A. Baekgaseong (百家姓)

• As an old document on surnames, we can say 'Baeksaseong' (a book called 'surnames of one hundred surnames'). It was a text in the form of verse and prose written in the early period of the Northern Song (北宋) Dynasty about a thousand years ago, and the author was unknown. In the book, the family name of the Byun (邉(邊)氏) was listed as the 313th. According to Baekgaseong (百家姓), the Byun Clan was one of the prosperous and versatile surnames, and the origins of the surname were listed in the following three ways.

• 1st, the Spring and Autumn period or Warring States Period (770 ~ 403 BC), among the sons of Duke Pyung (平公) of the Song (宋) Dynasty Monarchy, there was a man named Eoyung (禦戎). Eoyung (禦戎)'s Courtesy name was Jabyun (Zibian子邉(邊)). It was said that his grandson Byun became Sado (Prime Minister) and took his grandfather's son as his surname. Eoyung (禦戎) was a descendant of Mizhung, the son of Jeeul, the 29th king of the Yin Dynasty. Yin or Shang (殷 or 商) was the ancestor of Gojoseon (古朝鮮). The people of Gojoseon, the ancestors of Korea, were called the Dongyi Ethnic Group of people(東夷族, Han (韓) and Yemaek (濊貊) distributed in Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula were called ‘Dongyi’ and the meaning of ‘Dongyi’ was the different races of the East or word made up of big大and bow弓, A good archer). Buyeo扶餘, Goguryeo高句麗, Baekje百濟, Yemaek濊貊, and Samhan三韓 (Three Han Countries, Mahan마한馬韓, Jinhan진한 辰韓, and Byeonhan변한弁韓), which form the source of the Korean people, were called Dongyi, and Malgal말갈靺鞨 (Mishihase, Moh), Seonbi선비鮮卑(Xianbei), Wuhuan오환烏桓, and Wae왜倭 (Japanese) were also called Dongyi東夷.

• 2nd, during the Yin(殷) or Shang (商) Dynasty, there was Byun Country (邉(邊)國) among the vassals. The monarch of Byun Country(邉(邊)國) was called Bo or Beak (伯) Byun, and it was said that he took Byun as his surname after that.

• 3rd, it was a surname of Koreans in the Qing(淸) and Qing Dynasty, and many other Clans changed it to Byun, and it was said that there were still many Byun surnames among minority peoples such as Manchus and Joseon Ethnic Group (Chaoxianju조선족朝鮮族). Except for the 3rd theory, which was a story of the Qing Dynasty (1616-1912), among the other two, the Korean Byun family follows the theory that the Courtesy name of Eoyung (禦戎) was taken as a surname.

 

B. Migration of the Byun family in East Asia

• According to Baekgaseong (百家姓), the Byun family originated from the Song (宋 Monarch Country) Dynasty[1] during Spring and Autumn period or Warring States Period (770~ 403 BC), and since the capital of the Song Dynasty Monarchy was in what is now Shangqiu (商丘), Henan Province (河南省), the Byun family originated there. After the surname Byun was created, the Byun Clan increased in this area for a long time. After the fall of the Song Dynasty Monarchy, until the Qin(奏) Dynasty and the Han(漢)Dynasty, the Byun Clan gradually dispersed to present-day Hebei Province (河北省), Henan Province (河南省), Shandong Province (山東省), Anhui Province (安徵省), Jiangsu Province (江蘇省), and Shaanxi Province (俠西省). These areas were close to the Song Dynasty Monarchy.

