N. Korea Leader’s Forefather
It has been found that the burial ground of the father of Ko Yeong-hee, who is the mother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, is on Jeju Island. This is the first time that the presence of the grave has been officially confirmed in the island, although rumors have spread that the grandfather of Kim Jong-un came from Jeju Island.
The burial ground of him and his family members is 2,000 m2 in area, housing the graves of Kim Jong-un’s maternal grandfather Ko Kyeong-taek, great-grandfather Ko Yeong-ok, and 12 others. One of them has a burial mound. Out of the 13 without a burial mound, those of Ko Kyeong-taek, who died in North Korea, and his younger brother Ko Kyenog-seon have no bodies.
Kim Jong-un’s grandfather moved to Japan in 1929 and fathered three children, including Ko Yeong-hee, there. After that, Ko Yeong-hee worked as a dressmaker in Japan, lost her job and then moved to the North in 1962 with her family. In North Korea, she lived with Kim Jong-il and gave birth to Kim Jong-cheol, Kim Jong-un, and Kim Yeo-jeong.