族譜解讀Archival Research Guide

How to Read a Jokbo: The Interactive Decryption Guide

Traditional Korean genealogies (족보 / 族譜) are among the most meticulous demographic records in world history. Written in formulaic Classical Chinese shorthand, this interactive guide equips modern descendants to unlock their ancestral volumes line by line.

Interactive Woodblock Simulator

Anatomy of an Ancestral Record (族譜單子)

Tap or click any line below from this authentic entry (Kim Sang-heon, 23rd Gen Shin Andong Kim) to decrypt its formulaic Classical Chinese shorthand.

木板刻本

ANDONG KIM DAEDONGBO • VOL. 1第 23 世 • 淸陰公派

Traditional Joseon movable woodblock type format (목활자본)

DECRYPTION: LINE 1Standard head line declaring the ancestor's four formal naming designations.

諱尙憲字叔度號淸陰諡文正

Hangul reading: 휘 상헌 자 숙도 호 청음 시 문정

Full English Translation

“Formal given name: Sang-heon; Courtesy name: Suk-do; Art name: Cheong-eum; Posthumous royal title: Mun-jeong.”

Grammatical Syntax Breakdown

諱 (Hwi)Official personal name (tabooed in life)

字 (Ja)Courtesy name used by colleagues

號 (Ho)Literary studio sobriquet

諡 (Si)Royal posthumous title bestowed by King

Searchable Shorthand Glossary

Jokbo Character & Symbol Dictionary

Search any Classical Chinese abbreviation or term found in Korean family registers to understand its exact ritual and legal definition.

Names & IdentityHwi

諱(휘)

Tabooed Formal Given Name

In traditional Confucian etiquette, a gentleman's official personal name was sacred and could not be spoken aloud during life. In Jokbo genealogies, the character 諱 is prefixed to denote the ancestor's official true name.

Example:諱尙憲 (Hwi Sang-heon)

“Formal given name: Sang-heon.”

Names & IdentityJa

字(자)

Courtesy / Adult Name

Bestowed upon reaching the age of twenty during the capping ceremony (Gwanrye), this courtesy name was used by peers, elders, and colleagues in daily life to avoid directly speaking the tabooed personal name.

Example:字叔度 (Ja Suk-do)

“Courtesy name: Suk-do.”

Names & IdentityHo

號(호)

Art / Studio Pen Name

A literary sobriquet chosen by the scholar or bestowed by teachers/disciples, often inspired by their rural retreat, villa, philosophical temperament, or landscape.

Example:號淸陰 (Ho Cheong-eum)

“Art name: Cheong-eum ('Clear Shade').”

Names & IdentitySiho

諡(시호)

Posthumous Royal Epithet

An honorary two-character title bestowed posthumously by the King through the Ministry of Rites to commend exceptional service to the nation and Confucian virtue.

Example:諡文正 (Siho Mun-jeong)

“Posthumous epithet: Munjeong ('Learned & Upright').”

Names & IdentityGaemyeong

改名(개명)

Name Changed

Indicates that the ancestor changed his given name during his lifetime, followed by the original childhood or previous adult name.

Example:初名昌集改昌集

“Originally named X, later changed to Y.”

Life & MortalitySaeng

生(생)

Date of Birth

Recorded using the Chinese Sexagenary cycle (Ganji / 干支), along with the lunar month, day, and the traditional double-hour birth animal (e.g. 寅時 / Tiger hour).

Example:庚午六月初三日生

“Born on the 3rd day of the 6th lunar month in the Gyeong-o year.”

Life & MortalityJol

卒(졸)

Date of Passing

Denotes the date of the ancestor's death, usually accompanied by the reigning King's year and the ancestor's age at passing.

Example:辛卯十一月二十五日卒

“Passed away on the 25th day of the 11th lunar month in the Sin-myo year.”

Life & MortalityHyangnyeon

享年(향년)

Age Attained at Death

The age of the ancestor at death calculated in traditional Korean counting (counting one year at birth). For ancestors living over 70 or 80, the honorific 壽 (Su) is often used instead.

Example:享年八十三 (Hyangnyeon 83)

“Lived to the age of 83.”

Marriage & MothersBae

配(배)

Spouse / Legal Wife

Indicates the primary legal wife (Cheo / 妻). In Joseon yangban society, the entry details her court aristocratic title, her paternal clan seat (Bon-gwan), and her father's highest court office.

Example:配貞敬夫人坡平尹氏 (Bae Jeonggyeong-buin Papyeong Yun-ssi)

“Spouse: Lady Jeonggyeong of the Papyeong Yun clan.”

Marriage & MothersBon

本(본)

Wife's Clan Seat (Bon-gwan)

Identifies the geographic ancestral seat of the wife's paternal lineage, followed by the father's name and court rank.

Example:本豊山父判書萬均

“Clan seat: Poongsan. Her father was Minister (Panseo) Man-gyun.”

Marriage & MothersGi

忌(기)

Memorial Death Day (Gijesa)

The specific lunar calendar day on which ancestral memorial rites (Gijesa) must be observed annually by descendants.

Example:忌三月十六日

“Memorial rites day: 16th day of the 3rd lunar month.”

Offices & ExaminationsDeungkwa

登科(등과)

Passed Higher Civil Exam (Mungwa)

The pinnacle of Joseon Confucian honor: passing the triennial or special state civil examinations, which qualified the scholar for ministerial and magistrate offices.