• In the Former Han Dynasty (前漢 時代 202 BC~ 25 AD), a person named Byun, Tong (通) was famous. During the Eastern Han Dynasty (東漢 時代 25-220), Gyeongjoyun Byun, Bung (京兆尹 邉(邊)鳳), the governor of Jiujiang Byun, Yang(九江 太守 邉(邊)讓), and Shangseoryeong Byun, So(尙書令 邉(邊)韶), were all from Jinliu County (陳留郡) is located in the southeast of present-day Kaifeng City, Henan Province (河南省 開封市). In addition, Byun, Jang[2] (章) in Dongtak (Dong Zhuo[3]) Story (箽卓傳) was also from Jincheng, (甘肅省 金城). In the era of the Southern and Northern Dynasties of Wei and Jin (魏晉 南北朝 221-589), the Byun Clan living in Jincheng(金城) increased, and those who moved to Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡), neighboring Jincheng County, appeared. The governor of Jiujiang Byun, Yang(九江 太守 邉(邊)讓), served as the governor of the region called Jiujiang in the Han Dynasty. According to Byun, Yang's story, Yang was so brilliant that Cao Cao(조조曺操) killed him out of envy. Because Yang was killed in Jiujiang, Courtesy's name was the governor of Jiujiang. In the Miscellaneous Records (雜錄), during the reign of King Seonjo of the Han Dynasty, Yebusangseo Byun, Gihu(변기후 邊基厚) said, “All the Byun Clans on the East Asian continent and outside the East Asian continent were descendants of Byun, Yang. And Soon was also a descendant of Byun, Yang.”

• There was a lot of damage due to the flooding of the Yellow River(黃河), but only Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡) had a good natural environment. Moreover, since they were far from the chaotic Jungwon (Zhongyuan中原, Luoyang, Henan), the Byun Clan formed a large Clan in Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡). However, from this time until the Sui(隨) Dynasty (581-618), the Jungwon (Zhongyuan, Luoyang, Henan) was unstable due to war, and uprisings broke out in all directions. Furthermore, epidemics spread and natural disasters such as drought and floods caused the people to lose their places to live and wander. People risked falling to death or wandering around and fled to Jiangnam (江南). Generally, Jianbei (江北) refers to Beijing, Xi'an, Luoyang, Shenyang, etc., and Jiangnam (江南) refers to Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Gwangju, Shenzhen, etc. As the Byun Clan went through these wars, they gradually scattered to present-day Hubei Province (湖北省), Jiangsu Province (江蘇省), Zhejiang Province (浙江省), and Jiangxi Province (江西省). During the Sui (隨)Dynasty to the Tang (唐) Dynasty (618-917), the Byun Clan was still prosperous in the northern region. Many Byun Clans lived in what is now Shanxi Province (山西省), Beijing (北京), and Tianjin (天津). From the end of the Tang (唐) Dynasty to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (五代十國 907-960), the center of activities of the Byun Clan gradually moved to Jiangnam (江南). During the period from the Northern Song (北宋 960-1126) and Southern Song (南宋 1127-1279) to the Yuan Dynasty (元 1206 -1368), the Byun family spread to Hunan Province(湖南省), Sichuan Province(四川省), Fujian Province(福建省), and Guangdong Province(廣東省) located in the present south.

• In particular, the Byun Clan, who lived in the area of Jinliu County (陳留郡) at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, moved to Zhejiang Province in the south and settled when the Jin (金) Dynasty (1115-1234) invaded. Afterwards, they were grouped together for about 800 years, centering on Jegi (諸墍 present-day Juji City 诸暨市). And the Byun Clan, who lived in Shaanxi and Gansu, migrated to the northern Inner Mongolia. The Byun Clan of Shanxi moved to Henan, Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Beijing, and Tianjin in the early Ming (明) and Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). During the Qing (淸) Dynasty (1616-1912), the Byun Clan migrated to the southwest, northeast, and Taiwan. Today, the Byun Clan is relatively widespread throughout China, with about 50 percent of the Byun Clan living, especially in Jiangxi Province (江西省).

• In the end, the Korean Byun Clan (Jangyeon, Hwangju, Wonju) all recorded in their records that they were descendants of Eoyung (禦戎), the son of Duke Pyung (平公) of the Song (宋) Dynasty Monarchy, during the Spring and Autumn period or Warring States Period (770~403 BC), and formed a large family in present-day Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡), Gansu Province . The Song Dynasty Monarchy was the kingdom of the Shang Dynasty and the country where King Zhou's half-brother Song Mija Ji (宋微子啓) was divided. The following Figure shows the residences of Byun clans by era.

