chiefdom · Korea and Japan

Bihwa Gaya

200 CE – 555 CE (approx.) · capital Changnyeong

A Gaya statelet at Changnyeong on the Nakdong river, the first of the Gaya polities to fall under Silla's sway.

Origins

Bihwa Gaya, called Bisabeol in Silla records, developed from a Byeonhan-era community in the Changnyeong basin on the east bank of the Nakdong. Its large mounded tombs at Gyo-dong and Songhyeon-dong date mainly from the 5th century.

Rule and society

Little is recorded of its rulers. The tomb goods, including gilt-bronze crowns and stoneware in Silla style, show that the local elite was drawn into Silla's orbit early while keeping its own burial grounds, and the polity served as a gateway between Silla and the western Gaya states.

Decline and legacy

Silla established a province at Bisabeol in 555 and King Jinheung erected a stele there in 561 recording his tour and naming his officials, marking the area's full incorporation. The tombs of Songhyeon-dong yielded a well-preserved sacrificed girl, reconstructed in 2008.

Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.

Connections (2)

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Bihwa Gaya. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/bihwa-gaya
MLA
“Bihwa Gaya.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/bihwa-gaya. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Bihwa Gaya.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/bihwa-gaya.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Bihwa Gaya’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/bihwa-gaya (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