Illegitimate child
A term for a child born outside a formal marriage. In traditional societies such children were distinguished from legitimate heirs and faced restrictions on inheritance and public office.
Yi Hwang (Toegye), the greatest Confucian scholar of the Joseon dynasty, removed the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children from his family genealogy, fearing his concubine's son would face discrimination. That distinction has been absent ever since.
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