jangseung means A kind of traditional Korean shamanistic totem pole. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why this word is great
JANGSEUNG — [Noun] A traditional Korean shamanistic totem pole, typically carved from wood or stone and placed at village entrances to serve as a guardian and boundary marker. From Korean 장승 (jangseung). Unlike a sotdae, a spirit pole for prayers concerning harvests, or a totem, a broad symbol of clan lineage, a jangseung is a stark, apotropaic sentinel. It is the crude, wide-eyed visage hewn from a log and planted where the path meets the wilds; the moss-bearded stone figure shouldering centuries of weather; the silent witness to generations passing the gate it guards. They are weary functionaries of the spirit world, a rough-hewn monument to the human need to carve a haven from a raw piece of the world.
noun
- A kind of traditional Korean shamanistic totem pole.