# Bone Rank System — WHE Definition Discussion

**URL:** <https://community.worldhistory.org/t/bone-rank-system-whe-definition-discussion/978>\
**Category:** WHE Articles\
**Created:** [September 15, 2016, 8:57am UTC](https://community.worldhistory.org/t/bone-rank-system-whe-definition-discussion/978 "2016-09-15T08:57:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![markzcartwright](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/community.worldhistory.org/markzcartwright/32/35_2.png) [@markzcartwright](https://community.worldhistory.org/u/markzcartwright)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 8:57am UTC](https://community.worldhistory.org/t/bone-rank-system-whe-definition-discussion/978/1 "2016-09-15T08:57:26Z")

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The Bone Rank System (_Golpum_ or _Kolpum_) of ancient Korea was used in the Silla kingdom (57 BCE – 935 CE) in order to signal a person's political rank and social status. Membership of a particular rank within the system was extremely important, permitting a person to apply for certain jobs and deciding how they lived their everyday lives. The rigidity of the system, based as it was on lineage, allowed for very little movement between the classes resulting in a stagnation of talent, which eventually cost the Silla dear.

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_This is a companion discussion topic for the original content at [https://www.worldhistory.org/Bone\_Rank\_System/](https://www.worldhistory.org/Bone_Rank_System/)._

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**Author:** ![markzcartwright](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/community.worldhistory.org/markzcartwright/32/35_2.png) [@markzcartwright](https://community.worldhistory.org/u/markzcartwright)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2026, 6:11pm UTC](https://community.worldhistory.org/t/bone-rank-system-whe-definition-discussion/978/2 "2026-07-28T18:11:24Z")

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