Hwang Jini
황진이
KoreanJoseon Period (c. 1506-1560)
"The Legendary Gisaeng, Poet of Desire"
✦ Personality Traits
✦ About
Hwang Jini (c. 1506-1560) was the most famous gisaeng (courtesan-entertainer) in Korean history and one of its greatest poets. In Joseon society where women had few options, she chose the path of the gisaeng to gain freedom, education, and artistic expression denied to other women.
Her poetry, written in both classical Chinese and the Korean vernacular, expressed passionate emotions with unprecedented frankness. Her sijo (Korean verse) about love, desire, and the passing of time remain among the most beloved works in Korean literature. She was equally famed for her beauty, wit, and skill in music and dance.
Legends tell of her intellectual contests with scholars, Buddhist monks, and noblemen—winning most of them. She is said to have been the only woman who could make the famously stoic scholar Seo Gyeong-deok smile, and the only person who could seduce the devoted Buddhist monk Jijok.
✦ Famous Story
Hwang Jini bet that she could make the monk Jijok break his 30-year vow of celibacy. She waited at a stream he would pass, appearing to struggle. When he carried her across, she clung to him—and he fell. Her victory proved that even the holiest devotion could not resist true beauty and wit.
✦ If You Match
Your features carry the captivating artistry of Hwang Jini. There is a passionate, free-spirited quality to your presence—the look of one who lives by beauty, wit, and uncompromising truth.