Page "Caste" Paragraph 63

Beneath the Yangban class were the Jung-in ( 중인-中人: literally " middle people ").

They were the technicians.

This class was small and specialized in fields such as medicine, accounting, etc.

Beneath the Jung-in were the Sangmin ( 상민-常民: literally ' commoner ').

These were mostly the peasants.

Beneath the Sangmin were the Chunmin.

They were specialised in lowly professions such as executing, butchering etc.

These people composed the majority of Korean society until the 17th century.

Underneath them all were the Baekjeong.

The meaning today is that of butcher.

They originate from the Khitan invasion of Korea in the 11th century.

The defeated Khitan invaders who had surrendered were settled in isolated communities throughout Goryeo to forestall rebellion.

They were valued for their skills in hunting, herding, butchering, and making of leather, common skill sets among nomads.

Over time their ethnic origin was forgotten, and they formed the bottom layer of Korean society.

Korea had a very large slave population, nobi, ranging from a third to half of the entire population for most of the millennium between the Silla period and the Joseon Dynasty.

Slavery was legally abolished in Korea in 1894 but remained extant in reality until 1930.