Mokwoo Baek Ki-man (1902.5.12 ~ 1967.8.7)

His nickname was “Mokwoo (to feed and raise the cattle)” and his pen name was “Baekwoong (white bear).”

He was born in Namsan-dong, Jung-gu, Daegu (now part of Daegu Metropolitan City).

He graduated from Daegu Public Elementary School in 1914 and got along with Yi Sang-hwa, Hyun Jin-geon and Yi Sang-baek.

In 1917, he and his friends published the literary journal 『Geohwa (Torch)』.

When the March 1st Movement broke out nationwide in 1919, Baek Ki-man and Yi Sang-hwa led the March 8th Independence Movement in Daegu with the help of local students. They were arrested and sentenced to one year in prison, but were released on probation because they were students.

In March 1923, Baek Ki-man began his literary career by publishing , , in the literary journal 『Gaebyeok』.

In November of the same year, he founded the literary journal 『Geumseong』 and gained a lot of attention. His works injected new energy into the literary world that had lost its momentum after the decline of 『Baekjo』, another literary magazine.

His representative work, , was included in the first issue of 『Geumseong』.

(…)

“Mother, I saw him in my dream.

I saw him dressed in white, with a green ribbon like a saint.

(…)

The cat is napping by the branch just like yesterday.

But its song is as painful as the late spring breeze.”

In 1926, he published , the first poetry anthology in Korea which included works from twenty-eight domestic poets who had been actively working during the new poetry movement in 1919.

In July 1934, he was one of the 77 leading intellectuals who signed a statement on the .

After Korea’s liberation, he worked as a member of the anti-communist special committee. He also worked as a journalist for the 『Daegu Ilbo』 and the 『Yeongnam Ilbo』.

He wrote the lyrics of the which was written in 1956:

In each stem of Palgongsan, strength is gathered,

And the twisting ridges of Nakdong River provide protection,

A hundred-li^[１] stretch of fertile land, famous for its welfare,

A city built on that land, achieved by opening that fertile plain.

We are the honorable citizens of Daegu,

Listen, raise high the flames of hope.

Baek Ki-man devoted his life to culture and the arts, leading the construction of the ‘Sang-hwa Poetry Monument’ in Dalseong Park after the death of Yi Sang-hwa.

In 1951, he published by compiling the poems of Yi Sang-hwa and Yi Jang-hui.

In 1959, he published , focusing on the local poets of the Daegu region.

Thanks to his effort on publishing the series of poetry, writing the lyrics of the and honoring the independence activists, Daegu was able to become one of the most remarkable cultural cities.

Despite him dedicating his life to culture and the arts, Baek Ki-man did not receive any cultural awards during his lifetime.

Mokwoo Baek Ki-man, the rebellious “unyielding Korean” and independence activist in Korea. Now it is your turn to complete what he had dreamed of for a better future!

[１] ‘li’ is a traditional Korean distance unit. It was used throughout the nations in Northeast Asia, but the length varied from era to era and nation to nation.