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Portrait of Kim Du-bong (Kim Tu-bong)

Kim, Tu-bong (Kim Du-bong) 1889- 1958

Kim Tu-bong (Kim Du-bong), a veteran communist and leader of the Yan'an faction of Korean communists who fought alongside the CCP the 1930s.

Biography

Portrait of Kim Du-bong (Kim Tu-bong)
KIM DU-BONG (1886?-1957?). Veteran communist and leader of the Yan'an faction of Korean communists who fought with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Yan'an in China during the 1930s. His year of birth has also been stated as 1889. He was born in South Gyeongsang Province and became a noted linguist, publishing a grammar of the Korean language in 1916 and being an active member of a group that sought reform of the Korean alphabet, hangul. Kim was also a political activist and took part in the Samil Undong movement against the Japanese in 1919. He fled to China, where he continued his scholarly activities, publishing a second revised and expanded edition of his Korean grammar in Shanghai in 1923. At the same time, he played an important role in the Korean revolutionary movement in Shanghai and Chongqing until the early 1940s.

He then joined Mao Zedong's forces in Yan'an, organizing the Korean Revolutionary League that fought with the CCP until l945. After his return to Korea, sometime after August 1945, the league became the New Democratic Party. When this merged with the Korean Communist Party to form the North Korean Workers' Party in 1946, Kim was the first chairman. However, when the Korean Workers' Party was created, Kim ceded the top position to Kim Il Sung. On the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in September 1948, Kim Du-bong became the first chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, which meant that he was the DPRK head of state for ceremonial purposes. In addition, he was for a time head of Kim Il Sung University and of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland. Although he opposed the attempt in the August 1956 Incident to challenge Kim Il Sung, he was ousted from his public positions, accused of being a spy for the United States, and disappeared from view. His scholarly role was also condemned. It is assumed that he was executed either in 1956 or 1957. The attack on Kim had more to do with Kim Il Sung's determination to get rid of any possible opposition than to any real opposition to the regime.

Kim had been trained as a philologist and published on the subject. He was awarded a doctorate in linguistics in 1948. He was involved in the language reform movements of the 1950s, which saw the abandonment of Chinese characters and the promotion of Hangeul (often spelled as Hangul).

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher. (Historical Dictionary of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, by James E. Hoare, published by RLPG Books, appears by permission of the author and publisher).

Popular Documents

January 19, 1950

Telegram Shtykov to Vyshinsky on a Luncheon at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the DPRK

Shtykov reports a meeting with Kim Il Sung, along with Chinese and Korean delegates. Kim Il Sung expresses his view on the prospect of a liberation of the South Korean people that is to follow the Chinese success in liberation. Kim expresses his view that the South Koreans support his cause for reunification which the South Korean government does not seem to purse, and that he desires to ask Stalin for permission on an offensive action on South Korea.

December 26, 1955

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (A Brief Memorandum)

A memorandum reviewing both Koreas' economic conditions and respective political makeups after the Korean War, and reconstruction efforts and agricultural shortages in North Korea.

November 20, 1948

The Korean People's Army

A collection of speeches of Kim Il Sung, Kim Du-bong, Choe Yong-geon, and Kim Dal-hyeon on the Korean People's Army in 1948.

December 31, 1953

Political Report No. 8 of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of Poland in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea for the Period of 1 December to 31 December 1953

The Polish Embassy provides information on the KWP Central Committee, the Supreme People's Assembly, agreements to receive assistance from communist countries, and the situation of industries, education, and health in North Korea.

August 29, 1956

Memorandum of Conversation with Pak Ui-wan

Pak Ui-wan discusses Kim Il Sung's draft report on his visit to the Soviet Union, the economic situation of the DPRK, party and government measures for the Five-Year Plan, the intra-party situation and the tasks of the Korean Worker's Party. During the conversation, Kim Du-bong notes his concerns over the personality cult, the shortcomings in the work of the Central Committee, and the serious economic situation in DPRK.