상주 주씨(尙州 周氏) — A clan seated at Sangju in North Gyeongsang. Tradition names Ju I (周頤), a Tang vice-minister of war under Emperor Dezong, as the founder who came to Silla, served as governor of Sangju and settled there. Ju Se-bung and Ju Si-gyeong are listed among its members.
A clan seated at Sangju in North Gyeongsang. Tradition names Ju I (周頤), a Tang vice-minister of war under Emperor Dezong, as the founder who came to Silla, served as governor of Sangju and settled there. Ju Se-bung and Ju Si-gyeong are listed among its members. In the 2015 Census the 상주 주씨 clan numbered about 22,909 people, one of Korea's major surnames and clans. Even among people surnamed 주, a different clan seat (bon-gwan, 상주) means a different lineage. New to these terms? See the bon-gwan, pa & hangnyeol guide.
Doeun-gong-pa, Baksa-gong-pa, Panseo-gong-pa, Sirang-gong-pa
The Doeun-gong branch takes Ju Yu (given as 19th or 20th generation from the founder, depending on source) as its restorer-ancestor. Sub-branches Gyeongheon-gong, Hogun-gong, Champhan-gong, Munmin-gong and Muncheon-gong are said to descend from it, and Ju Se-bung, founder of Baekundong Seowon, is described as Ju Yu's fifth-generation descendant. The hanja of Ju Yu was not confirmed.
The Baksa-gong branch takes Ju Seon (周璿), younger brother of Ju Yu, as its restorer-ancestor.
The Panseo-gong branch takes Ju Se-hu (周世侯) as its restorer-ancestor, recorded as 18th or 19th generation depending on source, so the generation count needs confirmation.
The Sirang-gong branch takes Ju Gwan as its first ancestor (or, in another source, restorer-ancestor at the 19th generation). A Changui-gong branch is also said to descend from Ju Seon-nam, Ju Gwan's eighth-generation descendant. The hanja of Ju Gwan was not confirmed.
Branch divisions vary by lineage and jokbo; confirm your own branch in your family's records.
Ju Se-bung(founder of Baekundong Seowon), Ju Si-gyeong(linguist), Ju I(Hoyeonjeong), Ju Jae-seong(militia leader), Ju Myeong-sin(physician), Ju Yeong-bok(Defense Minister), Ju Seon-hoe(Constitutional Court justice)
Tap a name for the full profile (life, career, grave, descendants).
The Sangju Ju clan (尙州 周氏) takes Sangju in North Gyeongsang as its seat. The founder is Ju I (周頤), said to have been a vice-minister of war under Tang Emperor Dezong. In 786 (2nd year of Silla's King Wonseong) he is said to have come to Silla as a deputy envoy and then naturalized, serving as palace guard commander, minister of war and governor (chonggwan) of Sangju, and settling there; his son Ju Hwang became a Hanlin scholar in Tang and, after returning, a Minister of Rites under King Huigang. This rests on genealogical tradition and is hard to cross-check against historical records.
The tradition is that the founder came from Tang China. Some say he came from Song, but the Wikipedia and Namuwiki entries consulted both give the Tang era under Dezong (late 8th century), and no alternative name for the founder was found. Given the great age of the story, it is difficult for scholars to verify.
Although romanized alike, 周 and 朱 are different surnames. For example the Sinan Ju is 朱氏 (新安 朱氏) and distinct from the Sangju Ju (周氏). Other 周 seats exist, but their relationship to the Sangju Ju was not confirmed in the sources.
In the 2015 census the Sangju Ju numbered 22,909, up from 18,384 in 2000. The main clan village is reported at Munrim-ri, Yulgok-myeon, Hapcheon in South Gyeongsang, and the clan also manages sites in Chilseo-myeon and Chilwon-eup of Haman.
The clan is described as producing 6 civil and 10 military examination graduates in Joseon. The best known is Ju Se-bung (1495-1554), who founded Baekundong Seowon in 1543, the first seowon in Korea. His nephew-line relative Ju I (pen name Iyodang) is said to have built Hoyeonjeong in Hapcheon and taught students. Ju Jae-seong raised a militia in the 1728 rebellion under Yeongjo, and Ju Myeong-sin is known as a late-Joseon physician and author of Uimun Bogam.
The clan is mainly described in four branches: Doeun-gong, Baksa-gong, Panseo-gong and Sirang-gong, with Changui-gong, Mokcheon and Gyosu-gong appearing in some sources. Doeun-gong is said to divide further into Gyeongheon-gong, Hogun-gong, Champhan-gong, Munmin-gong and Muncheon-gong. Generation counts of the restorer-ancestors differ by source, so members should confirm their line in their own genealogy.
From Joseon, Ju Se-bung, Ju I, Ju Jae-seong and Ju Myeong-sin; the linguist Ju Si-gyeong; and in modern times Ju Yeong-bok (Defense and Home Affairs minister) and Ju Seon-hoe (Constitutional Court justice).
Hoyeonjeong in Hapcheon (Gyeongnam Tangible Cultural Property No. 198) was built by Ju I and rebuilt by descendants after the Imjin War. Musansa at Mureung-ri, Chilseo-myeon, Haman, honors Ju Se-bung and holds his portrait and relics (No. 143); the portrait (No. 142) is a 1919 copy by descendants. The woodblocks of the Guktam Munjip (No. 242, 56 blocks) are kept at Mugi-ri, Chilwon-eup. All are described as managed by the Sangju Ju clan.
Generation names rotate by generation; 17th: Si (時) and Hoe (會), 18th: Yeong (永) and Sik (植), 19th: Hwan (煥) and Jae (載) are confirmed, but the source table is garbled, so members should check later generations in their own genealogy. The clan association is not confirmed in public sources.
The 상주 주씨 clan association can be found in the Korean E-Jokbo Library clan-association directory.
✍ Request additions / corrections to the 상주 주씨 family tree infoStart your family tree free →