Late Goryeo Grand Academician and author of the Hwonjeongjip; founder of the Cheonggang-gong branch; pen name Hwonjeong
| Life | 1388 |
| Era | 고려 말 |
| Clan | 파주 염씨 |
Yeom Jeong-su (廉廷秀, ?-1388) was a late Goryeo civil official of the Paju clan, with courtesy name Minmang and pen name Hwonjeong. His grandfather was Yeom Se-chung and his father Yeom Je-sin, and he was the youngest brother of Yeom Guk-bo and Yeom Heung-bang. He is honored as founder of the Cheonggang-gong branch.
He passed the civil examination in 1371 (the 20th year of King Gongmin) and in 1383, as Jisinsa, briefly handled personnel appointments (jeonju). Around then he is said to have proposed, with Jeong Mong-ju, abolishing Mongol-style dress (hobok) and following the Chinese system. His last posts are given as Dongji Mikjik and Grand Academician; a culture newspaper also says that under King U he reached Dongji Chumikjiksasa and Grand Academician of the U-mun-gwan. A collected works, the Hwonjeongjip, is recorded, but a surviving edition was not confirmed here.
In the first month of 1388, when the Yi Seong-gye and Choe Yeong faction purged Im Gyeon-mi and his brother Yeom Heung-bang, he was jailed in the Sungun Prison and executed; Wikipedia says he was executed by Choe Yeong and Yi Seong-gye. His learning and proposals were considerable, yet his name was buried in the family's disaster. Descendants are said to have formed the Cheonggang-gong branch; its detailed lineage and settlements were not confirmed here, so please check against a genealogy.
Mongol-style clothing persisted among Goryeo officials after the Yuan era, and Wikipedia says Yeom Jeong-su proposed with Jeong Mong-ju abolishing hobok and following the Ming system. This came when diplomacy toward the Ming and dress reform overlapped under Kings Gongmin and U, which fits with his brother Yeom Guk-bo being said to have introduced the Ming three-year mourning rule. How far and when each proposal was actually enforced varies across sources.
The Cheonggang-gong branch takes Yeom Jeong-su as founder and is one of the three branches under the mid-founding ancestor. Its notable figures and settlements were not found with sources in this research.
His tomb was not confirmed in the sources used here.