고령 신씨(高靈 申氏) — A surname whose founder is Shin Seong-yong (申成用), who passed the civil examination under King Gojong of Goryeo; its clan seat is Goryeong in North Gyeongsang Province. It is a lineage distinct from the Pyeongsan Shin.
A surname whose founder is Shin Seong-yong (申成用), who passed the civil examination under King Gojong of Goryeo; its clan seat is Goryeong in North Gyeongsang Province. It is a lineage distinct from the Pyeongsan Shin. In the 2015 Census the 고령 신씨 clan numbered about 129,718 people, one of Korea's major surnames and clans. Even among people surnamed 신, a different clan seat (bon-gwan, 고령) means a different lineage. New to these terms? See the bon-gwan, pa & hangnyeol guide.
In the seventh generation from the founder Shin Seong-yong, the clan split into three main branches — Amheon-gong (Shin Jang), Seoyun-gong (Shin Maeng-ju) and Sunchang-gong (Shin Jung-ju) — and further into many sub-branches such as the Munchung-gong (Shin Suk-ju), Gwiraejeong-gong (Shin Mal-ju), Jeongeun-gong, Gamchal-gong and Jikjang-gong lines.
Branch divisions vary by lineage and jokbo; confirm your own branch in your family's records.
신성용(founder of the Goryeong Shin clan), 신숙주(Munchung-gong; helped create Hangul), 신윤복(Hyewon; genre painter), 신채호(Danjae; independence activist)
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고령 신씨 figures recognized as independence patriots (National Independence Hall / Gonghun public data). Tap a name for the citation.
The Goryeong Shin (高靈 申氏) trace their descent to Shin Seong-yong (申成用), who under Gojong, the 23rd king of Goryeo, passed the civil examination and received the honorary post of Geomgyo Gungigam (檢校軍器監). Though they share the surname Shin (申), they are regarded as a lineage distinct from the Pyeongsan Shin.
Because the founder arose from the local gentry of Goryeong — once the seat of the flourishing kingdom of Daegaya — some hold that the clan descends from Daegaya royalty or nobility. The head clan association tentatively acknowledges this, but with no supporting records it remains unproven.
The clan's seat is Goryeong County in North Gyeongsang Province; besides the southwestern part of the province around Goryeong and Seongju, its members are also numerous in Cheongju (North Chungcheong), Goheung (South Jeolla) and Anseong (Gyeonggi).
For other branch associations, see the Korean E-Jokbo Library clan-association directory.
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