# Kim Pohyŏn

Kim Pohyŏn (Korean: 김보현; Hanja: 金輔鉉; 3 October 1871 – 2 September 1955) was a farmer from South Pyongan Province. He was the paternal grandfather of the founder of North Korea, Kim Il Sung, the great-grandfather of Kim Jong Il, and great-great-grandfather of the current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un.
He is buried in the Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery in North Korea.

## Biography

Kim Pohyŏn was born on 3 October 1871 as the only son to Mangyongdae farmer Kim Ŭngu (17 June 1848 – 4 October 1878). Kim Ŭngu died at the age of thirty, one day after Kim Pohyŏn's seventh birthday. Without his father, Kim went to live with his uncle.
In his twenties, Pohyŏn married a girl named Lee Bo-ik, who was five years younger than Kim. Together, they had three sons and three daughters, the most well known of the offspring being Kim Hyong-jik. To feed his six offspring, Kim was said to have woken up at early dawn and went around the village to collect manure, while at night, he was said to twist straw ropes, make straw sandals and plait straw mats by lamplight.
Kim Il Sung claimed his ancestors, including his grandfather Kim Pohyŏn and great-grandfather Kim Ŭngu, were involved in the General Sherman incident, despite the fact that Kim Pohyŏn was not born until five years later. The account, undisputed in North Korea, has been questioned by independent scholars abroad. From September 16, 1948, to October 1, 1949, he served as the Deputy Head of the High Special Advisor to the Agricultural Department of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. After officially retiring from his position on October 1, 1949, he died at the age of 83 in 1955.

## Legacy

Kim Pohyŏn and Yi Poik were likened as "patriots" by the Editorial Committee for the Short Biography of Kim Il Sung.
A statue in his honor stands at the Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery.
In 1947, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea established an agricultural college named Kim Bo-hyun University [zh] in his honor.
On 19 August 2013, wreaths were sent by various North Korean organizations to the tombs of Kim Pohyŏn and Lee Bo-ik.

## Family

* Father: Kim Ŭngu (김응우; 17 June 1848 – 4 October 1878)
** Grandfather: Kim Songnyŏng (김송령; 1 December 1810 – 12 March 1899)
** Grandmother: Na Hyŏnjik (나현직; 4 March 1811 – 23 January 1897)
* Mother: Lady Yi (이씨)
* Wife: Lee Bo-ik (이보익; 31 May 1876 – 18 October 1958)
* Son: Kim Hyong-jik (김형직; 10 July 1894 – 5 June 1926)
* Son: Kim Hyŏngnok (김형록)
* Son: Kim Hyong-gwon (김형권; 4 November 1905 – 12 January 1936)
* Daughter: Kim Kuil (김구일)
* Daughter: Kim Hyŏngsil (김형실)
* Daughter: Kim Hyŏngpok (김형복)
vteSelect family tree of North Korea's ruling Kim family :
Kim Song-ryeong 1810–1899
Kim Ung-u 1848–1878
Kim Bo-hyon 1871–1955
Kim Hyong-jik 1894–1926Kang Pan-sok 1892–1932
Kim Jong-suk 1917–1949 Kim Il Sung 1912–1994Kim Song-ae 1924–2014Kim Yong-ju 1920–2021
Kim Young-sook 1947–Song Hye-rim 1937–2002 Kim Jong Il 1941?–2011Ko Yong-hui 1952–2004Kim Ok 1964–Kim Kyong-hui 1946–Jang Song-thaek 1946–2013?Kim Pyong Il 1954–
Kim Sol-song 1974–Kim Jong-nam 1971–2017Kim Jong-chul 1981– Kim Jong Un 1983?–Ri Sol-ju c. 1986–Kim Yo Jong 1987–
Kim Han-sol 1995–Kim Ju Ae c. 2012– :
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 2012-02-04. 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. :