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For other uses, see Silla (disambiguation).
신라 (新羅)


57 BC–935

Silla at its height in 576.
Capital Gyeongju
Languages Silla language
(Part of Old Korean)
Religion Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Korean shamanism
Government Monarchy
 -  57 BC – 4 Hyeokgeose (first)
 -  540–576 Jinheung
 -  654–661 Muyeol
 -  661–681 Munmu
 -  681–692 Sinmun
 -  927–935 Gyeongsun (last)
Historical era old Civilization
 -  Establishment 57 BC
 -  Introduction of Buddhism 530
 -  Campaigns of King Jinheung 551–585
 -  Unified Silla 676–935
 -  Handover to the Goryeo Dynasty 935
Today part of  South Korea
 North Korea
Revised Romanization Silla
McCune–Reischauer Silla

Silla (57 BC[note 1] – 935 AD) (Korean pronunciation: [ɕʰilːa]) was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the world's longest sustained dynasties. Although it was founded by King Park Hyeokgeose, the dynasty was ruled by the Gyeongju Kim (김, 金) clan for most of its 992-year history. What began as a chiefdom in the Samhan confederacies, once allied with China, Silla eventually conquered the other two kingdoms, Baekje in 660 and Goguryeo in 668. Thereafter, Unified Silla or Later Silla, as it is often referred to, occupied most of the Korean Peninsula, while the northern part re-emerged as Balhae, a successor-state of Goguryeo. After nearly 1000 years of rule, Silla fragmented into the brief Later Three Kingdoms, Silla, Hubaekje, and Taebong, handing over power to its successor dynasty Goryeo in 935.[1]


From its founding until its growth into a full-fledged kingdom, Silla was recorded with various hanja phonetically approximating its native Korean name: 斯盧 (사로, Saro), 斯羅 (사라, Sara), 徐那(伐) (서나[벌], Seona[beol]), 徐耶(伐) (서야[벌], Seoya[beol]), 徐羅(伐) (서라[벌], Seora[beol]), and 徐伐 (서벌, Seobeol). In 503, King Jijeung standardized on the characters 新羅(신라), which in Modern Korean is pronounced "Shilla".

An etymological hypothesis (there are various other speculations) suggests that, the native name Seorabeol might have been the origin of the native word Seoul meaning "capital city" and also the name of the present capital of South Korea, a city which was previously known as Hanseong (漢城) or Hanyang (漢陽). The name of the Silla capital might have been changed into the Late Middle Korean form Syeobeul (셔블) meaning "royal capital city," which soon might have altered into Syeoul (셔울), and finally resulted in Seoul (서울) in the Modern Korean language.

The name of either Silla or its capital Seora-beol was also widely used throughout Northeast Asia as the ethnonym for the people of Silla, appearing as Shiragi in the language of the Yamato Japanese and as Solgo or Solho in the language of the medieval Jurchens and their later descendants, the Manchus, respectively. In the modern Mongolian language, Korea and Koreans are still known as Солонгос Solongos, which seems to be an alteration of Silla influenced by the Mongolian word for "rainbow" (солонго solongo).

Silla was also referred to as Gyerim (鷄林, 계림), literally "chicken forest," a name that has its origins in the forest near the Silla capital where by legend the state's founder was hatched from the egg of a cockatrice (Kor. gyeryong, 雞龍, 계룡, literally "chicken-dragon").


Gold ornament from early Silla.

Scholars have traditionally divided Silla history into three distinct periods: Early (trad. 57 BC–654 AD), Middle (654–780), and Late (780–935).

Shifting of power[edit]

The Park clan held power for three generations before being faced with a coup by the Seok clan. During the reign of the first Seok ruler, Talhae of Silla, the Kim clan's presence in Silla is mentioned in the form of a tale in which Kim Alji is born from a golden box that Hogong discovered. The Park and Seok clans constantly fight each other for power and both are eventually overthrown by the Kim clan. The Kim clan solely rules over Silla for many generations with the Park and Seok clans as nobility. The final ruler of Later Silla, King Gyeongsun, was a member of the Kim clan.




