Prostitute
courtesans, prostitutes.
No, they are not. They are female entertainers. They dance, sing, recite poems or simply talk to entertain their clients. Some do sleep with them, but it's not a necessity. Also, Kisaengs were of low social status, but they were still widely respected.
So basically like a host?
Yea, kinda. Well, not exactly, since the historical context is of course very different, but their work is quite similar actually haha.
*small correction: i just realised I made it sound like it wasn't unusual for Kisaengs to sleep with their clients, which is not true. It did happen, but it was way more common to not do it and in many cases the Kisaengs didn't do it willingly either.
What exactly is a kisaeng??