Ki Jang Medals 기장 (記章) The way I am using the term Ki Jang is not quite accurate. The term actually includes: badges, insignia, medals and decorations. I use it on this site for ‘Medals’, and when necessary I will use other Korean terms for badges, insignia, etc.
For those of you who wish to do a little research of your own, the Korean word Ki Jang 기장 is also used for millet, the length of a suit, the badge on a flag, register, entry, and for a plane captain or crew chief. You will especially see the word “captain” when using the Google Translator, but if you search for 기장 using Google Search, you mostly see millet.
Ki Jang Medals are at the bottom level of the Korean award system. These are the various commemorative medals, war service medals, campaign, long service and other misc. medals. The Decorations and Awards Division of the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs strictly controls Korean Orders, Merit Medals, and Presidential Commendations, but has never controlled Ki Jang. The administration of these medals is controlled by various ministries and bureaus, which is often confusing. For example, a number of awards for the Police were originally controlled by the Ministry of Defense. Researching Ki Jang is very difficult, because most of the government ministries / bureaus simply do not want to be bothered, and will not give any assistance. Consequently, it can be a very frustrating experience trying to get any meaningful information. I have been able to gather a great deal of material on these medals, but there is still much more that needs to be uncovered.