Your KOREAN Hojuk and your ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk) may contain DIFFERENT information.
PREFACE:
I began my search in late 2017, in the age before ChatGPT and reliable instant translation of Korean. I may as well have begun my search in the stone age, Korean translation wise.
Now, in the age of ChatGPT, I have been able to further analyze my documents to put a few more pieces of the puzzle together.
My point in sharing my KOREAN and ENGLISH Hojuks below is to encourage you to get your KOREAN Hojuk translated, if you have one — since there MAY be important DIFFERENCES between your Korean and English Hojuks, as well!
(This will of course depend upon your case).
Even though I have had my documents translated by various live translators over the years, it has taken me years to really understand the context and purpose of my Korean and English adoption documents.
For the past few years, since ChatGPT has come along, I’ve been able to analyze my documents on my own, which has greatly aided in my comprehension of them as I continue to investigate my and my twin’s separate adoption cases.
I would always HIGHLY recommend that you hire a real Korean translator to translate any important documents which relate to birth family search — but for general and recreational purposes, ChatGPT and other AI based translators are amazing. They are definitely NOT perfect — and you can go down some seriously bad rabbit holes if you rely on them for everything — but compared to using older instant translators such as Google Translate and Papago — ewwwwww — ChatGPT is effing amazing. This is especially the case if you just want to get the overall sense of a document’s purpose.
I recently used ChatGPT to analyze my KOREAN Hojuk.
It’s SO important to understand that when you have a KOREAN and an ENGLISH version of a certain type of document — such as a Hojuk — you should NOT assume that the English translation of the original KOREAN document is exactly the same as the KOREAN document!!!
You should get any KOREAN documents translated — even if you have ENGLISH translations of these documents which have been provided by your Korean or Western Adoption Agencies. You never know what important information was NOT translated from Korean to English!!!
Such is the case between my KOREAN Hojuk and my ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk). Most (though not all) KSS Adoptees have a highly falsified ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk). Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk) typically states that the child is the Family Chief and that there is “NO RECORD” for either Mother or Father. Sometimes “Hanyang” is used as the place of origin for the child, but this just means Seoul. Essentially, the Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk) was usually (though not always) a highly falsified document designed to sever the child from her or his TRUE origins, in order to make the child more easily adoptable to the West.
This is widely known as “Orphanization”. You can read about this topic below:
Orphanization
Orphanization Part II
Several past live translators have noticed that my KOREAN Hojuk mentions a clan name which is related to BUSAN. However, Busan is not mentioned in any of my English facing adoption documents. Therefore, it’s possible that there is a connection in my case to Busan. I’ll likely never know. But my point is that there is NO reference to this Busan based clan name in my ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk). And I would NOT know this without having live translators look at my KOREAN Hojuk — since I, like most Korean Adoptees, do NOT read Korean.
Surprise, surprise — my Korean and English HOJUK documents contain DIFFERENT information!
Anyhoo, the documents are below. I hope these documents serve as a basis of comparison for your own documents. And I hope that you will get your KOREAN Hojuk translated, if you have one!
Please note that all former KSS files are now at NCRC’s Temporary Storage Facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do. Please see:
ALL Adoptees Start Here! General Birth Family Search Steps Through NCRC — Overview
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Below:
My KOREAN Hojuk.
This KOREAN document mentions a Busan based clan (family) name (which I have redacted).
However, there is NO Busan based clan name mentioned in my ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk).
I’m pretty sure my adoptive parents have always had this document. I just never had it translated until after I began my birth family search back in late 2017. I don’t think anyone noticed that this document mentions a Busan based clan (family) name until around 2021.
“Thanks” for the endless mysteries, KSS!
Image credit: www.paperslip.org
This image may not be used without permission.
Image credit: www.paperslip.org
This image may not be used without permission.
Above:
Hojuk (Korean):
This document does not have a title, but it is the KOREAN version of the English translated “HOJUKDUNGBON” (Orphan Hojuk).
Please note that in my own documents, there is a reference in my KOREAN Hojuk (above) to a Busan based clan name that is NOT mentioned in my ENGLISH HOJUKDUNGBON (Orphan Hojuk). It’s hard to know what this really means in the context of my own case.
If you have a KOREAN Hojuk, you should try to get it translated, as it may include information which is DIFFERENT from your ENGLISH “Hojukdungbon” (Orphan Hojuk) which is often falsified.
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I asked ChatGPT what type of document this was, on April 17th, 2026.
ChatGPT said:
“This is an old Korean family registry record (호적, hojeok) page.
More specifically, it appears to be a family register entry used before the modern resident registration system, likely from the mid-20th century.
These documents recorded:
* Household head and family members
* Birth dates
* Changes in name (including Chinese characters/hanja)
* Marriage, adoption, or legal status changes
* Address (like the Seoul Dobong-gu Ssangmun-dong address at the top)
A few clues from the image:
* The structured table format with fields like “부 / 모” (father/mother) and “전호주와의 관계” (relationship to former head of household)
* Official stamps and handwritten entries
* References to administrative authorities (e.g., district office and court approval)
* Use of both Hangul and Hanja for names and numbers
This type of document was the primary legal proof of identity and family relationships in Korea before 2008, when it was replaced by the modern Family Relations Registration system (가족관계등록부).
ChatGPT said:
If you want, I can help translate the handwritten portions or explain specific entries.”
I said:
Yes
ChatGPT said:
“Here’s a careful breakdown of the key handwritten and printed parts of your document:
Top (Address)
Already covered, but confirmed again:
→ Seoul, Dobong-gu, Ssangmun-dong, Lot 533-3
Header line (printed + handwritten date)
→ “On [year/month/day], by investigation of the Dobong-gu district office, a family register was newly
established.”
This means this page records the creation of a new family registry (일가 창립).
Main person (center section)
* 성별: 녀 → Female
* 본 (origin clan): (redacted) clan
* 이름 (Name): (written in hanja) (redacted)
Family relationship section
* Labels like:
* 부 (father)
* 모 (mother)
* 전호주와의 관계 (relationship to previous head of household)
These fields are mostly blank here, suggesting:
* This person is being registered independently or as a new household head, not under an existing family entry.
Birth date (right side)
Bottom line (legal change entry)
→ “On [date], with permission of the Seoul Family Court, the surname was established as (redacted) and the clan origin as (redacted).
This is important:
* It indicates a legal creation or change of surname and clan origin, likely through:
* Adoption
* Legitimation
* Or restoration/creation of family lineage
What this document is saying overall
This record documents:
* A female born (redacted)
* Named (redacted)
* Who became the founder of a new family registry
* With surname (redacted) and clan (redacted)
* Approved by the Seoul Family Court”
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Let’s compare my KOREAN Hojuk to my ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk), shall we?
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Hojukdungbon
(HOJUKDUNGBON)
English version of the:
Family / Birth Registration (Orphan Hojuk) / Hojukdungbon
This may alternately be called:
“Certificate of Orphanhood”
This form is in English.
Notably, this ENGLISH Hojukdungbon (Orphan Hojuk) has NO mention of the Busan based clan which is mentioned in my KOREAN Hojuk.
My point in sharing my KOREAN and ENGLISH Hojuks is to encourage you to get your KOREAN Hojuk translated, if you have one — since there MAY be important DIFFERENCES between your Hojuks, as well!
Image credit: Paperslip.org.
This is a document from the adoption documents which my adoptive parents had since the time of my adoption.