Early Period[edit]


To the west, Baekje had centralized into a kingdom by about 250, by overtaking the Mahan confederacy. To the southwest, Byeonhan was being replaced by the Gaya confederacy. In northern Korea, Goguryeo, a kingdom by about 50 CE, destroyed the last Chinese commandary in 313 and had grown into a threatening regional power.

Emergence of a centralized monarchy[edit]

A golden inner cap. 5-6th century Silla.

King Naemul (356–402) of the Kim clan established a hereditary monarchy, eliminating the rotating power-sharing scheme, and the leader's now truly royal title became Maripgan (from the native Korean roots mari or meori meaning "head" or "hair" and gan or han meaning "great, grand, many, much," which was previously used for ruling princes in southern Korea, and which may have some relationship with the Mongol/Turkic title Khan). In 377, it sent emissaries to China and established relations with Goguryeo.

Facing pressure from Baekje in the west and Japan in the south,[2] in the later part of the 4th century, Silla allied with Goguryeo. However, when Goguryeo began to expand its territory southward, moving its capital to Pyongyang in 427, Nulji was forced to ally with Baekje.



The early period ended with the demise of the "hallowed bone" (seonggol) rank with the death of Queen Jindeok.

Later Silla[edit]

Main article: Unified Silla
An artifact from Silla.
Monarchs of Korea
  1. Hyeokgeose 57 BCE – 4 CE
  2. Namhae 4–24
  3. Yuri 24–57
  4. Talhae 57–80
  5. Pasa 80–112
  6. Jima 112–134
  7. Ilseong 134–154
  8. Adalla 154–184
  9. Beolhyu 184–196
  10. Naehae 196–230
  11. Jobun 230–247
  12. Cheomhae 247–261
  13. Michu 262–284
  14. Yurye 284–298
  15. Girim 298–310
  16. Heulhae 310–356
  17. Naemul 356–402
  18. Silseong 402–417
  19. Nulji 417–458
  20. Jabi 458–479
  21. Soji 479–500
  22. Jijeung 500–514
  23. Beopheung 514–540
  24. Jinheung 540–576
  25. Jinji 576–579
  26. Jinpyeong 579–632
  27. Seondeok 632–647
  28. Jindeok 647–654
  29. Muyeol 654–661
Reliquary from 7th century Silla.







Decline and fall[edit]

The last king of Silla, King Gyeongsun (r. 927–935).

The final century and a half of the Silla state was one of nearly constant upheaval and civil war as the king was reduced to little more than a figurehead and powerful aristocratic families rose to actual dominance outside the capital and royal court.

The tail end of this period, called the Later Three Kingdoms period, briefly saw the emergence of the kingdoms of Later Baekje and Later Goguryeo, which were really composed of military forces capitalizing on their respective region's historic background, and Silla's submission to the Goryeo dynasty.

Society and politics[edit]

A crown from late 5th or early 6th Silla.
Monarchs of Korea
  1. Munmu 661–681
  2. Sinmun 681–691
  3. Hyoso 692–702
  4. Seongdeok 702–737
  5. Hyoseong 737–742
  6. Gyeongdeok 742–765
  7. Hyegong 765–780
  8. Seondeok 780–785
  9. Wonseong 785–798
  10. Soseong 798–800
  11. Aejang 800–809
  12. Heondeok 809–826
  13. Heungdeok 826–836
  14. Huigang 836–838
  15. Minae 838–839
  16. Sinmu 839
  17. Munseong 839–857
  18. Heonan 857–861
  19. Gyeongmun 861–875
  20. Heongang 875–886
  21. Jeonggang 886–887
  22. Jinseong 887–897
  23. Hyogong 897–912
  24. Sindeok 913–917
  25. Gyeongmyeong 917–924
  26. Gyeongae 924–927
  27. Gyeongsun 927–935


Since its emergence as a centralized polity Silla society had been characterized by its strict aristocratic makeup. Silla had two royal classes: "sacred bone" (seonggol, 성골, 聖骨) and "true bone" (jingol, 진골, 眞骨). Up until the reign of King Muyeol this aristocracy had been divided into "sacred bone" and "true bone" aristocrats, with the former differentiated by their eligibility to attain the kingship. This duality had ended when Queen Jindeok, the last ruler from the "sacred bone" class, died in 654.[4] The numbers of "sacred bone" aristocrats had been decreasing, as the title was only conferred to those whose parents were both "sacred bones", whereas children of a "sacred" and a "true bone" parent were considered as "true bones".