 

C. Korean Surnames According to Literature, the Origin of 'Byun'

• The family name of the Byun was from East Asia: According to the Literary Remarks (文厭備考), “Mizhung (微仲) of the Yin Dynasty came from the Song (宋) to the reign of Duke Pyung (平公) of the Song (宋) Dynasty Monarchy. Descendants of Eoyung (禦戎) used his Courtesy name Byun (邉(邊)) as their surname. After living in the Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西 郡), during the Southern Song (1127-1279) period, some of them were naturalized in Goryeo and began to live in Chiseong (取城 now Hwangju). According to the Joseon Clan Tongbo (朝鮮 氏族 通寶), “The Byun Clan originated from the ancient emperor Heonwon (軒䡝) and was a descendant of Byun, Ang (仰) who lived in Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西 郡), Gansu Province (甘肃省).

• The family name of the Byeon originated from Korean Peninsula, an Indigenous surname (土着 姓氏) Theory: According to Samguksagi (三國史記 History of the Three Kingdoms, Goguryeo, Baeje, and Silla), “In 618 (the 40th year of King Jinpyeong of Silla), Byeonpum, the governor of Bukhan mountain, attacked Gajam Fortress and defeated the Baekje army. “On September, 672 (Silla King Munmu’s 12th year), King Munmu dispatched Byeonsan to Tang (唐) as a diplomatic envoy.

  

D. Two Grounds for Claiming that Byeonpum and Byeonsan in Samguksagi(三國史記) Are Not Surnames

• 1st, in the reign of King Jinheung of Silla (540-576), there were four monuments of pure purity (巡狩碑), and in the 3rd year of King Jinji (578), there was the monument of Ojak in the year of Musul (戊戌年 塢作碑). In addition, in the 13th year of King Jinpyeong (591), there were monuments for Shinseong in Namsan (南山 新城碑). Looking at the names of people appearing on epigraphs before the 7th century, no one has a surname written in Hanja characters used in East Asia. In addition to this, there was a legend of three surnames in Silla: Park (朴), Seok (昔), and Kim (金). It was based on the record that six surnames were given: Jeong (鄭), Son (孫), Bae (裵), and Seol (薛).

• 2nd, it was because there was a record of the Korean Byun family's records that they came from East Asia during the Goryeo Dynasty. However, the fact that there were records of the Byeon Clan in the Shilla and Baekje eras does not deny the theory of their arrival in East Asia. If you look at the records of the ancient Byeon Clan in Korean Peninsula, First, since Byeongyunyeo (均如大師) was born in 923, in the early Goryeo Dynasty (918~1392), and his official birthplace was Hwangju, Gyunyeo's father,  Byeonmyeokseong, must have been born at least in the 800s AD (Since this period was already the era of the Later Three Kingdoms, and the later Baekje and later Goguryeo (Goryeo) existed, it is not wrong to say that this era is already the beginning of the Goryeo era rather than the Silla era.). However, there was no record of his ancestors when he came to Hwangju. Second, there was a record that Pyo, Daebak, the progenitor of the Shinchang Pyo Clan (新昌 表氏), was naturalized from East Asia to Goryeo in the 11th year of King Gwangjong (960) of Goryeo, just over a hundred years after the record of Byeongyunyeo (均如大師), and was naturalized with eight surnames. The eight surnames are Jang張, Bang方, Wei韋, Byun邉(邊), Yun尹, Jin奏, Gam甘, and Hwangbo皇南.

• 3rd, 70 years later, in 1138 (16th year of King Injong), Byun, Yooyeong (有寧), the founder of the Jangyeon Byun Clan, entered Goryeo due to the betrayal of Princess Jang.

