Hangul 윤 Revised Romanization Yun | Hanja 尹 McCune–Reischauer Yun | |
Youn(윤) is the eighth most common family name in Korea. The name is sometimes also transliterated as Yun, Yune, or Yoon. The Hanja character 尹 is defined as "eldest" in Korean which is different from the Chinese definition. The use of Hanja for personal names has become less common in Korea.
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The Chinese character 尹 is also used by the following families Yǐn (surname) in China and as Doãn in Vietnam. However, the Korean surname Youn(Yoon) has no relations with the Yin of China and Doãn of Vietnam.
Clans and Notable History
The Papyeong (파평/坡平) Yoon clan, which has its seat in Papyeong-myeon, Paju City, is the most well-known and largest Yun clan. The clan's founding ancestor is General Yun Sin-dal, who assisted Wanggeon in founding the Goryeo Dynasty.
Yoon Gwan was a renowned general in the Goryeo Dynasty. He helped form the Byeolmuban forces to fight and defeat the Jurchen tribes in 1107.
Several Papyeong Yoon women became queens during the early Joseon Dynasty, they include Queen Munjeong and Queen Janggyeong.
Last ruling Empress, Empress Sunjeong of the Korean Empire, was from another Yoon clan, Haepyeong Yoon. The Haepyeong Yoon clan was originally part of the Papyeong clan but broke away forming their own clan.
"Empress Sunjeong was born Lady Yun of Haepyeong in Seoul and her father was Marquis Yun Taek-yeong, the Lord of Haepung."
Yun Bo-seon the second president of South Korea is a distant relative of Empress Sunjeong of the Korean Empire.
In 2002 a mummified woman with an unborn fetus was discovered in the Tomb of Yun Jeong-jeong. It is believed she is the granddaughter of Yun Won-hyung the brother of Queen Munjeong.
The 2000 South Korean census found 221,433 households claiming membership in the Papyeong clan, with a total population of 713,947.
Family feud
When the tomb of Yoon Gwan was rediscovered in the 18th century, it sparked a 300-year-old family Feud between the Yoon and Shim Clan. The reason for the feud was because a member of the Shim clan was buried uphill from Yoon Gwan's tomb.