history

A 16th-century poetess, Ho Ran Sol Hon (1563-1589) was the elder sister of Ho Kyun (1569-1618) who wrote the classic novel Story of Hong Kil Dong.

In her childhood, she was so clever and pretty she was called a child prodigy. She began to write poems at the age of 5.

Her father Ho Yop did not teach her how to write. At the time, it was not regarded as good to teach girls writing.

So she eavesdropped on what her elder brothers were taught to learn writing and compose poems. With extraordinary cleverness, she read more writings and wrote more poems than her brothers.

Not only in her childhood but also after getting married, she continued to write poems while raising children, but she unfortunately died young.

She composed fine poems depicting pains and life experience of the contemporary women, becoming one of the typical female poets in the 16th century and contributing to the development of poetry.

There is the Collection of Ran Sol Hon’s Works  putting together her poems. It serves as important information showing the development of the contemporary Korean women’s poetry.