Korean martial arts are military practices and methods which have their place in the history of Korea but have been adapted for use by both military and non-military personnel as a method of personal growth or recreation.
Bonguk geom 본국검 邦國劍 (national sword)
In Joseon era Korean martial arts (17th to 18th centuries) referred to a sword and style of swordsmanship
The term is introduced in the Muyesinbo of 1759 and the system is supposedly due to Crown Prince Sado. It contrasts with Jedok geom or "admiral sword", a system supposedly introduced by the Chinese admiral Li Rusong during the 16th-century Imjin War (the "national sword" system is conspicuously absent from the older Muyejebo manual of 1610). The Muyesinbo stresses the antiquity of this "national" Korean system by including the narrative of a Silla "Flower Boy" called Hwangchang, who killed Baekje's king while performing a sword dance, geommu, at the court.
The historical swords of the Silla period would have been double-edged swords comparable to those of Eastern Han (see also Hwandudaedo). But the Bonguk geom as presented in the 18th century manual is ahistorically based on a single-edged sword of the type common during that era.
In contemporary schools of Korean swordsmanship the term bonguk geom is used to emphasize their "national" Korean character, without necessarily bearing a direct relation to the 18th-century system.
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Related Information
Korean martial arts are military practices and methods which have their place in the history of Korea but have been adapted for use by both military and non-military personnel as a method of personal growth or recreation. Among the best recognized Korean practices using weapons are traditional Korean Archery and Kumdo (Korean sword sport similar to Japanese Kendo). The best known unarmed Korean Martial Arts is Taekwondo 태권도 and Hapkido, which are continuing to rapidly gain in popularity both inside and outside of the country. View Korean Martial Arts »
