The Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association (Korean: 전주이씨대동종약원) is a family association based in South Korea founded by the Jeonju Yi (Lee) clan, the household of Joseon and the Korean Empire, which previously ruled Korea. The association originated from several national institutions of the Joseon dynasty. Its recent main activities following World War II include holding annual Jongmyo jerye, the worship rites of the royal ancestors, and compiling genealogy books of the descendants from the House of Yi.
Main office | |
| Founded | 3 April 1957 |
|---|---|
| Type | Family association |
| Location |
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Key people | Yi Won (director) |
| Website | rfo |
History
The king Taejo of Joseon started his reign in 1392, and some of the institution setups included an office to handle affairs regarding the royal family. The policy was continued by his son, Taejong of Joseon, who created the "Office of Royal Genealogy" (宗簿寺, 종부시) in 1401. The office existed for centuries, and a reformation was executed in 1864, during the reign of King Gojong. It was eventually abolished in 1907.
After the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, the former emperor Sunjong of Korea issued a decree, allowing the descendants of the royal family to form a private organization so as to strengthen the relationship within the clan. Said organization had a collection from Sunjong, including a commemorative plaque with Sunjong's Chinese calligraphy handwriting on it, which reads 崇祖惇宗 (숭조돈종, "respect the ancestor and harmony with the clan"), but the plaque went missing during the Korean War. On 27 November 1955, the members of the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association held a foundation ceremony in the hall of Whimoon Middle School in Seoul, and the association was later officially registered as a legal organization on 3 April 1957. The Association's headquarters are in the Lee Hwa Building (이화회관 [李花會館], "Plum Blossom Hall"), located in Jongno District of Seoul, on the street leading to the main gate of Changdeokgung.
In addition to domestic offices, the association has several international branches, including seven offices in North America and one in Japan.
Organization
According to the statistics in 1995, there were 2.8 million people coming from the Jeonju Yi clan in South Korea, making up over 770 thousand Yi families, 230 thousand families from whom lived in Seoul. Among them, there were nationwide 44% population from the clan (330 thousand families) that are registered members of the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association; in Seoul, similarly, there were specifically 39% (90 thousand families) of the clan that were registered.
Within the association, there is a chairman, as the superior over vice-chairmen, supervisors, and members of the council; they are often family members with prominent figures in politics and/or economics. As various ways to support members from the clan, there are several sub-organizations, including one that can offer scholarship, committees for academics and art, as well as ones dedicated to ancestral worship activities. Based on different genealogy among family members, 83 groups of the member can be classified; based on the places of residence, there are 15 sub-associations and 225 offices set, and there are also, for further district subdivision, branches in smaller administrative units (myeon, eup, and dong). As to overseas sub-associations, there are ones in Japan (Kantō and Kansai offices) and the United States (including Chicago and Los Angeles offices).
| Location | No. of offices |
|---|---|
| Seoul | 22 |
| Busan | 12 |
| Daegu | 7 |
| Incheon | 6 |
| Daejeon | 5 |
| Gyeonggi Province | 29 |
| Gangwon Province | 18 |
| North Chungcheong Province | 12 |
| South Chungcheong Province | 16 |
| North Jeolla Province | 18 |
| South Jeolla Province | 25 |
| North Gyeongsang Province | 23 |
| South Gyeongsang Province | 25 |
| Jeju Province | 3 |
| Japan | 2 |
| United States | 2 |
| Total | 225 |
List of directors
| Directors of the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Title | Name | In office since | Birth and death | Notes | ||
| Korean | English | ||||||
| 1 | 의친왕 義親王 | Prince Imperial Ui | Yi Kang | 1910 (posthumous recognition) | 1877–1955 |
| |
| 2 | 영친왕 英親王 | Prince Imperial Yeong | Yi Un | 29 July 1966 | 1897–1970 |
| |
| After Korean Empire being abolished (1910) and the foundation of the Republic of Korea (1948), the titles ever since are of pretence and for courtesy within the association. | |||||||
| 3 | 황세손 皇世孫 | Imperial Crown Prince | Yi Ku | 20 March 1973 | 1931–2005 |
| |
| 4 | 황사손 皇嗣孫 | Hereditary Prince Imperial | Yi Won | 27 June 2007 | born 1961 |
| |
List of chairmen of the association
| Chairmen of the Jeonju Lee Royal Family Association | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Tenure | From the cadet branch | Birth and death | Ref(s) | ||
| Korean | English | |||||
| 1 | 이범승 李範昇 | Lee Beom-seung | 7 November 1955 – 9 February 1958 | Grand Prince Gwangpyeong 17th generation | 1887–1976 | |
| 2 | 리기붕 李起鵬 | Lee Ki-poong | 10 February 1958 – 3 April 1959 | Grand Prince Hyoryeong 17th generation | 1896–1960 | |
| 3 | 이세정 李世楨 | Yi Se-jeong | 25 December 1962 – 4 March 1970 | Prince Ikyang 15th generation | 1895–1972 | |
| 4 | ||||||
| 5 | ||||||
| 6 | 이건웅 李建雄 | Yi Geon-ung | 20 March 1970 – 20 September 1970 (acting) | Prince Deokcheon 15th generation | born 1941 | |
| 7 | 이수길 李壽吉 | Yi Su-gil | 12 February 1971 – 12 May 1974 | Grand Prince Inpyeong 10th generation | 1917–1982 | |
| 8 | 이봉우 李鳳宇 | Yi Bong-u | 15 April 1975 － 12 May 1977 | Grand Prince Hyoryeong 15th generation | ||
| 9 | 이재형 李載灐 | Lee Choi-hyung | 13 May 1977 – 30 January 1992 | Prince Inseong 10th generation | 1914–1992 | |
| 10 | ||||||
| 11 | ||||||
| 12 | ||||||
| 13 | 이범준 李範俊 | Rhee Bomb-june | 1 February 1992 – 20 September 1996 | Grand Prince Gwangpyeong 17th generation | 1928–2007 | |
| 14 | ||||||
| 15 | 이환의 李桓儀 | Lee Hwan-ey | 31 September 1996 – 3 January 2012 | Grand Prince Hyoryeong 16th generation | born 1931 | |
| 16 | ||||||
| 17 | ||||||
| 18 | ||||||
| 19 | ||||||
| 20 | ||||||
| 21 | 이태섭 李台燮 | Lee Tae-sup | 4 January 2012 – 17 December 2019 | Prince Deokyang 14th generation | born 1939 | |
| 22 | ||||||
| 23 | ||||||
| 24 | ||||||
| 25 | 이귀남 李貴男 | Lee Gwi-nam | 18 December 2019 – present | Prince Hoesan 17th generation | born 1951 | |
| 26 | ||||||
See also
- Kungnaebu
- Office of the Yi Dynasty
- Cultural Heritage Administration
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