A ''jangseung'' or village guardian is a

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic of ...

totem pole Totem poles ( hai, gyáaʼaang) are monumental carvings found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. They are a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually ...

usually made of wood. Jangseungs were traditionally placed at the edges of villages to mark village boundaries and frighten away

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, anime, ...

s. They were also worshipped as village

tutelary deities A tutelary () (also tutelar) is a deity or a spirit who is a guardian, patron, or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture, or occupation. The etymology of "tutelary" expresses the concept of safety an ...

. In the southern regions of

Jeolla Jeolla Province (, ) was one of the historical Eight Provinces of Korea during the Kingdom of Joseon in today Southwestern Korea. It consisted of the modern South Korean provinces of North Jeolla, South Jeolla and Gwangju Metropolitan City as w ...

Chungcheong Chungcheong (''Chungcheong-do''; ) was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. Chungcheong was located in the southwest of Korea. The provincial capital was located at Gongju, which had been the capital of the kingdom ...

, and

Gyeongsang Gyeongsang ( ko, 경상도, ''Gyeongsang-do''; ) was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Gyeongsang was located in the southeast of Korea. The provincial capital was Daegu. The region was the birthplace of the Kingdo ...

, jangseungs are also referred to as ''beopsu'' or ''beoksu'', a variation of ''boksa'' (복사/卜師), meaning a male

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiri ...

. In the Jeolla region, jangseungs are often made of stone bearing some resemblance to the

dolhareubang ''Dol hareubangs'', also called ''tol harubangs'', ''hareubangs'', or ''harubangs'', are large rock statues found on Jeju Island off the southern tip of South Korea. They are considered to be gods offering both protection and fertility and were ...

s of Jeju Island. Village devil posts

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

, 18th century

Joseon Dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and r ...

King

Jeongjo Jeongjo of Joseon (28 October 1752 – 18 August 1800), personal name Yi San (Korean: 이산; Hanja: 李祘), sometimes called Jeongjo the Great (Korean: 정조대왕; Hanja: 正祖大王), was the 22nd monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. ...

ordered jangseungs erected in the area near Sangdo to ward off evil spirits when he made a royal procession to

Suwon Suwon (, ) is the capital and largest city of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea's most populous province which surrounds Seoul, the national capital. Suwon lies about south of Seoul. It is traditionally known as "The City of Filial Piety". With a populati ...

, where his father's tomb was located. Since then, the district has been called Jangseungbaegi and has given its name to the Jangseungbaegi Station on the

Seoul Metropolitan Subway The Seoul Metropolitan Subway is a metropolitan railway system consisting of 23 rapid transit, light metro, commuter rail and people mover lines located in northwest South Korea. The system serves most of the Seoul Metropolitan Area including ...

's Line 7. Jangseungs are usually adorned with inscriptions describing the personae of the carved figures along the front of the poles. "Male" jangseungs usually bear inscriptions in

Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The let ...

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...

reading "Great General of

All Under Heaven ''Tianxia'' (), literally meaning "(all) under Heaven", is a Chinese term for a historical Chinese cultural concept that denoted either the entire geographical world or the metaphysical realm of mortals, and later became associated with polit ...

," or ''Cheonha-daejanggun'' (Hangul: 천하대장군, Hanja: 天下大將軍) and are decorated with headpieces resembling those worn by Korean aristocrats or scholars. "Female" jangseungs, on the other hand, wear less elaborate headpieces and usually bear inscriptions reading "Female General of the Underworld," or ''Jiha-yeojanggun'' (Hangul: 지하여장군, Hanja: 地下女將軍) or "Great General of the Underworld," or ''Jiha-daejanggun'' (Hangul: 지하대장군, Hanja: 地下大將軍).

Place

Depending on the location or affiliation, jangseung can be divided into village guardian, temple guardian, and public guardian. The village guardian is the god of dongje, and has the functions of village guardian, mural, expelling the harmful ghosts, fire prevention, and gathering happiness for the village. The temple guardian post has the function of protecting the temple from the invisible evil spirits. The temple guardian is the boundary mark of the temple. The public guardian is a milestone and a street god to protect the safety of the gate, barracks, and roads and sea roads.

Gallery

Image:Seoul-folk.museum-totem.pole-01.jpg Image:Korea-Andong-Hahoe Folk Village-21.jpg, Jangseung in

Hahoe Folk Village The Hahoe Folk Village (Korean: 안동하회마을) is a traditional village from the Joseon Dynasty, located in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea. The 'Ha' is short for river and 'hoe' means to 'turn around, return, come back. The village i ...

Image:Korean culture-Jangseung-01.jpg Image:jangseunginpaju.jpg Image:Korea-Andong-Jangseung_and_sotdae_near_Ongcheonri.jpg

References

External links

Jangseung (Totem Poles) - An Object of Worship"Totem poles: Endangered folk icons from the past"
from ''Korea Now''. Religion in Korea Korean culture Liminal deities Outdoor sculptures Korean mythology Totem poles Korean folk religion {{Korea-reli-stub

Place

Gallery

See also

References

External links