A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict
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A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict
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Overview
Contemporary North and South Korea are nations of radical contrasts: one a bellicose totalitarian state with a failing economy; the other a peaceful democracy with a strong economy. Yet their people share a common history that extends back more than three thousand years. In this comprehensive new history of Korea from the prehistoric era to the present day, Jinwung Kim recounts the rich and fascinating story of the political, social, cultural, economic, and diplomatic developments in Korea’s long march to the present. He provides a detailed account of the origins of the Korean people and language and the founding of the first walled-town states, along with the advanced civilization that existed in the ancient land of “Unified Silla.” Clarifying the often complex history of the Three Kingdoms Period, Kim chronicles the five-century long history of the Choson dynasty, which left a deep impression on Korean culture. From the beginning, China has loomed large in the history of Korea, from the earliest times when the tribes that would eventually make up the Korean nation roamed the vast plains of Manchuria and against whom Korea would soon define itself. Japan, too, has played an important role in Korean history, particularly in the 20th century; Kim tells this story as well, including the conflicts that led to the current divided state. The first detailed overview of Korean history in nearly a quarter century, this volume will enlighten a new generation of students eager to understand this contested region of Asia.
“Using the latest sources, including recently declassified Communist documents, Jinwung Kim’s book holds promise of becoming the textbook of choice. Benefiting from his direct and intimate knowledge of the country, he writes with great clarity, providing rich and interesting descriptions of political, social, cultural, economic, and diplomatic developments throughout the history of Korea.” —James I. Matray, California State University, Chico
“A clearly written, comprehensive, and impressively detailed work.” —Journal of Asian Studies
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780253000781 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Indiana University Press |
| Publication date: | 12/22/2021 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 708 |
| Sales rank: | 612,394 |
| File size: | 3 MB |
| Age Range: | 18 Years |
About the Author
Jinwung Kim is Professor of History at Kyungpook National University in Taegu, South Korea. He has published widely on South Korean–U.S. relations, with a particular focus on South Korean perceptions of the United States.
Read an Excerpt
A History of Korea
From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict
By Jinwung Kim
Indiana University Press
Copyright © 2012 Kim JinwungAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-253-00078-1
CHAPTER 1
DAWN OF THE KOREAN NATION
THE PREHISTORIC AGE
The Paleolithic Age
As a nation, Korea has a long history. The archeological finds suggest that, at some point in the misty past, tiny bands of tribesmen inhabiting the lands along the Altai Mountains of Central Asia began making their way eastward in the eternal quest for the "land of life" (the East), moving into Manchuria and the Korean peninsula. The habitation of early men in the Korean peninsula started as early as 700,000 years ago. Some North Koreans claim that the peninsula may have been inhabited for a million years. Until now Paleolithic remains, dating about 700,000 to 8,000 years ago, have been excavated in various parts of the Korean peninsula, from the Tumen River basin to the north to Cheju-do Island to the south. The most important Paleolithic sites, amounting to more than a hundred, are mostly found at the sides of big rivers.
The best-known sites of the Early Paleolithic Age, which ended approximately 100,000 years ago, include those at Sangwon county (Komunmoru cave and Yonggok-ni) in the Taedong River basin, at Yonch'on county (Chon'gok-ni) in the Hant'an River basin, at Chech'on city (Chommal cave of P'ojon-ni) and Tanyang city (Kumgul cave) in the South Han River basin, and at P'aju county (Chuwol-ri and Kawol-ri) in the Imjin River basin. The sites of the MiddlePaleolithic Age, dating about 100,000 to 40,000 years ago, include those at Unggi county (Kulp'o-ri) in the Tumen River basin, at Sangwon county (Yonggok-ni) and the Yokp'o area of Pyongyang in the Taedong River basin, at Tokch'on county (Sungni-san) in the Ch'ongch'on River basin, at Yanggu county (Sangmuryong-ni) in the North Han River basin, at Yonch'on county (Namgye-ri), Yangp'yong county (Pyongsan-ni), Chech'on city (Myongo-ri), and Tanyang city (Suyanggae cave) in the South Han River basin, and on Chejudo (Pile-mot pond). The sites of the Late Paleolithic Age, dating about 40,000 to 8,000 years ago, include those at Unggi county (Kulp'o-ri [the upper layer] and Pup'o-ri), Pyongyang (Mandal-ri) in the Taedong River basin, Kongju city (Sokchang-ni) and Ch'ongwon county (Turubong cave) in the Kum River basin, Hwasun county (Taejon-ni), Koksong county (Chewol-ri), and Sunch'on city (Chungnae-ri) in the Somjin River basin. Given the wide distribution of these sites, it is presumed that Paleolithic men lived in virtually every part of the Korean peninsula.
