Kim Pohyŏn

Kim Pohyŏn
Chosŏn'gŭl	김보현
Hancha	金輔鉉
Revised Romanization	Gim Bohyeon
McCune–Reischauer	Kim Pohyŏn

Kim Pohyŏn
Kim Pohyŏn
	Kim Pohyŏn in 1945
Born	3 October 1871; Mangyongdae, Joseon
Died	2 September 1955 (aged 83); Pyongyang, North Korea
Burial place	Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery
Nationality	Korean
Spouse	Yi Poik
Children	Kim Hyong-jik; Kim Hyŏngnok; Kim Hyong-gwon; Kim Gu-il; Kim Hyong-sil; Kim Hyong-bok
Parents	Kim Ŭngu (father); Lady Lee (North Korea) (mother);
Relatives	Kim family

Kim Pohyŏn (Korean: 김보현; Hanja: 金輔鉉; 3 October 1871 – 2 September 1955) was a farmer from South Pyongan Province. He was the paternal grandfather of the founder of North Korea, Kim Il Sung, the great-grandfather of Kim Jong Il, and great-great-grandfather of the current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un.

He is buried in the Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery in North Korea.

Biography

Kim Pohyŏn was born on 3 October 1871 as the only son to Mangyongdae farmer Kim Ŭngu (17 June 1848 – 4 October 1878).^[1] Kim Ŭngu died at the age of thirty, one day after Kim Pohyŏn's seventh birthday. Without his father, Kim went to live with his uncle.

In his twenties, Pohyŏn married a girl named Yi Poik, who was five years younger than Kim. Together, they had three sons and three daughters, the most well known of the offspring being Kim Hyong-jik.^[2]^[3] To feed his six offspring, Kim was said to have woken up at early dawn and went around the village to collect manure, while at night, he was said to twist straw ropes, make straw sandals and plait straw mats by lamplight.^[4]

Kim Il Sung claimed his ancestors, including his grandfather Kim Pohyŏn and great-grandfather Kim Ŭngu, were involved in the General Sherman incident, despite the fact that Kim Pohyŏn was not born until five years later.^[5] The account, undisputed in North Korea, has been questioned by independent scholars abroad.^[6]^[3] From September 16, 1948, to October 1, 1949, he served as the Deputy Head of the High Special Advisor to the Agricultural Department of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. After officially retiring from his position on October 1, 1949, he died at the age of 83 in 1955.

Legacy

Kim Pohyŏn and Yi Poik were likened as "patriots" by the Editorial Committee for the Short Biography of Kim Il Sung.^[7]

A statue in his honor stands at the Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery.^[8]

In 1947, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea established an agricultural college named Kim Bo-hyun University [zh] in his honor.^[9]

On 19 August 2013, wreaths were sent by various North Korean organizations to the tombs of Kim Pohyŏn and Yi Poik.^[10]

Family

Father: Kim Ŭngu (김응우; 17 June 1848 – 4 October 1878)
- Grandfather: Kim Songnyŏng (김송령; 1 December 1810 – 12 March 1899)
- Grandmother: Na Hyŏnjik (나현직; 4 March 1811 – 23 January 1897)
Mother: Lady Yi (이씨)
Wife: Yi Poik (이보익; 31 May 1876 – 18 October 1958)

Son: Kim Hyeong-jik (김형직; 10 July 1894 – 5 June 1926)
Son: Kim Hyŏngnok (김형록)
Son: Kim Hyong-gwon (김형권; 4 November 1905 – 12 January 1936)
Daughter: Kim Kuil (김구일)
Daughter: Kim Hyŏngsil (김형실)
Daughter: Kim Hyŏngpok (김형복)

Kim Song-ryeong
1810–1899

Kim Ung-u
1848–1878

Kim Bo-hyon
1871–1955

Kim Hyong-jik
1894–1926

Kang Pan-sok
1892–1932

Kim Jong-suk
1917–1949

Kim Il Sung
1912–1994

Kim Song-ae
1924–2014

Kim Yong-ju
1920–2021

Kim Young-sook
1947–

Song Hye-rim
1937–2002

Kim Jong Il
1941?^[ζ]–2011

Ko Yong-hui
1952–2004

Kim Ok
1964–

Kim Kyong-hui
1946–

Jang Song-thaek
1946–2013

Kim Pyong Il
1954–

Kim Sol-song
1974–

Kim Jong-nam
1971–2017

Kim Jong-chul
1981–

Kim Jong Un
1983?^[η]–

Ri Sol-ju
c. 1986–

Kim Yo-jong
1987–

Kim Han-sol
1995–

Kim Ju-ae
c. 2012^[θ]–

Notes:

