The Andong Kim Clan (안동 김씨)
From the decisive Battle of Gochang in 930 CE through centuries of Joseon scholarship, military defense, and statecraft, the Andong Kim family stands among the most influential lineages in the history of Korea.
Not All “Kims” Are the Same: The History of Korean Surnames, Bon-gwan, and the Andong Kim
Why do over 10 million people in Korea share the surname Kim? Learn the principle of Bon-gwan (ancestral seat), the golden box origin myths of Silla and Gaya, how other major Kim clans (Gimhae, Gyeongju, Gwangsan) compare, and how the Andong Kim rose to become Korea's foremost scholarly and political aristocracy.
The Two Distinct Lineages: Gu (Old) vs. Shin (New)
In Korean historical and genealogical scholarship, the surname and ancestral seat of Andong Kim (안동 김씨) encompasses two completely distinct clans with distinct progenitors, generational registers, and historical achievements.
Shin (New) Andong Kim
新 安東 金氏Founding Progenitor: Kim Seon-pyeong (김선평 / 金宣平), one of the Three Founding Lords (Samtaesa) of Andong.
Origin Moment: Heroic defense and victory at the Battle of Gochang aiding King Taejo Wang Geon of Goryeo.
Key Joseon Lineages: Cheong-eum-pa (Kim Sang-heon), Seonwon-pa (Kim Sang-yong), Pung-eun-pa (Kim Jo-sun).
Historical Impact: 12 Chief State Councilors (Yeonguijeong), 3 Queen Consorts, and prominent statesmen of late Joseon.
Gu (Old) Andong Kim
舊 安東 金氏Founding Progenitor: Kim Suk-seung (김숙승 / 金叔承), grandson of King Gyeongsun, the final monarch of Unified Silla.
Royal Heritage: Direct royal Silla lineage transitioning into Goryeo military command.
Renowned Figures: General Kim Si-min (Hero of the First Siege of Jinju, 1592), Early Joseon minister Kim Jil.
Historical Impact: Renowned military generals, righteous defense commanders, and scholar-officials.
Pillars of Andong Kim Heritage
Confucian Moral Integrity
Exemplified by Kim Sang-heon during the 1636 Manchu Invasion, the clan became synonymous with uncompromising moral rectitude (Ui) and scholarly conviction.
National Defense Valor
From General Kim Si-min at Jinju to Kim Sang-yong at Ganghwa Island, the clan repeatedly stood at the forefront of national survival during foreign incursions.
Statecraft & Reform
Shaping Joseon governance through prime ministerships and later championing Korea's earliest modern constitutional reforms through figures like Kim Ok-gyun.
Figures of the Andong Kim Clan
Kim Seon-pyeong
김선평 / 金宣平
Samtaesa (Grand Chancellor / Founding Lord of Andong)
Founding progenitor of the Shin Andong Kim clan and key architect of Goryeo's unification victory at Gochang.
Kim Sang-heon
김상헌 / 金尙憲
Left State Councilor (좌의정 / Jwauijeong)
Icon of Korean Neo-Confucian moral rectitude and leadership during the 1636 Manchu Invasion.
Kim Bang-gyeong
김방경 / 金方慶
첨의중찬 (Cheomui Jungchan / Supreme Chancellor & General)
Military patriarch of the Gu (Old) Andong Kim clan whose loyalty and tactical mastery preserved Goryeo dynastic autonomy under Kublai Khan.
Kim Si-min
김시민 / 金時敏
Magistrate of Jinju / Posthumous Chief State Councilor (영의정)
Commander of the First Siege of Jinju, achieving one of the greatest military victories of the Imjin War.
Kim Sa-hyeong
김사형 / 金士衡
좌의정 (Left State Councilor)
Early Joseon statesman and intellectual leader whose leadership produced one of the most important cartographical achievements in world history.
Kim Sang-yong
김상용 / 金尙容
Right State Councilor (우의정 / Uuijeong)
Right State Councilor who sacrificed his life in Ganghwa Island to protect national and ancestral honor in 1637.
Kim Jo-sun
김조순 / 金祖淳
영안부원군 (Yeongan Buwongun / Internal Prince), 대제학 (Director of Kyujanggak)
Eminent Neo-Confucian scholar, bibliophile, and statesman who bridged the intellectual Renaissance of King Jeongjo with 19th-century royal governance.
Kim Ok-gyun
김옥균 / 金玉均
Vice Minister / Leader of the Enlightenment Party (Gaehwapa)
Visionary reformer who led the Gapsin Coup of 1884 to establish modern sovereignty and social reform in Joseon.
Kim Jwa-jin
김좌진 / 金佐鎭
총사령관 (Supreme Commander, Northern Military Administration Army)
Revered as the 'Hero of Cheongsanri', representing the pinnacle of Korean armed military resistance against imperial Japanese colonial aggression.
Kim Gu
김구 / 金九
주석 (President / Premier of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea)
The moral conscience and founding father of modern democratic Korean statehood, celebrated for his lifelong devotion to total national sovereignty and cultural excellence.
Kim Su-hang
김수항 / 金壽恒
영의정 (Chief State Councilor / Prime Minister)
One of the preeminent scholar-statesmen of 17th-century Joseon whose moral stoicism and statecraft anchored the Noron intellectual tradition.
Kim Chang-jip
김창집 / 金昌集
영의정 (Chief State Councilor)
Leader of the Noron state leadership and patriarch of the 18th-century Jangdong Kim ascendancy.
Kim Su-on
김수온 / 金守溫
대제학 (Director of Royal Decrees / Yemun-gwan Daejehak)
A master of early Joseon letters who harmonized Confucian governance with linguistic scholarship, helping establish the practical foundation of Hangul literature.