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Lee (Korean name)
Encyclopedia
Korean name
A Korean name consists of a family name followed by a given name, as used by the Korean people in both North Korea and South Korea. In the Korean language, 'ireum' or 'seong-myeong' usually refers to the family name and given name together...
. The proper pronunciation in South Korea is like the English letter "E", although in North Korea the name is still written as "리" and pronounced "Lee". Many times South Koreans will knowingly introduce themselves as "Lee" to foreigners even though this is not the proper pronunciation of their name. The more traditional spelling and therefore pronunciation of the name is the North Korean "리" (Lee). 이 derived from the Chinese hanzi character Lee (李) (the Korean Hanja
Hanja
Hanja is the Korean name for the Chinese characters hanzi. More specifically, it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated into the Korean language with Korean pronunciation...
character is written the same way) 李 is the second most common family name (after Kim
Kim (Korean name)
Kim, sometimes spelled Gim, is the most common family name in Korea. The name is common in both modern-day North Korea and South Korea. The hanja used for the name means "gold," and although the character is usually pronounced 금 geum, it is pronounced 김 gim when used for the family name and...
) in Korea, with 이 derived from 異 or 伊 being relatively rare. The name is sometimes also transliterated as Yi (more commonly used in modern times when transliterating a given, rather than family, name) or Ri (North Korean), and was previously transliterated as Rhie or Rhee (Syngman Rhee
Syngman Rhee
Syngman Rhee or Yi Seungman was the first president of South Korea. His presidency, from August 1948 to April 1960, remains controversial, affected by Cold War tensions on the Korean peninsula and elsewhere. Rhee was regarded as an anti-Communist and a strongman, and he led South Korea through the...
is an example) for the pronunciation of r and l in the Korean language
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
are pronounced as an "r" at the start of a word. The pronunciation of 李 as 리 is still common in North Korea.
The hanja
Hanja
Hanja is the Korean name for the Chinese characters hanzi. More specifically, it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated into the Korean language with Korean pronunciation...
李 literally means "plum
Plum
A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera in the shoots having a terminal bud and solitary side buds , the flowers in groups of one to five together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one...
". This character, as used in Korea, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, is the most common surname in the world.
Distribution
이 is the surname of approximately 15% of ethnic Koreans. This translates to 6,796,227 people in South Korea (2000), and millions more in North Korea (including 리) and among Korean emigrants and their descendants worldwide.Clans
As with all Korean family names, the holders of the Lee surname are divided into different patrilineal clans, or lineages, known in Korean as bon-gwanBon-gwan
Bon-gwan is the concept of clan in Korea, which is used to distinguish clans that happen to share a same family name . Since Korea has been traditionally a Buddhist country this clan system is cognate with Gotra in Sanskrit texts and shares most features...
, based on their ancestral seat. Most such clans trace their lineage back to a specific founder. This system was at its height under the yangban
Yangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
aristocracy of the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
, but it remains in use today. There are approximately 241 such clans claimed by South Koreans. Most people with surname Lee in Korea belong to either the Jeonju or Gyeongju clans.
Deoksu clan
The founder of this clan was Yi Dongsu, an official of the GoryeoGoryeo
The Goryeo Dynasty or Koryŏ was a Korean dynasty established in 918 by Emperor Taejo. Korea gets its name from this kingdom which came to be pronounced Korea. It united the Later Three Kingdoms in 936 and ruled most of the Korean peninsula until it was removed by the Joseon dynasty in 1392...
period. This was a prominent yangban
Yangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
clan during the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
, producing figures including the admiral Yi Sun-sin
Yi Sun-sin
Yi Sun-shin was a Korean naval commander, famed for his victories against the Japanese navy during the Imjin war in the Joseon Dynasty, and is well-respected for his exemplary conduct on and off the battlefield not only by Koreans, but by Japanese Admirals as well...
and the philosopher Yi I
Yi I
Yi I was one of the two most prominent Korean Confucian scholars of the Joseon Dynasty, the other being his older contemporary, Yi Hwang . Yi I is often referred to by his pen name Yulgok...
. The clan seat, Deoksu, corresponds to Deoksu-hyeon
Hyeon
The hyeon were administrative subdivisions of Korea during the Silla, Goryeo, and Joseon periods. They were typically slightly smaller than today's si and gun . They were abolished in the Gabo Reform of 1895.During the Goryeo period, there were about 335 Hyeon; during the Joseon period, 164....
