, the Bonguk geom, as presented in the 18th-century manual, is historically based on a single-edged sword; a type common during that era. In contemporary schools of

Korean swordsmanship Since the 1970s, there has been a revival of traditional or reconstructed methods of swordsmanship (劍術 ''geom sul'', or 劍法 ''geom beop'') based on the Korean sword in the Republic of Korea (Korean '' Bon Kuk Geom Beop'' 본국검법 " ...

, the term ''bonguk geom'' is used to emphasize their "national" Korean character, without necessarily bearing a direct relation to the 18th-century system.

References

*B.K. Choi, Sippalgi: Traditional Korean Martial Arts, Ehwa University Press 2008 Traditional Korean weapons Korean_swords {{Sword-stub