Kim Yak-yeon

Kim Yak-yeon (金躍淵, September 12, 1868 – October 29, 1942) was an independence activist of the Korean Empire. His family seat was Jeonju (全州), and he was born in Hoeryong, Hamgyong Province. His pen name was Gyuam (圭巖). He also used the alias "Choi Se-pyeong" (崔世平).

Life

He was the maternal uncle of the poet Yun Dong-ju. The poet Yun Dong-ju, born to Kim Yak-yeon's younger sister Kim Yong and her husband Yun Yeong-seok, was his nephew through his sister, and he graduated from Myeongdong School, which had been founded by his maternal uncle Kim Yak-yeon.

Born in Hoeryong, Hamgyong Province, he spent his early childhood for a time in Jongseong, Hamgyong Province, and afterward grew up mainly in Hoeryong, Hamgyong Province. In 1900 he emigrated with his whole family to Longjing in Jiandao, and in 1901 he founded Gyuamjae. Gyuamjae was a small private school, but it later developed through Myeongdong Seosuk into Myeongdong School and Myeongdong Girls' School, becoming the center of the educational enlightenment movement in the region.

Originally a Confucian scholar, he converted to Protestantism in 1909 and graduated from Pyongyang Theological Seminary in 1929. He founded Myeongdong Church and later became a pastor. During the Japanese colonial period, he served as a focal point of the anti-Japanese movement in the Jiandao region.

He led the formation of Ganminhoe, a self-governing organization in the Jiandao region, and served as its chairman. In 1918 he also took part in the Mu-o Declaration of Independence in Jilin.

A monument has been erected at Myeongdong Village in Longjing, which he first settled after emigrating and made his lifelong base of activity. The Japanese also called him the leader (首領者) of the Korean independence movement and the representative of one million compatriots.

In 1977 the government posthumously awarded him the Order of National Foundation, Medal of Independence, in recognition of his merits.