page_title: Society in the Joseon Dynasty
section_title: Clans, family and marriage
hierarchical_section_title: Society in the Joseon Dynasty / Clans, family and marriage
caption_attribution_description: 조선 시대의 민화 중 하나인 감모여제도 (感慕如在圖), 혹은 사당도 (祠堂圖), 72 cm x 108.3 cm
context_page_description: Society in the Joseon Dynasty was built upon Neo-Confucianist ideals, namely the three fundamental principles and five moral disciplines. There were four classes, the yangban nobility, the "middle class" chungin, sangmin, or the commoners and the cheonmin, the outcasts at the very bottom. Society was ruled by the yangban, who constituted 10% of the population and had several privileges. Slaves were of the lowest standing.
  During this period clan structure became stricter and bloodline was of utmost importance. Family life was regulated by law, strictly enforcing Confucian rituals. Compared to Goryeo practices before, marriage rituals were restructured and aggravated. Noblemen could have only one wife and several concubines but their children born from commoner or slave concubines were considered illegitimate and denied any yangban rights.
  The roles and rights of women were reduced compared to previous eras in Korean history. Yangban women were completely hidden from the outer world and every woman had to conform to Confucian ideals of purity, obedience, chastity and faithfulness.
context_section_description: Korea has a clan system, every Korean belongs to a bongwan (본관) that can trace ancestry back to the founding father of the clan. Different clans may share certain surnames, differentiated by the founding city or town of the clan. Clan structure had existed well before the founding of Joseon but the spread of Confucianism made its rules stricter, dogmatized in state laws.
  Clans are based upon paternal blood lineage, named jok (족; 族), pa (파; 派) or munjung (문중; 門中). The history of the clan, with birth, marriage and death details of its members are registered in the jokbo (족보; 族譜) even today. This kind of registry making became regular in the 15th century. Traitors and sentenced criminals were expelled from the clan and from the lineage. Outsiders could not join a lineage.
  Family life was regulated by the Gyeongguk daejeon (경국대전; 經國大典), a code of law compiled in the 15th century. It regulated the jesa, the ancestor rituals, emphasizing that ancestors are important members of a lineage. Jesa is conducted by the oldest male family member of the deceased, the other family members line up behind him according to their ranks in the family. Rituals have strict rules and pre-set orders, with the type of sacrificial food and its placement order defined, as well. These rituals became common and solidified during the Joseon era.
   
  Just like rituals, marriage also had stern rules to follow. While in Goryeo marriage within members of the same clan was permitted, Joseon took exogamy very seriously and forbade such marriages, even if a clan had more than a million members. Michael Seth, professor of history at the James Madison University, claims that the reason for this was the adaptation of the gwageo (과거), the government examination system of China, as well as the integration of Confucianism into everyday life, making proving one's lineage of utmost importance.
  Marriage was conducted at a young age, in 1471 the lowest possible age was 15 for boys and 14 for girls. Men usually got married before the age of 30, women had to be below 20. Commoners usually married at an earlier age than yangban class children. Significant age difference between husband and wife was daily occurrence. Marriage and married life rituals were regulated by Zhu Xi's Zhuzi Jiali (Chinese: 朱子家禮, Korean: 주자가례, Juja garye), but customs were modified according to Korean traditions. For example, according to Confucian customs, wedding ceremonies were held at the house of the groom's father, however, in Korea the exact opposite had been the custom. As a compromise, a part of the ceremony was to be held at the bride's home, after which they would proceed to the groom's home. in Goryeo times the newlyweds usually lived at the bride's home for years, but by adapting Confucianism this had to change. The bride had to move to her new family. In practice there were occasions when the couple chose to live where the parents had a bigger need of looking after or where land was more arable.
  Koreans also adapted another Chinese custom, the minmyeoneuri (민며느리), or child brides, when 6- and 7-year-old girls were given off to marriage. They usually spent the years leading up to the actual wedding ceremony at their mothers-in-law's, where they worked as maids. This custom was not widespread and mainly observed by poor families, who could not afford to have a wedding otherwise. Because of such poor conditions, it could happen that the age difference between the bride and the groom was more than 30 years.
  The most important possession for a Korean family was the firstborn son, or jangja (장자). It had always been the case, but Confucianism strengthened the idea even further. It was so important that no man could die without having a male heir. If they were unable to produce one, they had to adopt (from the same lineage). Most of the wealth and land of the family was inherited by the firstborn son, and other sons also inherited some part of it; girls were denied any such rights. Men were allowed to have more than one wife and several concubines.
caption: Tables set for jesa ceremonies depicted in an early Joseon painting
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