''Galmunwang'' ({{Korean, hangul=갈문왕, hanja=葛文王) was a title used in the early period of the Korean kingdom of

Silla Silla (; Old Korean: wikt:徐羅伐#Old Korean, 徐羅伐, Yale romanization of Korean, Yale: Syerapel, Revised Romanization of Korean, RR: ''Seorabeol''; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) was a Korean kingdom that existed between ...

. Its precise meaning and function are not known. From Korean sources, namely the ''

Samguk sagi ''Samguk sagi'' () is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla. Completed in 1145, it is well-known in Korea as the oldest surviving chronicle of Korean history. The ''Samguk sagi'' is written in Classical ...

'', it would appear that the title of ''Galmunwang'' was granted to very high-ranking personages in early Silla and was equivalent to the king but without right of succession. It seems to have been granted to the chiefs of lineages of the clans of the reigning king, queen, and royal mother. As Lee Kibaik pointed out, the granting of the title of ''Galmunwang'' reflected the close relationship between the monarch and the other high noble families in early Silla.Lee Kibaik, ''Silla jeongchi sahoesa yeonggu'' tudies in Silla Socio–Political History Seoul: Iljogak (2002),p. 311. The granting of the title ''Galmunwang'' was discontinued during the middle period of Silla following the accession of

King Muyeol King Taejong Muyeol (603–661), born Kim Ch'un-ch'u, was the 29th ruler of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. He is credited for leading the unification of Korea's Three Kingdoms. Background King Taejong Muyeol was born with the "sac ...

, reflecting the augmentation of royal authority at the expense of that of the nobility following Silla unification of the peninsula. During the late period of Silla, however, something akin to the ''Galmunwang'' was reinstituted.

References

Culture of Silla Silla royalty