At the remains mentioned above, Paleolithic stone tools such as choppers, scrappers, hand axes, and cleavers have been unearthed. Choppers and scrappers were mainly used to take animal meat off the bones. Hand axes and cleavers were later produced for many purposes. At Sangwon county and Yonggokni, fossilized human bones were uncovered. Although North Koreans argue that these bones may date back to 500,000 to 1,000,000 years ago, interpretations have varied on the estimated dating.
In the Paleolithic Age the implements needed for hunting were fashioned by chipping stone. At first a lump of rock, flint stone in particular, was struck until a usable tool with sharp edges or points was produced. Later a number of pieces that had been broken off were also given additional edge or sharpness by chipping or flaking and then were utilized as implements. This improvement in tool-making methods allowed access to a wide range and amount of food sources, and was essential to the invention of bows and spear throwers. Bone implements made of animal bones and horns were also used for fishing.
Paleolithic men at first lived in caves, and later they began to build dugouts on level ground. Instances of the former are found at the Komunmoru cave (Sangwon county) and at the Chommal cave (P'ojon-ni, Chech'on city), and the latter is illustrated by a dwelling site at Sokchang-ni. A hearth, together with animal figures of a bear, a dog, and a tortoise, radiocarbon-dated to 20,000 years old, has been unearthed at Sokchang-ni. The existence of a hearth demonstrates that fire was used both for heating and for cooking food.
These Paleolithic men were grouped together in small-scale societies such as bands and gained their subsistence from hunting wild animals as well as gathering fruit, berries, and edible plant roots. They also gathered firewood and materials for their tools, clothes, and shelters. The invention of harpoons allowed fish to become part of human diets. At Sangwon county, many fossilized fauna remains from the diet of early humans have been discovered. By the late Paleolithic period, beginning about 40,000 years ago, Paleolithic people had begun to carve animal images on the walls of caves, demonstrating their simple artistic activity.
Whether these Paleolithic people were the ancestors of present-day Koreans is difficult to know. The Paleolithic Age lasted for an extensive period, and presumably, upon experiencing a succession of glacial eras, Paleolithic men periodically perished and were replaced by newcomers or survivors migrated to other warmer areas.
The Neolithic Age
About 6,000 BC the tribes on the Korean peninsula began to pass from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic Age. It is presumed that the late Paleolithic people on the Korean peninsula evolved into the early Neolithic people, because when the Paleolithic evolved into the Neolithic Age the Korean peninsula experienced no rapid increase in population and pottery found in some areas of Korea predated pottery discovered in Siberia and Mongolia. These original natives were supplemented by Neolithic newcomers who migrated from Siberia. Numerous sites of the Neolithic period have been found on the Korean peninsula, particularly along the Taedong River near Pyongyang and the Han River near Seoul, and in the Naktong River estuary near Pusan. The best-known sites include those at Tongsam-dong on Yong-do Island off Pusan, Amsa-dong in Seoul, and Misa-ri in Kwangju city, in the Han River basin; Kulp'o-ri at Unggi county, in the Tumen River basin; and Kumt'an-ni and Ch'ongho-ri near Pyongyang, in the Taedong River basin.