^ To keep the tree of manageable size, it omits five out of the seven known legitimate children of Kim Il Sung. Other children not shown in the tree are: Kim Man-il (1944-1947; child of Kim Jong Suk), Kim Kyong-jin (1952-; child of Kim Song-ae), Kim Yong-il (1955-2000; child of Kim Song-ae), and Kim Kyong Suk (1951-; child of Kim Song-ae). A stillborn daughter is also omitted. Kim Il Sung was reported to have had other children with women who he was not married to; they included Kim Hyŏn-nam (born 1972). Also, only some of the descendants of Kim Jong Il and Kim Jung Un (Kim Il Sung's successors) are included.
^ Korean names often have a variety of transliterations into English, which can be confusing. For example, "Kim Jong-chul" may also be written "Gim Jeong-cheol" or "Kim Jŏng-ch'ŏl" among many other variations. See Korean romanization for more information.
^ Huss, Kan; Frost, Clay. "North Korea's First Family: Mapping the personal and political drama of the Kim clan". msnbc.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 20 January 2013. (Confirms many, but not all, of the birth and death years. See individual articles for more references.)
^ Yan, Holly (16 February 2017). "The world's most mysterious family tree: Kim Jong Un's secretive dynasty is full of drama, death". Design by Alberto Mier. CNN. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
^ Lee, Sung-Yoon (2023). "The Mount Paektu Dynasty (Family Tree)". The Sister: The extraordinary story of Kim Yo Jong, the most powerful woman in North Korea. United Kingdom: Macmillan. p. x-xi. ISBN 9781529073539.
^ Official North Korean biographies of Kim Jong Il list his birth year as 1942. The Korean calendar is based upon the Chinese zodiac which is believed to characterize one's personality. The year 1942 (Year of the Horse), in addition to being 30 years since Kim Il Sung's birth may be viewed as a better year than others, thus creating a motive to lie about a birth year.
^ Official North Korean biographies of Kim Jong Un list his birth year as 1982. The Korean calendar is based upon the Chinese zodiac which is believed to characterize one's personality. The year 1982 (Year of the Dog), in addition to being 70 years since Kim Il Sung's birth, may be viewed as a better year than others, thus creating a motive to lie about a birth year.
^ Birth year for Kim Ju-ae is not publicly known. She may have been born in either late 2012 or early 2013.

References

^ Szathmary, Zoe (2017-12-17). "Korean battle flags tied to Kim Jong Un ancestor unearthed at US Naval Academy". Fox News. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
^ Hyung-chan Kim (2003). "Kim Jong Il's North Korea and Its Survivability". Korea and World Affairs. 27: 251. ISSN 0251-3072. OCLC 3860590. One also has to accept the existence of Kim Bo-hyeon (1871–1955), Kim Il-sung's grandfather, who participated in anti-Japanese activities.
^ ^a ^b Gourevitch, Philip (September 8, 2003). "Alone in the dark". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014.
^ Kim Il-sung, With the Century, Volume I: April 1912 - May 1930 p. 19.
^ "SS General Sherman Incident". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
^ Thomas Julian Belke (1999). Juche: A Christian Study of North Korea's State Religion. Living Sacrifice Book Company. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-88264-329-8.
^ Editorial Committee for the Short Biography of Kim Il Sung; Chʻulpʻansa, Oegungmun (1973). Kim Il Sung: short biography. Foreign Languages Publishing House. p. 1.
^ Delegate, Official USA (20 August 2012). "Wreaths Laid before Grave of Kim Po Hyon". KFAUSA.
^ "金辅铉大学". Naenara. Archived from the original on 15 March 2007.
^ 朝鲜纪念金辅铉先生诞辰142周年. 朝鲜《劳动新闻》（中文）[引用日期2013-10-02]

[11] To keep the tree of manageable size, it omits five out of the seven known legitimate children of Kim Il Sung. Other children not shown in the tree are: Kim Man-il (1944-1947; child of Kim Jong Suk), Kim Kyong-jin (1952-; child of Kim Song-ae), Kim Yong-il (1955-2000; child of Kim Song-ae), and Kim Kyong Suk (1951-; child of Kim Song-ae). A stillborn daughter is also omitted. Kim Il Sung was reported to have had other children with women who he was not married to; they included Kim Hyŏn-nam (born 1972). Also, only some of the descendants of Kim Jong Il and Kim Jung Un (Kim Il Sung's successors) are included.

