Gisaeng
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| Korean spelling | |
|---|---|
| Korean alphabet : | 기생 |
| Hanja : | 妓 生 |
| Revised Romanization : | Gisaeng |
| McCune-Reischauer : | Kisaeng |
Gisaeng [kisɛŋ] (also Kisaeng ) were mostly very young, unfree entertainers in Korea who were also available for love services.
Their task was to create a good atmosphere in the palace or at the drinking parties of the upper class by means of music, dance and the recitation of poems. This distinctive form of Gisaeng service arose during the Joseon Dynasty , although from the 11th century - during the Goryeo Dynasty - women appeared at the royal court or in high society with musical performances. The Gisaeng creature has an eventful cultural history behind it and is now as good as extinct in Korea.
Word meaning
The word gi (기, 妓[ki] ) was apparently already common in the Goryeo dynasty for women who performed music and dance at the royal festival. The word got the suffix saeng later in the Joseon Dynasty , which means something like 'life'. However, the use of the word gi is complex (see below "Origin of the Gisaeng"). Gisaeng was sometimes also called Ginyeo ( 기녀 [kiɲje] ) without attaching any special meaning to the word.
Career
Most Gisaeng's careers were very short, peaking at the age of 16 or 17; at the age of 22, the majority of the Gisaengs had to give up their jobs. Very few Gisaengs were able to continue their work for long. Possibly this was also the reason why training institutes accepted girls to be trained from the age of eight.
All Gisaengs - even those who did not work as prostitutes or entertainers - were required by law to retire at the age of 50.
Origin of the Gisaeng
When exactly Gisaeng emerged as a female professional group in Korea is unknown. As indicated above, Gisaeng was already working in the Goryeo period. In this respect, women serving society in one way or another have been clearly distinguished. In the Goryeo dynasty there were, on the one hand, the official 'entertainment musicians' and, on the other hand, those women who played similar roles in society. These women were called Changgi ( 창기 唱 妓 [cʰaŋgi] literally: 'entertainer in song'). The two groups, in turn, are strictly distinguished from salable women. They are known as Yunyeo ( 유녀 遊 女 [juɲə] literally: ' drifting around'). This division was adopted by the Joseon Dynasty, and the entire Gisaeng being was further dismembered.
The strict separation of the official Gisaeng from the private was possible because there was an authority responsible for Gisaeng in the capital during both the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties. In the Goryeo period the authority was called Gyobang (교방 [kjo.baŋ] literally: 'educational institution'), in the Joseon period Jangakwon (장악원 [caŋakwən] literally: 'music authority'). The distinction slowly became fluid with time, so that Gisaeng became more and more the epitome of the easy girl for everyone. They were given the metaphorical name 'willow on the street', 'flower under the wall' (노류 장화 [norjujaŋhwa] ), which anyone can pick as they walk past. This worn-out image of the Gisaeng is what is left of today's Koreans. Most of what is called Gisaeng in Korea today comes from the time of the Joseon Dynasty. There is sufficient information about the nature of the Gisaeng in the literature and painting from this period. In addition, a dozen names of more or less well-known Gisaengs from this period have come down to us, such as Hwang Jin-i , Nongae and the literarily famous figure Chunhyang . The execution below is therefore limited to the Gisaeng during the Joseon Dynasty.
Meaning of the Gisaeng
The Korean society of the Joseon Dynasty was a class society. Every citizen belonged to a certain class. There were three classes: the upper class Yangban (양반 [jaŋban] ), the middle class Pyeongmin (평민 [pʰjəŋmin] ) and the lower class Cheonmin (천민 [cʰənmin] ). These estates were hereditary. Gisaeng belonged to the Cheonmin. As briefly indicated above, gisaeng are the maids who entertain the male Yangban society. They do it professionally and are trained for it.
Everything to do with Gisaeng was meticulously recorded in the annals of the Joseon Dynasty . The roles that Gisaeng filled in the palace were astonishingly diverse. In addition to their main task of musical entertainment, they were involved in diplomacy, ceremonies, propaganda, the military, dismissal and admission procedures and recruitment from the provinces, the educational situation, indictments, punishments, affairs with officials and their investigation, the status of their children, questions of clothing and much more.
dress
In the Joseon dynasty, the Gisaengs usually wore the traditional Korean costume , although there was a noticeable difference to everyday clothing: Normally, the skirt ( chima ) for women was tied above the chest, but the Gisaengs wore the chima to the waist. It was very padded, usually with several layers, so that the skirt was very wide. It was also worn over the chogori (the typical blouse). In addition, they got several artistic knots tucked into the skirt, often decorated with precious stones. They wore elaborate wigs ( gache ) on their heads . These usually consisted of a very long braid that was artfully tied on the head.
Later in the 19th century, the clothing of the Gisaengs was completely different again than in the Joseon dynasty of the 16th century: the skirts were no longer wide, the gache wigs disappeared and the sleeves were very wide and "stacked" at the end. Instead of huge wigs, the Gisaengs wore traditional headdresses that are still in use today.
Structure of the Gisaeng
There are different types of gisaeng. Gwangi (관기) is the oldest name for Gisaeng. It literally means "official Gisaeng", which means that women who carry out the above-mentioned activity must be officially registered. They also belong to the respective authority, where they also receive the necessary training.
Famous Gisaengs
- Hwang Jin-i
- Chunhyang
- Nongae
- Aengmu
- Gijeok
- Gwonbeon
- Gyobang
- Yi Mae-chang
literature
- 박 종성: 백정 과 기생 (Jong-seong Park: Baekjeong gwa Gisaeng ). Seoul University., 2004
- McCarthy, Kathleen Louise: Kisaeng. In the Koryo Period . Diss. Harvard, 1991.
- 정비석: 미인 별곡 (Jeong Bi-seok: Miinbyeolgok ) 4th edition. Seoul 1991. (Stories about famous Gisaeng)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Life and role of Gisaeng courtesans . The Korea Times. February 4, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
- ↑ Lee Insuk: Convention and Innovation: The Lives and Cultural Legacy of the Kisaeng in Colonial Korea (1910-1945) . (pdf) In: Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies (Ed.): Seoul Journal of Korean Studies . 23, No. 1, August, pp. 71-93. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
- ↑ McCarthy, Kisaeng ; 2.
- ↑ McCarthy, Kisaeng , 22, refers to the historian Kim Bu-sik (김 부식) who wrote " Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms " (삼국 사기, [samguks'agi] ).
- ↑ The Sino-Korean suffix is used to generalize certain groups, such as Hak-saeng (학생 [haksʼɛŋ] ) for "learners", Seon-saeng ( 선생 [sənsʼɛŋ] ) for "teachers".
- ↑ During the Joseon Dynasty, Ginyeo was used as a synonym for Gisaeng. According to statistics, Ginyeo is used 275 times in the Chronicle of the Joseon Dynasty , Gisaeng 962 times: Park Jong-seong, Baekjeong gwa Gisaeng , 238.
- ↑ See McCarthy, Kisaeng , deals specifically with the Gisaeng preform during the Goryeo dynasty.
- ↑ Goryeo sa (고려사, literally: "Goryeo story"), 64.39; see. MacCarthy, 78.
- ↑ Yangban were landowners and officials, Pyeongmin were commoners, mostly farmers, and Cheonmin were commoners, mostly servants.
- ↑ Park Jong-seong: Baekjeong gwa Gisaeng , 240–249 made a list according to the reign of the kings.