, an old division of what is now Kaep'ung-gun in Kaesong
Kaesong
Kaesŏng is a city in North Hwanghae Province, southern North Korea , a former Directly Governed City, and the capital of Korea during the Koryo Dynasty. The city is near Kaesŏng Industrial Region and it contains the remains of the Manwoldae palace. It was formally named Songdo while it was the...
city, North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
.
Jinseong clan
The founder of this clan is Yi Seok. Yi HwangYi Hwang
Yi Hwang is one of the two most prominent Korean Confucian scholars of the Joseon Dynasty, the other being his younger contemporary Yi I . A key figure of the Neo-Confucian literati, he established the Yeongnam School and set up the Dosan Seowon, a private Confucian academy. Yi Hwang is often...
, a notable scholar and politician in Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
, belongs to this clan.
Gyeongju clan
The founder of this clan was Alpyeong, one of the original village headmen of SillaSilla
Silla was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the longest sustained dynasties in...
, who chose Bak Hyeokgeose as the first king. According to the Samguk Sagi
Samguk Sagi
Samguk Sagi is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. The Samguk Sagi is written in Classical Chinese and its compilation was ordered by Goryeo's King Injong Samguk Sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms) is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of...
, the Yi name was officially bestowed on the family by King Yuri
Yuri of Silla
Yuri of Silla was the third king of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He is commonly called Yuri Isageum.- Name :As a descendent of Silla's founder Hyeokgeose, his surname was Park....
around 9
9
Year 9 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sabinus and Camerinus...
CE. Prominent members include the Joseon-era scholar Yi Deok-hyung (이덕형), who was "Han-eum" (한음) of "Oh-seong and Han-eum" (오성과 한음) fame.
In present days, Lee Byung-chull, the founder of Samsung Group
Samsung Group
The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
and the former Samsung CEO, Lee Kun-hee
Lee Kun-hee
Lee Kun-hee is Chairman of Samsung Electronics. He resigned on April 21, 2008 owing to Samsung Slush funds scandal, but returned on March 24, 2010. Lee has a degree in economics from Waseda University in Tokyo and attended an MBA course at George Washington University in the United States in 1966...
, and Lee Myung-bak
Lee Myung-bak
Lee Myung-bak is the President of South Korea. Prior to his presidency, he was the CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction and the mayor of Seoul. He is married to Kim Yoon-ok and has three daughters and one son. His older brother is Lee Sang-deuk, a South Korean politician. He attends the...
, current president of South Korea are notable figures from the Gyeongju Lee clan. It is the most populous Lee clan after the Jeonju Lee clan.
Jeonju clan
This is the most populous Lee clan. The founder of this clan was Yi Han, a native of BaekjeBaekje
Baekje or Paekche was a kingdom located in southwest Korea. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla....
who later married a Silla princess and became a high official of Silla. His 22nd-generation descendant, Taejo of Joseon
Taejo of Joseon
Taejo of Joseon , born Yi Seong-gye, whose changed name is Yi Dan, was the founder and the first king of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea, and the main figure in overthrowing the Goryeo Dynasty...
, went on to found the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
. The Jeonju Yi family ruled Joseon for 518 years between 1392 and 1910.
The current pretender to the Korean throne is Her Imperial Highness, Empress Haewon of Joseon
Haewon, Princess of Korea
Princess Yi Haewŏn , a descendant of the Yi Dynasty is a pretender to the throne of Korea. She is a second daughter of Prince Imperial Ui of Korea, a fifth son of Emperor Gojong of Korea and his concubine, Lady Sudeokdang...
. Members of the different branches of Jeonju Yi family dominated Korean history right up until the formation of the current Republic of Korea. There are many families that claim membership in the Jeonju Yi clan.
Danyang clan
The founder of this clan was Jeong Dojeon, who was the first Prime Minister of JoseonJoseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
and had close relations to King Yi Seonggye. He bestowed upon him the right to start his clan, a right only a yangban
Yangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
could ask, thus Jeong Dojeon created a new yangban clan. The clan's ancestral seat is Danyang
Danyang
Danyang is a county-level city administered by Zhenjiang in Jiangsu Province. It is famous for its spectacles industry and it has the Spectscles City.-Economy:...
.