''Musuri'' is a
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
n term referring to female
slave
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
s in charge of odd chores in the court during the
Goryeo
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...
and
Joseon Dynasty
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 ...
of
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
. Their main tasks were miscellaneous works such as drawing water from a well, making a fire in the
fireplace
A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design.
...
or cleaning.
Etymology
Every palace had wells, and drawing water and delivering it as needed were an important part of a tomusuri's duty. For this reason, ''musuri'' were also called ''susa'' (水賜, literally "giving water") or ''susai'' (水賜伊, a female in charge of giving water) and their residence was called a ''susagan'' (水賜間, a place for those drawing water). On the other hand, male slaves were called ''paji'' (巴只). Although the terms, ''susai'' and ''paji'' do not appear in
Goryeosa
The ''Goryeosa'' (), or ''History of Goryeo'', is the main surviving historical record of Korea's Goryeo dynasty. It was composed nearly a century after the fall of Goryeo, during the reign of King Sejong, undergoing repeated revisions between ...
, a book compiled about the "History of Goryeo", the
Annals of King Taejong (Taejong sillok) mention the class. From this record the Joseon royal court followed the system of the former state; Goryeo, young boys designated as male slaves were called ''paji'', in charge of cleaning in the court, while female slaves were called ''susai''. The record indicates that the system of ''susai'' and ''paji'' existed since the Goryeo Dynasty.
The term ''musuri'' was originally used in the
Mongol
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...
court, so it is assumed that the term came into use in the late Goryeo period. At first ''musuri'' travelled in and out of the court, but
King Taejong
Taejong of Joseon (13 June 1367 – 8 June 1422), personal name Yi Bang-won ( Korean: 이방원; Hanja: 李芳遠), was the third ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea and the father of King Sejong the Great. Before ascending to the throne, he ...
changed the system to prevent their spreading court affairs. Since December 1411 in the
lunar calendar
A lunar calendar is a calendar based on the monthly cycles of the Moon's phases (synodic months, lunations), in contrast to solar calendars, whose annual cycles are based only directly on the solar year. The most commonly used calendar, the Gre ...
, the musuri stayed at court all the time.
Roles and class
As well as drawing water ''musuri'' were assigned all rough work, according to each office's character.
They were from the public, mostly married women, and entered the palace through a
nain's recommendation. In a broad sense, ''musuri'' were part of the ''
gungnyeo
Gungnyeo (literally "palace women")Han, Hee-sook, pp. 141–146 is a Korean term referring to women waiting on the king and other royalty in traditional Korean society. It is short for "gungjung yeogwan", which translates as "a lady officer of t ...
'' (court ladies), but they could be allowed to go out of the court, which differentiates them from the ''gungnyeo'' with a rank, who entered the place in their early age and had "
gwallye
The () is the Confucian coming of age ceremony. According to the (), it is only after the coming of age ceremonies that young people could call themselves adults and could share social responsibilities. The name refers to the ritual ceremony f ...
" (冠禮, coming-of-age ceremonies). Thus the musuri were maids to assist ''gungnyeo'' at court and belonged to the lowest class in society.
In an exception to the class system it was said that
King Yeongjo
Yeongjo of Joseon (31 October 1694 – 22 April 1776), personal name Yi Geum (Korean: 이금, Hanja: 李昑), was the 21st monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He was the second son of King Sukjong, by his concubine Royal Noble Consort Suk ...
(r. 1724–76) was born to
King Sukjong and
Consort Suk of the Choe clan
Royal Noble Consort Suk of the Haeju Choe clan (Hangul: 숙빈 최씨, Hanja: 淑嬪 崔氏; 17 December 1670 – 9 April 1718) is one of best known consorts of Sukjong of Joseon and the mother of Yi Geum, King Yeongjo.
Biography Early life ...
, who had been a ''musuri'' at
Queen Inhyeon
Queen Inhyeon (Hangul: 인현왕후 민씨, Hanja: 仁顯王后 閔氏; 15 May 1667 – 16 September 1701), of the Yeoheung Min clan, was the second wife and queen consort of King Sukjong, the 19th Joseon monarch. She was Queen of Joseon fr ...
's (仁顯王后) quarters. King Yeongjo was very sensitive about his mother's class during his lifetime, avoiding any mention of her humble origin.
Attire
''Musuri'' wore a somber
ensemble
Ensemble may refer to:
Art
* Architectural ensemble
* ''Ensemble'' (album), Kendji Girac 2015 album
* Ensemble (band), a project of Olivier Alary
* Ensemble cast (drama, comedy)
* Ensemble (musical theatre), also known as the chorus
* ''En ...
made with a blackish cotton with some red. They rolled up their hair into a
cushion
A cushion is a soft bag of some ornamental material, usually stuffed with wool, hair, feathers, polyester staple fiber, non-woven material, cotton, or even paper torn into fragments. It may be used for sitting or kneeling upon, or to soften th ...
shape and wore a wide belt made of the same fabric as their clothes, with a tag (''pae'', 牌) on it. The tag was equivalent to an
identification card
An identity document (also called ID or colloquially as papers) is any document that may be used to prove a person's identity. If issued in a small, standard credit card size form, it is usually called an identity card (IC, ID card, citizen ca ...
when they came to work from outside, or went on an errand between buildings in the palace. At that time, ''nain'' (assistant court ladies) and ''
yangban
The ''yangban'' () were part of the traditional ruling class or gentry of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The ''yangban'' were mainly composed of highly educated civil servants and military officers—landed or unlanded aristocrats ...
'' (noble women) wore a very short upper garment called a ''donggeungnae jeogori'' (동그래저고리), a variety of ''
jeogori
(; ) is a basic upper garment of the , a traditional Korean garment, which has been worn by both men and women. Men usually wear the with a '' baji'' or pants while women wear the with '' chima'', or skirts. It covers the arms and upper part of ...
'', but the length of a musuri's jeogori was long, just like that of male slaves.
See also
*
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 s ...
*
Charwoman
A charwoman (also chargirl, charlady or char) is an old-fashioned occupational term, referring to a paid part-time worker who comes into a house or other building to clean it for a few hours of a day or week, as opposed to a maid, who usually ...
*
Lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...
*
Dae Jang Geum
''Dae Jang Geum'' (; literally "The Great Jang-geum"), also known as ''Jewel in the Palace'', is a 2003 South Korean historical drama television series directed by Lee Byung-hoon. It first aired on MBC from September 15, 2003 to March 23, 20 ...
References
{{Reflist
Korean women
Women by social class
Goryeo
Joseon dynasty
History of women in Korea