[12] Korean names often have a variety of transliterations into English, which can be confusing. For example, "Kim Jong-chul" may also be written "Gim Jeong-cheol" or "Kim Jŏng-ch'ŏl" among many other variations. See Korean romanization for more information.

[13] Huss, Kan; Frost, Clay. "North Korea's First Family: Mapping the personal and political drama of the Kim clan". msnbc.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 20 January 2013. (Confirms many, but not all, of the birth and death years. See individual articles for more references.)

[14] Yan, Holly (16 February 2017). "The world's most mysterious family tree: Kim Jong Un's secretive dynasty is full of drama, death". Design by Alberto Mier. CNN. Retrieved 16 February 2017.

[15] Lee, Sung-Yoon (2023). "The Mount Paektu Dynasty (Family Tree)". The Sister: The extraordinary story of Kim Yo Jong, the most powerful woman in North Korea. United Kingdom: Macmillan. p. x-xi. ISBN 9781529073539.

[uncertainty2-16] Official North Korean biographies of Kim Jong Il list his birth year as 1942. The Korean calendar is based upon the Chinese zodiac which is believed to characterize one's personality. The year 1942 (Year of the Horse), in addition to being 30 years since Kim Il Sung's birth may be viewed as a better year than others, thus creating a motive to lie about a birth year.

[uncertainty1-17] Official North Korean biographies of Kim Jong Un list his birth year as 1982. The Korean calendar is based upon the Chinese zodiac which is believed to characterize one's personality. The year 1982 (Year of the Dog), in addition to being 70 years since Kim Il Sung's birth, may be viewed as a better year than others, thus creating a motive to lie about a birth year.

[uncertainty3-18] Birth year for Kim Ju-ae is not publicly known. She may have been born in either late 2012 or early 2013.

[1] Szathmary, Zoe (2017-12-17). "Korean battle flags tied to Kim Jong Un ancestor unearthed at US Naval Academy". Fox News. Retrieved 2019-09-26.

[2] Hyung-chan Kim (2003). "Kim Jong Il's North Korea and Its Survivability". Korea and World Affairs. 27: 251. ISSN 0251-3072. OCLC 3860590. One also has to accept the existence of Kim Bo-hyeon (1871–1955), Kim Il-sung's grandfather, who participated in anti-Japanese activities.

[:0-3] Gourevitch, Philip (September 8, 2003). "Alone in the dark". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014.

[4] Kim Il-sung, With the Century, Volume I: April 1912 - May 1930 p. 19.

[5] "SS General Sherman Incident". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 25 April 2020.

[Belke1999-6] Thomas Julian Belke (1999). Juche: A Christian Study of North Korea's State Religion. Living Sacrifice Book Company. p. 133. ISBN 978-0-88264-329-8.

[Editorial_Committee_for_Il-sung-7] Editorial Committee for the Short Biography of Kim Il Sung; Chʻulpʻansa, Oegungmun (1973). Kim Il Sung: short biography. Foreign Languages Publishing House. p. 1.

[8] Delegate, Official USA (20 August 2012). "Wreaths Laid before Grave of Kim Po Hyon". KFAUSA.

[9] "金辅铉大学". Naenara. Archived from the original on 15 March 2007.

[10] 朝鲜纪念金辅铉先生诞辰142周年. 朝鲜《劳动新闻》（中文）[引用日期2013-10-02]

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Kim Pohyŏn
Kim Pohyŏn in 1945
Born	(1871-10-03)3 October 1871 Mangyongdae, Joseon
Died	2 September 1955(1955-09-02) (aged 83) Pyongyang, North Korea
Burial place	Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery
Nationality	Korean
Spouse	Yi Poik
Children	Kim Hyong-jik Kim Hyŏngnok Kim Hyong-gwon Kim Gu-il Kim Hyong-sil Kim Hyong-bok
Parents	Kim Ŭngu (father) Lady Lee (North Korea) (mother)
Relatives	Kim family