 

E. Summarizing the Origin of the Byun Clan in Korea

• 1st, Byeonpum, the monarch of Bukhansan Province of Silla Dynasty in 618 (40th year of King Jinpyeong), and Byeonsan who went from Silla to Tang Dynasty as a diplomatic envoy in 672 (12th year of King Munmu) was the 'indigenous Byeon Clan' of the Shilla Dynasty, which existed before the Goryeo Dynasty. To explain in more detail, it is not certain whether it is the 'indigenous Byeon Clan' of the Shilla Dynasty or the Byeon Clan who settled as Silla in East Asia before the Goryeo Dynasty. Like Baekgaseong's third theory, there was a possibility that another Clan from which Hwangju lived in the Korean Peninsula changed to Byeon, and the native Byeon Clan of the Korean Peninsula was created. However, the Indigenous Byeon Clan of the Korean Peninsula, has nothing to do with the Jangyeon Byun Clan when comparing various situations. Indigenous Byeon refers to the first surname that originated on the Korean Peninsula. In addition, it is impossible to confirm whether the 'byeon' in the name of Byeonpum or Byeonsan was a given name or a surname. They lived in Hwangju, Hwanghae Province, or were active in the Gyeonggi Province area, and Byeongyunyeo, a descendant of theirs, lived in Hwangju at the end of the Shilla Dynasty.

• 2nd, during the Southern Song Dynasty in the Generation Record Book, the Byun Clan who migrated from Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡) to Jangyeon (長淵 old name Yeongang 淵康) in Hwanghae Province was the Jangyeon Byun Clan. According to the records of the Hwangju Byun Clan, the progenitor Byun, Ryeo (呂) was the 5th generation descendant of Byun, Yooyeong (有寧), the progenitor of the Jangyeon Byun Clan. Eventually, after the Southern Song Dynasty (during the Goryeo Dynasty), the Byun Clan, who migrated from East Asia to Jangyeon and Hwangju in Hwanghae Province through various routes, settled down while integrating their main residences into Jangyeon and Hwangju. The Byeon Clan native to the Korean Peninsula, or those who lived in the Korean Peninsula before Goryeo and whose names contain the letters byeon, are likely to be absorbed into the Jangyeon Byun Clan, which migrated from Song to Goryeo.

• 3rd, the grandfather of Wonju Byun Clan's ancestor (Daeeun Anyeol, 安烈), Soon (順, 6th generation descendant of Hwangju Byun) was serving as a government official in Goryeo. In 1268 (the 9th year of King Wonjong of Goryeo), when Taltaah, an envoy who came to Goryeo during the Yuan Dynasty, returned to the Yuan Dynasty, Soon assisted Taltaah on the way from Goryeo to the Yuan Dynasty. Soon (順) received the title of Feudal Lord in Shenyang (Shimyang-ro Cheonhohu), and his grandson, Anyeol, assisted Princess Noguk of the Yuan Dynasty, who was to marry King Gongmin, when she came to Goryeo. Then, after coming to Goryeo, King Gongmin ordered the Wonju Byun Clan, and became the progenitor of the Wonju Byun Clan.

• Origin according to the Byun Clan’s Generation Record Book: The Byun Clan in Korea in literature has continued the generation by generation, starting with Yooyeong (有寧), whose main building was Jangyeon. Ryeo (呂), the progenitor of the Hwangju Byun Clan, was the great-grandson of Yooyeong (有寧). The Byun Clan was passed down from Jangyeon to Hwangju and from Hwangju to Wonju.

