[News Terms] The Mark 'Bubyeongjaja' Engraved on the Body Before Going to the Battlefield

Even as a Corpse, Wishing to Be Buried in Hometown, Marking Own Body as a Sign
Ukrainian Soldiers Also Get Tattoos, Take Photos, and Send to Family

'Bubyeongjaja (赴兵刺字)' is a custom where a husband, father, or son going to the battlefield as a soldier would have letters tattooed on their back with a needle. This was done so that even if they died in war, their family could identify the body.

In ancient China, one of the punishments involved marking criminals with black characters on their bodies like tattoos, called 'Mokhyeong (墨刑)'. Mokhyeong was also known as Jajajung (刺字刑) or Sapjajung (鈒字刑). While the letters were sometimes inscribed on the arms or other parts of the body, for heinous criminals, the characters were tattooed on the face so that others could easily recognize them as criminals.

Before soldiers went to the battlefield, husbands, fathers, or sons would get tattoos that their families could recognize, a custom called 'Bubyeongjaja (赴兵刺字)'.
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

This was called Sapmyeonhyeong (鈒面刑), Gyeongmyeonhyeong (?面刑), or simply 'Jaja' or 'Gyeong'. Although rarely used nowadays, just a decade or so ago, when news about heinous criminals was reported in newspapers or broadcasts, adults would curse, saying "That guy deserves to be marked with Gyeong (?)." The 'Gyeong (?)' at that time referred to 'Jaja (刺字)', meaning tattooing letters on the face.

During wartime, the punishment of 'Bubyeongjaja (赴兵刺字)' became popular. 'Bubyeong (赴兵)' literally means "to go as a soldier" or "to be assigned as a soldier." Since it was obvious that one would die on the battlefield after being drafted, families or relatives would tattoo letters, pictures, or marks on the body to help identify the deceased and bring the body back home for burial.

On the 27th, novelist Yoon Heung-gil (82) held a press conference at the Francisco Education Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, to announce the completion of his five-volume epic novel 'Munshin'. 'Munshin' is a grand novel that meticulously depicts the conflicting beliefs, desires, and struggles of a family living during the Japanese colonial period, when the policy of Imperialization and forced labor were at their peak.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The title of this work, 'Munshin (文身)', is derived from the custom of 'Bubyeongjaja'. Yoon Heung-gil shared an anecdote related to the title: "When I was young during the Korean War, I often saw neighborhood youths getting tattooed on their forearms or shoulders right before receiving their draft notices. Then, for several days, they would drink heavily and make noise in the neighborhood before going to the army. I wondered why they did that, and later I learned it was part of 'Bubyeongjaja'."

During the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, the British BBC reported that tattoo shops in Ukraine were bustling as soldiers about to enlist were getting tattoos. These soldiers tattooed military symbols, emblems, and national flags, and sometimes sent photos of these tattoos to their families. BBC analyzed this as a way Ukrainians remember the war, which can also be seen as related to the custom of 'Bubyeongjaja'.