Neolithic men were characterized by their ability to make polished stone tools and to manufacture and use pottery. By polishing stone, they produced sharp knives, spears, and arrowheads. They also manufactured a range of stone tools for farming. The polished stone axe, above all other tools, made forest clearance feasible on a large scale. As a result, Neolithic people were able to enjoy more conveniences in their lives than their Paleolithic predecessors. Their greatest technical invention was the use of pottery. At first they manufactured plain, round- bottomed pottery, and then, from sometime around 4000 BC, a new type of pottery called chulmun t'ogi (comb-pattern pottery) appeared on the Korean peninsula and became characteristic of Korea's Neolithic Age. Comb-pattern pottery was gray in color with a V- shaped pointed bottom, and was distinguished by designs on the entire outer surface of parallel lines (comb-patterning, cord-wrapping decorations) that resembled markings made by a comb. The comb-pattern design was added to prevent cracks on the surface. Mainly used to store grains, this pottery has been found at numerous Neolithic sites throughout the Korean peninsula. The wide distribution of the pottery in Manchuria, Siberia, and Mongolia indicates that Neolithic men on the Korean peninsula bore cultural ties with the Ural-Altaic regions.
Around 2000 BC a third pottery culture, originating in central China, spread into the Korean peninsula from Manchuria, and was characterized by painted designs marked by waves, lightning, and skeins on the outer surface and the flat bottom. Much of this newly introduced pottery has been found in the western and southern coastal regions and the river basins. Stone plowshares, stone sickles, and stone hoes have been discovered with carbonated millet at the remains of this new pottery culture, indicating that stone implements and harvested grains were stored in pottery.
Like previous Paleolithic settlers, these Neolithic people first lived by hunting, fishing, and gathering. By about 4000 BC, however, people had learned to plant grains, especially millet, using horn or stone hoes to dig and stone sickles to harvest. An incipient farming culture appeared in which small-scale shifting ("slash-and-burn") cultivation was practiced in addition to various other subsistence strategies. Carbonated millet found at the remain at Chit'am-ni (Pongsan county in Hwanghae province) attests to this early farming culture. These Neolithic people practiced agriculture in a settled communal life, organized into familial clans. They also domesticated and raised livestock such as dogs and pigs. They used nets to catch fish and learned to fish with hook and line.
These Neolithic people turned animal skins to good account for clothing. They scraped away flesh for food with stone knives and then sewed skins together using bone needles made of deer horns. People later wove cloth from animal fur or plant fibers, especially hemp, with primitive spindles, and their clothes were often adorned with shells or beads.
Once they began farming, the growing need to spend more time and labor tending crops required more localized dwellings, and so Neolithic men increasingly moved from a nomadic to a sedentary existence. As a result, permanent or seasonally inhabited settlements appeared. Mainly living in pit dwellings, they built huts in round or rectangular dugouts, with posts set up to support a straw thatch covering to protect against the wind and the rain. The rough ground was covered by platforms, mats, and skins on which residents slept. One to several hearths were placed in the center of the floor of the dwelling and used for cooking and heating. Storage pits for storing grains and instruments were located beside the hearth or near the entrance, which faced south to benefit from the sunlight. Five or six family members inhabited a dwelling pit.
The basic unit of Neolithic society was the clan, which was bound together by its distinct bloodline. Economically independent and self-sufficient, each clan formed its own village. Economic activities within territories claimed by other clans were prohibited, and such a violation would incur either punishment or compensation. Despite this tight-knit economic life, exogamous marriage was common, and spouses were invariably sought from other clans. Neolithic society, in a word, was relatively simple and egalitarian.
Neolithic clans held totemic beliefs in which they worshiped objects in the natural world, namely certain animals or plants, as their ancestors. In its worship of a specific totemic object with which it closely identified, a clan differentiated itself from others. Neolithic men also had animistic beliefs, as they were convinced that every object in the natural world possessed a soul. They therefore worshiped mountains, rivers, and trees. Foremost among natural objects to be worshiped was the sun, considered the greatest being in the universe, which they called hanunim, or heavenly god. Man, too, was believed to have an immortal soul which would ultimately return to heaven where God resided. Thus, when a man died, he was said to "return" to nature and, in burying the man's body, his corpse was laid with its head facing eastward, in the direction of the sunrise.
The cult of heaven and the spirits caused Neolithic men to look upon a shaman, who was believed to have the ability to link human beings with heavenly god and the spirits, as the greatest figure. Neolithic people believed that, by virtue of his authority and on behalf of God, a shaman could drive off evil spirits and evoke good spirits so as to produce positive results, such as fecundity, longevity, and the complete cure of diseases. It was these shamans who filled the roles of clan and tribal leader in the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. The Neolithic Age is worthy of examination, since men of this early period were the ancestors of present-day Koreans.