 

F. Byun Clan in Korea

• Jangyeon Byun Clan’s Generation Record Book(長淵邉(邊)氏世譜):  It is said that Kyung (鏡), a person from Nongseo(聾西郡), served as Munhaseubbihu (門下習候) in Song Dynasty and Daeachan (大阿湌) in Silla, but there is No Actual Record. Yooyeong (有寧), the great-grandson of Kyung (鏡), immigrated to Goryeo in 1138 (16th year of King Injong) due to Princess Jang's betrayal, and became a Jungmun Jihu (Jong 6 Pum). And Yooyeong (有寧) was appointed to Yeonseong Buwongun (淵城 府院君 1st Pum), and the descendants of Yooyeong (有寧) made Jangyeon, Hwanghae Province, the main building of the Jangyeon Byun Clan. Yooyeong (有寧) was the progenitor of the Jangyeon Byun Clan. Yooyeong’s (有寧) Courtesy name was Seokcheon Ong(石川翁), and it was estimated that was born in the early 1100s. However, there was No record of Hoi (懷), the 5th generation descendant of Yooyeong’s (有寧), and No record of Hyun (玄), the 4th generation descendant, in the ‘Jangyeon Byun Family Records’. However, according to the record of ‘Hwangju Byun Clan Generation Record Book’, Ryeo (呂) was said to be the 5th generation descendant of Byun Yooyeong (有寧). (Jangyeon Byun Clan’s Generation Record Book in 1843 and 1984).

• Hwangju Byun Clan’s Generation Record Book (黃州邉(邊)氏世譜): Ryeo (呂), the son of Hyun (玄), the great-grandson of Yooyeong (有寧), was the progenitor of the Hwangju Byun Clan (Hwangju 黃州 was the name of Goryeo; Chiseong 取城 name during Silla; Donghol 冬忽 name of Goguryeo). Ryeo (呂) was also a native of Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡), naturalized as Goryeo when the Song Dynasty declined and settled in Chiseong (formerly Hwangju). In 1232 (the 19th year of King Gojong), he was appointed to the Sangjanggun (Major General) for his work in serving King Gojong, who fled to Ganghwado due to the invasion of the Mongols. And he was received Taechon County (泰川伯) and was given the title of Sikeup (食邑 Tenant-in-chief). Ryeo (呂) was the progenitor of the Byun Clan of Hwangju.

• Wonju Byun Clan’s Generation Record Book (原州邉(邊)氏世譜): “The origin of the Byun Clan was that the Courtesy name of Eoyung (禦戎) was Jabyun (子邉(邊)) during the reign of Duke Pyung of Song Dynasty Monarchy, so the Courtesy name was taken as a surname. And their descendants lived in Longxi (Nongseo) County (聾西郡) for a long time, and at the end of the Song Dynasty, they crossed the sea and lived in Hwangju in Eastern Country or Dongguk (東國, Korean peninsula. Here, Dongguk is a country founded by the people of Dongyi.). Soon (順), a descendant of Ryeo (呂), the progenitor of the Hwangju Byun Clan, went to Yuan Dynasty in 1268 (Wonjong 9) to assist Taltaah (?-1271), an envoy from the Yuan Dynasty. Then, Soon met King Sejo of the Yuan Dynasty, Sejo (元 世祖 Khubilai, 1215 -1294), and while staying in Shenyang, he was appointed a Feudal Lord in Shenyang (Cheonhohu in Shenyang). Anyeol, the grandson of Soon (順), whose Courtesy name was Daeeun. Anyeol came to Goryeo in 1351 to assist King Gongmin and Princess Noguk, who would become the queen. At the time of his arrival, Anyeol was the leader of the group. King Gongmin made Anyeol marry the daughter of Wonui, a Pan Chumilwonsa (判樞密院事), who was a member of the Wonju Won Clan, who was a relative of King Gongmin.  And King Gongmin gave Anyeol the Wonju area as the Main building of the Byun Clan in Wonju. Descendants made Anyeol the progenitor of the Byun Clan in Wonju (The name of Wonju during the Goryeo period; the name of Bukwonsogyeong during the Silla period; the name of Pyeongwon county during the Goryeo period). Anbaek was Anyeol's older brother. Anbaek's 2nd son, Sook (? -1399), was a Scholar of Yuan Dynasty who came to Goryeo with his uncle, Anyeol. And Sook received the title of Hobujeonseo in Goryeo and became a patriarch of the Wonju Byun Clan Jeonseo faction.