[Nam Ku-mancha Unroho Yakjeon, Mijaeposthumous title Munchung] (b Uinyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, 1629; d 1711). Korean calligrapher, painter, and scholar–official. Active during the Joseon period (1392–1910), he passed the civil service examination in 1656 and served in many important posts, such as governor of Hamgyeong Province, before becoming chief minister. In calligraphy he followed the famous mid-17th-century Korean calligrapher, Song Jun-gil (1606–1671). In the 17th century Korean calligraphers developed styles independent of Chinese influence as a result of the Manchu invasion of Korea in 1636 and the ensuing struggle for independence by the Koreans. The Ssangsu-jong Gijok-bi (1708), a stele erected to commemorate the pacification of Yi Gwal’s uprising (1624) in Kongju, South Chungcheong Province, shows Nam Gu-man’s unique style of character composition: each character conveys a great sense of movement even though it is in regular script, which is usually regarded as stable. Each stroke has greater modulation and curve than are usual in regular script, especially in strokes that curve to the right. Nam’s other calligraphic works include the ...