THE ORIGINS OF THE KOREAN PEOPLE
The Bronze Age
In the first millennium BC the tribal peoples of Korea passed from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. The Bronze Age began in Manchuria between approximately the fifteenth and thirteenth centuries BC and on the Korean peninsula in the tenth century BC. Because Korea's Bronze culture was closely linked to the founding of Old Choson, whose territory included southern Manchuria, the Bronze culture in Manchuria must be examined along with that on the Korean peninsula. By the tenth century BC people in Manchuria and the Korean peninsula had learned to fashion tools, utensils, and weapons of bronze. They also learned to cultivate rice, developed new forms of political and social organization, and constructed great tombs of stone. These were initiated by new settlers, who were differentiated from the native Neolithic people.
Toward the end of the Neolithic Age a new wave of migration from the north arrived in Manchuria and the Korean peninsula, increasing the region's population and bringing with them Bronze Age technology and undecorated pottery. Numerous Bronze sites have been found in southern Manchuria and throughout the Korean peninsula, particularly in the southern tip of the Liaodong peninsula and the river basins of the Tumen, Taedong, Imjin, Han, Kum, Yongsan, and Naktong rivers.
Two typical instruments representing Korea's Bronze culture are the mandolin-shaped copper dagger and the multi-knobbed coarse-patterned mirror, neither of which have not been discovered outside southern Manchuria and the Korean peninsula. In the fourth century BC the mandolin- shaped copper dagger, used mainly for rites, evolved into a more sophisticated finely wrought bronze dagger, and the multi-knobbed coarse-patterned mirror, also used in rituals, developed into a more polished multi-knobbed fine-patterned mirror. Still using comb-pattern pottery, Bronze Age men also manufactured a new type of pottery, mumun t'ogi, or undecorated pottery. Far more refined than comb-pattern pottery, this type of pottery has thicker walls and displays a wider variety of shapes, indicating improvements in kiln technology. This new un-decorated pottery represents Korea's Bronze Age pottery. It has been unearthed only in southern Manchuria and the Korean peninsula.
Remains of Korea's Bronze culture are predominantly found on higher ground overlooking wide and fertile flatlands along river courses, which suggests that the Bronze Age settlers mainly engaged in agriculture. These people plowed fields with stone plowshares, hoes, and wooden plows, cultivating millet, Indian millet, barnyard millet, barley, and beans. By the eighth century BC rice cultivation had begun in some warm regions. A large amount of carbonated rice, excavated at Hunam-ni in Yoju city in the South Han River basin, at Songgung-ni in Puyo county in the Kum River basin, and in shell heaps in Kimhae city in the lower reaches of the Naktong River, suggests that rice was brought into Korea's southern and western coastal areas from China's Yangtze River valley. Crescent-shaped stone knives seem to have been used at harvest time to cut rice stalks, and grooved stone axes served to cut down trees and turn over the soil preparatory to planting.
In the Bronze Age round pit dwellings, or dugouts, gradually went out of use and were replaced by huts. The huts, rectangular in shape and built on stone foundations with supporting pillars, were partitioned into rooms serving different purposes. Dwelling sites were grouped into settlements. A cluster of dwelling sites has been found in a single location, suggesting that settlements increasingly grew.
