Hwangmokgeun (Japanese Hackberry) in Geumnam-ri, Yecheon

The hackberry, known in the southern regions by such names as pongnamu and pogunamu, grows to a great size, and has long been planted as biborim — trees planted according to feng shui principles to compensate for geomantic weaknesses — or as windbreaks. Hwangmokgeun (Japanese Hackberry) in Geumnam-ri, Yecheon is a hackberry tree estimated to be about 500 years old, standing 14.8 m tall with a girth at breast height of 5.76 m. Its name, 'Hwangmokgeun', is said to date from 1939, when the village's communal land was registered in the tree's own name; because the hackberry blooms yellow (hwang) in May, it was given the surname 'Hwang' together with the name 'Mokgeun' ('tree root'). Hwangmokgeun still owns a substantial area of land today and pays tax on it. It is venerated as the guardian tree of Geumwon village, and a ceremony is held in its honour every year on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Hwangmokgeun has grown for centuries under the care and attention of past generations; it is designated and protected as a natural monument both for the cultural significance it holds as a symbol of the village community's shared identity and for the unusual fact that this tree is treated as though it were a person.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Yecheon, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Natural Monument · 천연기념물