Songbun (Korean: 성분; MR: sŏngbun), formally chulsin-songbun (Korean: 출신성분; MR: ch'ulsin sŏngbun, from Sino-Korean 出身, "origin" and 成分, "constituent")...

that range, Songbun is allegedly used to determine whether an individual is trusted with responsibility or given certain opportunities. Songbun allegedly...

metaphorically described as tomatoes, apples, and grapes, respectively. Songbun is the name given to the caste system established on 30 May 1957 by the...

where she fell into a coma and died in August 2004. Under North Korea's songbun ascribed status system, Ko's Korean-Japanese heritage made her part of...

independence. During his rise and his consolidation of power, Kim created the songbun, a caste system in which the North Korean people were divided into three...

serve families with very high Songbun rankings. No wavering or hostile class children and very few children of high songbun, outside of the three “lines”...

the families with very high Songbun rankings. No wavering or hostile class children and very few children of high songbun, outside of the three “lines”...

political elites are exempt from conscription, as are people with bad songbun (ascribed social status in North Korea). Recruitment is done on the basis...

Online. Retrieved 19 April 2015. Collins, Robert (2012). Marked for Life: Songbun, North Korea's Social Classification System (PDF). United States: Committee...

its criticism of policies of the North Korean regime (most notably the Songbun policy). In 2002, North Korean defectors in South Korea were surveyed by...