The king (or queen) theoretically was an absolute monarch, but royal powers were somewhat constrained by a strong aristocracy.

The "Hwabaek" (화백) served as royal council with decision-making authorities on some vital issues like succession to the throne or declarations of war. The Hwabaek was headed by a person (Sangdaedeung) chosen from the "sacred bone" rank. One of the key decisions of this royal council was the adoption of Buddhism as state religion.[5]



The early Silla military was built around a small number of Silla royal guards designed to protect royalty and nobility and in times of war served as the primary military force if needed. Due to the frequency of conflicts between Baekje and Goguryeo as well as Yamato Japan, Silla created six local garrisons one for each district. The royal guards eventually morphed into "sworn banner" or Sodang units. In 625 another group of Sodang was created. Garrison soldiers were responsible for local defense and also served as a police force.

A number of Silla's greatest generals and military leaders were Hwarang (equivalent to the Western knights or chevaliers). Originally a social group, due to the continuous military rivalry between the Three Kingdoms of Korea, they eventually transformed from a group of elite male aristocratic youth into soldiers and military leaders. Hwarang were key in the fall of Goguryeo (which resulted in the unification of the Korean Peninsula under Unified Silla) and the Silla–Tang Wars, which expelled Tang forces in the other two Korean kingdoms.


The Silla bell was cast in 771 CE.

The capital of the Silla kingdom was Gyeongju. A great number of Silla tombs can still be found in the centre of Gyeongju. Silla tombs took the form of a stone chamber which was surrounded by a soil mound.The historic area around Gyeongju was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2000.[6] Much of it is also protected as part of Gyeongju National Park. Additionally, two villages near Gyeongju area names of which are Hahoe and Yangdong would be submitted for UNESCO heritages in 2008 or later by related cities and the South Korean government.[7] Since the tombs were harder to break into than those of Baekje, a larger amount of objects has been preserved.[8] Notable amongst these are Silla's elaborate gold crowns and jewelry.



The current descendants to the Silla dynasty fall under the Kim name. Family records since the last ruler have been provided, but these records have yet to be fully verified.


This standing statue of the Bhaisajyaguru Buddha is made of gilt bronze, made in the Silla period.




Silla's strong Buddhist nature is also reflected by the thousands of remnant Buddhist stone figures and carvings, mostly importantly on Namsan. The international influence of the Tang Dynasty on these figures and carvings can be witnessed in the hallmarks of a round full form, a stern expression of the face, and drapery that clings to the body, but stylistic elements of native Korean culture can still be identified. [11]

See also[edit]





  1. ^ Retrieved on 2008-03-08
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ Encyclopedia of World History, Vol II, P371 Silla Dynasty, Edited by Marsha E. Ackermann, Michael J. Schroeder, Janice J. Terry, Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur, Mark F. Whitters, ISBN 978-0-8160-6386-4
  4. ^ "성골 [聖骨]". Empas Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2006-08-29. 
  5. ^ The Bone Ranks and Hwabaek
  6. ^ 매일신문
  7. ^ '하회마을·양동마을 세계문화유산 추진
  8. ^ Connor. p. 268.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ^ Buddhism of Silla
  10. ^ Retrieved on 2008-03-08
  11. ^ Birmingham Museum of Art (2010). Birmingham Museum of Art : guide to the collection. [Birmingham, Ala]: Birmingham Museum of Art. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-904832-77-5. 


  • Connor, Mary E. (2009). The Koreas. ABC-CLIO, LLC. 

External links[edit]