Gwangsan Kim clan

Gwangsan Kim clan (Kwangsan Kim clan) (Hangul: 광산김씨 Hanja: 光山金氏) was one of the most prominent clans during the Joseon Dynasty.

The members of the Gwangsan Kim clan were the descendants of Heung Gwang (흥광, 興光), who was the third prince of King Sinmu of Silla, the 45th monarch of the Silla Dynasty.

One of the premier Kim families of Korea, Gwangsan Kim, has produced 2 highly honored Munmyo Bae-hyang Confucian enshrined sage-scholars (문묘배향), 5 prime ministers (정승), 7 Chief Scholars (대제학), 4 Cheong Baek Ri (person noted for their integrity [청백리]), and 1 queen (왕비) during the Joseon Dynasty.

Munmyo Bae-hyang (문묘배향, 文廟配享) was an honor granted to extremely learned scholars, but was a tedious process where candidates had to apply and be selected based on certain factors. Only 18 of them were selected and put in the Confucian shrine. They were also called the 18 sages of Korea (동방 18 현) or the 18 Confucian scholars of the East. 2 of the 18 were from the Gwangsan Kim clan, and they were (부자) father Kim Jang-saeng (김장생, 金長生) and son Kim Jip (김집, 金集). Also, among the 7 Chief Scholars (대제학) the Gwangsan Kims produced, there were 3 generations of them from grandfather Kim Man-gi (김만기, 金萬基) to father Kim Jin-gyu (김진규, 金鎭圭) to son Kim Yang-taek (김양택, 金陽澤). Kim Man-gi's younger brother Kim Manjung was a Chief Scholar as well and was famous for his novel The Cloud Dream of the Nine (Guun mong) (구운몽).

Having 2 generations of Munmyo Bae-hyang (sage-scholars), 7 Chief Scholars, and 3 generations and 2 brothers to serve as Chief Scholar were considered a rare accomplishment during the Joseon dynasty.

Eminent Neo-Confucian scholars the family has produced during the Joseon dynasty include: Kim Jang-saeng, Kim Jip, and Kim Manjung.

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