Kang Pan Sok

Birth name
Chosŏn'gŭl	강반석
Hancha	康盤石
Revised Romanization	Gang Banseok
McCune–Reischauer	Kang Pansŏk

Kang Pan Sok
Kang Pan Sok
강반석
Born	21 April 1892; Mangyongdae, Joseon
Died	31 July 1932 (aged 40); Jilin, Republic of China
Spouse	Kim Hyong Jik
Children	Kim Il Sung; Kim Chol-ju; Kim Yong-ju;
Parent(s)	Kang Ton-uk [ko] (father, founder of Changdok school)

Kang Pan Sok (Korean: 강반석; MR: Kang Pansŏk; 21 April 1892 – 31 July 1932) was the mother of North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, the paternal grandmother of Kim Jong Il, and a great grandmother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.^[1]

Biography

She came from the village of Chilgol and raised Kim on a small farm in Mangyongdae, both near Pyongyang. She accepted, but rarely participated in her husband's pro-independence activism. After the family fled to Manchuria to avoid arrest, she did not return to Korea. 21 April is a day of memorial for her in North Korea, when a wreath-laying ceremony is held at Chilgol Revolutionary Site.

Legacy

In North Korea, Kang Pan Suk is referred to as the "Mother of Korea" or "Great Mother of Korea". Both titles are shared with Kim Jong Il's mother and Kim Jong Un's grandmother Kim Jong Suk.^[2]^[3]^[4] However, it was Kang Pan Suk who was the first family member of Kim Il Sung to have a cult of personality of her own to supplement that of her son, from the late 1960s onwards. In 1967, Rodong Sinmun praised her as the "mother of all". The same year, the Democratic Women's League initiated a campaign called "Learning from Madame Kang Pan Suk". There is a song by the name of "Mother of Korea" in her honor,^[5] as well as a hagiographic biography, also called The Mother of Korea (1968).^[6]

The Protestant Chilgol Church in Pyongyang is dedicated to the memory of Kang Pan Sok, who was a Presbyterian. Her name meant "rock", having been named for Saint Peter.^[7]

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 4 February 2012. 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

^ "NORTH KOREA THIS WEEK NO. 468". Yonhap News Agency. 4 October 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
^ Armstrong, Charles K. (December 2005). "Familism, Socialism and Political Religion in North Korea". Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions. 6 (3): 390. doi:10.1080/14690760500317743. S2CID 145497407.
^ David-West, Alzo (2011). "Archetypal Themes in North Korean Literature". Jung Journal: Culture & Psyche. 5 (1): 73. doi:10.1525/jung.2011.5.1.65. S2CID 141771402.
^ Ken E. Gause (31 August 2011). North Korea Under Kim Chong-il: Power, Politics, and Prospects for Change. ABC-CLIO. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-313-38175-1.
^ Jae-Cheon Lim (24 March 2015). Leader Symbols and Personality Cult in North Korea: The Leader State. Routledge. pp. 24–25. ISBN 978-1-317-56741-7.
^ Kim, Suk-Yong (2011). "Dressed to Kill: Women's Fashion and Body Politics in North Korean Visual Media (1960s – 1970s)". Positions. 19 (1): 173. doi:10.1215/10679847-2010-028. S2CID 145149501.
^ Evans, Stephen (3 August 2015). "North Korea and Christianity - uneasy bedfellows". BBC. London. Retrieved 3 August 2015.

External links

Chilgol Revolutionary Site picture album Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine at Naenara
Chilgol Revolutionary Site (video) Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine at Naenara

[8] 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.

[9] 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.

[10] 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 4 February 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2013. (Confirms many, but not all, of the birth and death years. See individual articles for more references.)

[11] 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.

[12] 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.

[uncertainty2-13] 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.

[uncertainty1-14] 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.

[uncertainty3-15] Birth year for Kim Ju-ae is not publicly known. She may have been born in either late 2012 or early 2013.

[Yonhap071004-1] "NORTH KOREA THIS WEEK NO. 468". Yonhap News Agency. 4 October 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2020.

[2] Armstrong, Charles K. (December 2005). "Familism, Socialism and Political Religion in North Korea". Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions. 6 (3): 390. doi:10.1080/14690760500317743. S2CID 145497407.

[3] David-West, Alzo (2011). "Archetypal Themes in North Korean Literature". Jung Journal: Culture & Psyche. 5 (1): 73. doi:10.1525/jung.2011.5.1.65. S2CID 141771402.

[Gause2011-4] Ken E. Gause (31 August 2011). North Korea Under Kim Chong-il: Power, Politics, and Prospects for Change. ABC-CLIO. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-313-38175-1.

[Lim2015-5] Jae-Cheon Lim (24 March 2015). Leader Symbols and Personality Cult in North Korea: The Leader State. Routledge. pp. 24–25. ISBN 978-1-317-56741-7.

[6] Kim, Suk-Yong (2011). "Dressed to Kill: Women's Fashion and Body Politics in North Korean Visual Media (1960s – 1970s)". Positions. 19 (1): 173. doi:10.1215/10679847-2010-028. S2CID 145149501.

[7] Evans, Stephen (3 August 2015). "North Korea and Christianity - uneasy bedfellows". BBC. London. Retrieved 3 August 2015.

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Kang Pan Sok

Contents

Biography

Legacy

References

Further reading

External links

Kang Pan Sok
강반석

Born	(1892-04-21)21 April 1892 Mangyongdae, Joseon
Died	31 July 1932(1932-07-31) (aged 40) Jilin, Republic of China
Spouse	Kim Hyong Jik
Children	Kim Il Sung Kim Chol-ju Kim Yong-ju
Parent(s)	Kang Ton-uk [ko] (father, founder of Changdok school)

Birth name
Chosŏn'gŭl	강반석
Hancha	康盤石
Revised Romanization	Gang Banseok
McCune–Reischauer	Kang Pansŏk