Example:宣祖庚寅增廣文科

“Passed the Special (Jeunggwang) Civil Examination in the year of Gyeong-in under King Seonjo.”

Offices & ExaminationsSama

司馬(사마)

Passed Licentiate Exam

Passing the preliminary literary examinations, earning the prestigious scholastic title of Saengwon (Classics Licentiate) or Jinsa (Literary Licentiate).

Example:司馬兩試 (Sama Yangsi)

“Passed both the Saengwon and Jinsa preliminary state examinations.”

Offices & ExaminationsJeung

贈(증)

Posthumously Bestowed Office

A royal promotion conferred posthumously by the King, either to reward lifetime merit or honoring the virtuous parents and grandparents of high-ranking prime ministers.

Example:贈領議政 (Jeung Yeonguijeong)

“Posthumously conferred the office of Chief State Councilor.”

Offices & ExaminationsEum / Eumsa

蔭 / 蔭仕(음 / 음사)

Appointed via Hereditary Merit

Appointed to official government post without sitting for the civil exams, based on the meritorious state sacrifices of an ancestor (Gaeguk Gongsin, Imjin War hero, etc.).

Example:以門蔭拜縣監

“Appointed as County Magistrate (Hyeongam) through ancestral hereditary merit.”

Burials & GeomancyMyo

墓(묘)

Grave Location

Details the province, mountain, village, and landmark where the ancestor's burial mound is situated.

Example:墓楊州先山後麓

“Tomb located at the rear foothills of the ancestral mountain in Yangju.”

Burials & GeomancyJwahyang

坐向(좌향)

Geomantic Compass Bearing (Feng Shui)

Based on the traditional 24-point Chinese compass: 'Jwa' (坐) is the direction against which the head of the grave rests; 'Hyang' (向) is the direction the grave looks toward across the valley.

Example:酉坐卯向 (Yu-jwa Myo-hyang)

“Resting against the West (Rooster point), facing directly East (Rabbit point).”

Burials & GeomancySsangbun

雙墳(쌍분)

Twin Burial Mounds

Two distinct grass burial mounds placed side-by-side on the same mountain terrace, typically for the husband on the left and the wife on the right.

Example:夫人坡平尹氏雙墳

“Interred in twin side-by-side burial mounds with Lady Papyeong Yun.”

Burials & GeomancyHapjeom / Hapjo

合窆 / 合兆(합폄 / 합조)

Joint Single Burial Mound

Husband and wife interred together within a single shared earth burial mound.

Example:合窆乾坐

“Interred together in a single mound facing Northwest.”

Succession & AdoptionChulgye

出系(출계)

Adopted Out to Another Branch

Because Confucian ritual required an unbroken male line to perform ancestral sacrifices (Jesa), a family with multiple sons would send one son to be formally adopted into an uncle's or cousin's branch that lacked an heir.

Example:出系季父尙容后

“Adopted out into the household of his third paternal uncle, Sang-yong, as his legal heir.”

Succession & AdoptionGyeja / Yangja

系子 / 養子(계자 / 양자)

Adopted Successor Son

Indicates a son brought in from within the same clan branch (usually a nephew or cousin's son) to inherit the household rites and title.

Example:系子光炫生父尙寬

“Adopted successor Gwang-hyeon; biological father was Sang-gwan.”

Succession & AdoptionMuhu

無後(무후)

No Male Heirs

Indicates that this particular individual passed away without surviving male descendants to continue his direct sub-branch.

Example:無後 (Muhu)

“No male descendants.”

Genealogical Structure & Method

The Architectural Anatomy of a Traditional Jokbo

When you open a printed Jokbo—whether a massive multi-volume Daedongbo (대동보 / 大同譜) encompassing all clan branches, or a targeted Pabo (파보 / 派譜) for a specific regional lineage—the book follows an unbending editorial architecture developed over five centuries of Joseon printing.

1. The Preface (Seomun / 序文) and Clan Rules (Gahun / 家訓)

The first volume (Gwon 1 / 卷之一) never opens with family trees. It begins with calligraphic prefaces written by preeminent state scholars, detailing the historical circumstances that prompted this edition's revision (called Subo / 脩譜), followed by clan regulations (*Hyangyak*), ancestral tomb maps (*San-do* / 山圖), and ancestral portraits.

2. The Generational Grid (Gye-bo / 系譜)

Inside the genealogical charts, each printed page is divided into horizontal generational tiers called Dan (段). Typically, a single page displays five or six horizontal tiers:

Top Tier: Great-Great-Grandfather's generation (e.g. 21st Generation).
Middle Tiers: Successive generations connected by vertical filial descent lines (*Gye-seon* / 繼線).
Bottom Tier: Younger generations or newly recorded newborns.

3. How to Find Your Family in 3 Steps

Step 1 — Confirm your Bon-gwan & Branch: Identify whether your family belongs to the Shin (New) or Gu (Old) clan, and identify your branch founder (*Pajo* / 派祖), such as Cheong-eum-pa or Chungmu-gong-pa.
Step 2 — Determine Your Generation Number: Use our Hangyeol Generational Calculator to match your naming character to your generation level (e.g. 26th or 28th generation).
Step 3 — Match Ancestral Taboo Names (Hwi): Look for the tabooed personal names (諱) of your deceased father or grandfather under that specific generational tier.

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