Bronze Age men used delicately polished stone swords and arrowheads as well as bronze swords and spears to hunt animals or conduct wars. The existence of these bronze weapons implies that conquest by warfare was common in this period and that Bronze Age people could presumably gain easy ascendancy over Neolithic men who were armed with stone weapons. At the same time, as a small number of influential individuals monopolized bronze farming implements and weapons, they were able to produce more plentiful agricultural products and seize greater spoils from war. In these ways they commanded greater power and wealth, and gradually emerged as chieftains. These chieftains were armed with bronze spears and mounted horses decorated with bronze ornaments. To demonstrate their authority, these privileged individuals were ornamented with mandolin-shaped copper daggers, multi-knobbed coarse-patterned mirrors, and bronze bells. These articles, which lent prestige and authority to the personages who wielded great power, were used as ritual symbols of authority for the chieftains, who fancied themselves as the sons of heaven.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from A History of Korea by Jinwung Kim. Copyright © 2012 Kim Jinwung. Excerpted by permission of Indiana University Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
I. Dawn of the Korean Nation
1. The Prehistoric Age
2. The Origins of the Korean People
3. Old Chosŏn
4. Confederated Kingdoms
II. The Period of the Three Kingdoms (57 BCE — 676 CE)
5. The Growth of Koguryŏ
6. The Rise and Decline of Paekche
7. The Rise and Growth of Silla
8. The Rise and Fall of Kaya
9. Silla's Unification
10. Political and Social Structure of the Three Kingdoms
11. Culture of the Three Kingdoms
12. The Three Kingdoms and Japan
13. "History War" with China
III. Parhae, Unified Silla, and the Later Three Kingdoms (676 — 936)
14. Parhae's Rise and Growth
15. Government and Society of Unified Silla
16. Flourishing Culture of Unified Silla
17. The Later Three Kingdoms
IV. The First Half of the Koryŏ Period (918 —1170)
18. Forging a Centralized Government
19. Ruling Structure
20. Economic and Social Structure
21. Foreign Relations in the Early Koryŏ Period
22. Development of Aristocratic Culture
V. The Second Half of the Koryŏ Period (1170 – 1392)
23. Disturbing Koryŏ Society
24. Koryŏ and the Mongols
25. The Downfall of Koryŏ
VI. The First Half of the Chosŏn Period (1392 – 1650)
26. Establishment of a New Order
27. Reorganization of the Ruling Structure
28. Social Structure and Economic Life
29. Territorial Expansion and Foreign Relations
30. Culture in Early Chosŏn
31. The Growth of the Neo-Confucian Literati
32. The Struggle with the Japanese and Manchus
VII. The Second Half of the Chosŏn Period (1650 – 1910)
33. The Revival of the Dynasty
34. The Rehabilitation of Culture
35. The Dynasty in Disturbance
36. Culture in the 19th Century
37. Politics of the Taewŏn'gun
38. The Open Door Policy and the Reform Movement
39. The Tonghak Peasant War and the Kabo Reform
40. Japanese Aggression and the Downfall of Chosŏn
VIII. The Period of Japanese Colonial Rule (1910 – 1945)
41. Government by Bayonet and the March First Movement
42. Japan's Shift to the "Cultural Policy" and Korean Nationalism
43. Japan's Tightening Grip on Korea and Korean Nationalism
44. Japan's Historical Distortions
45. Wartime Policy of the Allied Powers on Korea
IX. Liberation, Division, and War (1945 – 1953)
46. From Occupation to a Separate Government in South Korea
47. Economic and Social Problems in South Korea
48. North Korea after Liberation
49. The Two Koreas before the Korean War
50. The Korean War
X. The Period of Postwar Reconstruction (1953 – 1971)
51. The Establishment of Authoritarian Rule in South Korea
52. South Korean Economy and Society
53. South Korea's Relations with the United States and Japan
54. The Rise of the Juche (Chuch'e) State in North Korea
55. The North Korean Economy
56. North Korea's Foreign Relations
XI. Reversal of Fortune (1972 – 1992)
57. From Autocratic Rule to Democracy in South Korea
58. The Prospering South Korean Economy
59. Militaristic South Korean Society
60. South Korea's Foreign Relations
61. The Totalitarian State in North Korea
62. The North Korean Economy
63. North Korea's Foreign Relations
64. North-South Korean Relations
XII. Both Koreas in a New Phase (1993 – the Present)
65. South Korean Democracy in Full Bloom
66. South Korean Economy and Society
67. The Faltering Juche State in North Korea
68. North Korea's WMD Program
69. North-South Korean Relations
70. Shaking the ROK-U.S. Alliance
71. South Korea's Relations with Neighboring Countries
72. The Prospects for Reunification
Timeline of Korean History
Select Bibliography
Index
What People are Saying About This
Using the latest sources, including recently declassified Communist documents, Jinwung Kim's book holds promise of becoming the textbook of choice. Benefiting from his direct and intimate knowledge of the country, he writes with great clarity, providing rich and interesting descriptions of political, social, cultural, economic, and diplomatic developments throughout the history of Korea.