• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.96-113
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• 2016

The observation of the classic plant name 'Hwe', that is to be discussed in this thesis, must be primarily conducted in folk plant research made through old documents. Diverse information such as the characteristics, method of use, and distribution of plants is scattered in old documents. However, reviews of classic plant names should be made to use such information. This is because information on plants can only be used after thorough verifications are made of the plant names. 'Hwe' is interpreted as various meanings in Korea but it is mostly used to mean fir, old pine tree, and cypress. However, it is not known by what standards such interpretations have been made. In particular, 'Hwe' is interpreted at the discretion of the translator in classic translations, so direct quotations from these lead to further errors. Therefore, items in classic plant names must be reviewed again. Why is 'Hwe' interpreted in various ways as a plant name and according to what standards should it be interpreted? This study was conducted with these questions. Also, the significance of this study is placed in the setting of guidelines for the interpretation of 'Hwe' so that classic plant names can be properly interpreted and information on plants can be accurately secured.