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Korea
South Korea         North Korea
 Hankuk               Chosun
한국
               조선
韓國
              朝鮮
 The land of the morning calm
Geopolitical Location


                  Manchuria




• Appendage to China
• “Dagger pointed at the heart of Japan”
Geography
Overall Shape?
• What do you see?
Size:
• Roughly equal to Utah
Population: in ‘06
• South Korea: 48,846,823
• North Korea: 23,113,019
Climate:
• Temperate:
• Cold winters
• Hot, wet summers
Topography:
• Mountainous
Divided Nation
• Japanese Occupation 1910
• Divided in 1945
  – Carrot used by US to lure USSR into the Pacific
    phase of WWII
  – 38th Parallel
  – North: Soviet realm… ergo Communist
  – South: US realm … ergo Capitalist
• Korean War: 1950-53
  – Enemies
  – Divided Families
  – No mail, no trade, no visits, no phone calls
Ethnic Homogeneity
“Racially pure,” Unique Race

East Asian or Mongoloid
  racial group
• Strong sense of racial
  identity
• Self-identification as
  distinct from other Asian
  nations
Korean Language
한국어
                       조선말
Altaic Language Group
Structurally identical to Japanese
60% of vocabulary borrowed from Chinese
Distinct from both

Not a tonal language
Regional dialects – Just like U.S.
Korean Language
  한국어
                        조선말
Early Literacy: Chinese
Early Writing: Chinese Characters

1400s Hangul – commissioned by King Sejong
• Phonetic system
• “Simple enough for women & servants”
Writing System
Mixed Writing system
• Chinese root words written in Chinese
  characters
  – 900 characters to pass middle school
  – 1800 characters to pass high school
• Korean Native words written in Hangul
• Typical until 1945
  – North Korea dropped Chinese about 1950
  – Hangul only newspapers in South Korea first
    published in 1988
National Creation Myth:
Tangun 2333 BC
• Hwan-ung (god figure)
• Tiger and Bear want to be
  human
• Live in cave 100 days eating
  mugwort and garlic
• Bear endures and becomes a woman
• She prays for a husband
• Hwan-ung takes her as wife and they bear a
  son, Tangun who governs over the people of
  Korea
                    See
                    http://www.lifeinkorea.com/information/tangun.cfm for
                    a simple but solid version of this story on the web.
Native Religious Traditions
• Animistic religious beliefs
• Shamanism
• Mudang:
  – Korean Shaman
  – Always Female
• Kut:
  – Korean exorcism
  – Ecstatic dance
Native Spiritual /
           Cultural Concepts
• Han
  – Collective burden of historic pain
  – Centuries of oppression
  – Eons of suffering

  – Creates a sorrow, sense of ‘blues’ that is
    unique to Koreans and pervades their art,
    music and culture
Native
  Spiritual
  Concepts
• Nature of the
  Human Soul


     – Similar to China – spirit resides in the environment of
       its life/death.
     – Burial practices similar to China
Native Spiritual Concepts
Ancestor Veneration:
• Chesa
• Enhanced & formalized by Confucianism
• Major part of civil responsibility in later
  Korean history
Borrowed Religious Concepts
• Daoism
  – Focus on nature
  – Fengshui
• Confucianism
• Buddhism



• Christianity – arrives late
Daoist ideas:
Symbolism of the
South Korean Flag
• Center is the Korean version of the Yin-Yang
  symbol
• The four trigrams are:
• ☰; geon ( 건 ; 乾 ) = heaven 天
• ☷; gon ( 곤 ; 坤 ) = earth 地
• ☲; ri ( 리 ; 離 ) = sun 日
• ☵; gam ( 감 ; 坎 ) = moon 月
Fengshui (Chinese)
Pungsu (Korean)
•   Geomancy
•   Wind and Water
•   Used in:
•   Interior decorating
•   Architecture
•   City planning, etc.
                  • 5 Frog Brothers Folk tale…
Confucianism
• Borrowed from China
• Dominant Governing Ideology
  in later dynasties
• Major impact on Korean Culture
  – Hierarchy
  – Ritualism and formality
  – Male dominance
Buddhism
                               • Borrowed from
                                 China
                                 – About 50 CE
                                 – Becomes
                                   important
                                   about 500 CE


• Adopted by early dynasties
• Political dominance early on
• Coexists with Confucianism, Daoism and native
  traditions -- usually
Christianity
• Catholics enter 1774
• Protestants enter 1884

                                                         Myongdong
                                                       Cathedral: Seoul

• Both become politically and socially very
  important
  – Protestants 1900 to the present
  – Catholics briefly about 1800 and again since 1970
     (much more to come in later history discussion)

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Korea: A Geographically Divided Nation with a Unified Cultural Heritage

  • 1. Korea South Korea North Korea Hankuk Chosun 한국 조선 韓國 朝鮮 The land of the morning calm
  • 2. Geopolitical Location Manchuria • Appendage to China • “Dagger pointed at the heart of Japan”
  • 3. Geography Overall Shape? • What do you see? Size: • Roughly equal to Utah Population: in ‘06 • South Korea: 48,846,823 • North Korea: 23,113,019 Climate: • Temperate: • Cold winters • Hot, wet summers Topography: • Mountainous
  • 4. Divided Nation • Japanese Occupation 1910 • Divided in 1945 – Carrot used by US to lure USSR into the Pacific phase of WWII – 38th Parallel – North: Soviet realm… ergo Communist – South: US realm … ergo Capitalist • Korean War: 1950-53 – Enemies – Divided Families – No mail, no trade, no visits, no phone calls
  • 5. Ethnic Homogeneity “Racially pure,” Unique Race East Asian or Mongoloid racial group • Strong sense of racial identity • Self-identification as distinct from other Asian nations
  • 6. Korean Language 한국어 조선말 Altaic Language Group Structurally identical to Japanese 60% of vocabulary borrowed from Chinese Distinct from both Not a tonal language Regional dialects – Just like U.S.
  • 7. Korean Language 한국어 조선말 Early Literacy: Chinese Early Writing: Chinese Characters 1400s Hangul – commissioned by King Sejong • Phonetic system • “Simple enough for women & servants”
  • 8.
  • 9. Writing System Mixed Writing system • Chinese root words written in Chinese characters – 900 characters to pass middle school – 1800 characters to pass high school • Korean Native words written in Hangul • Typical until 1945 – North Korea dropped Chinese about 1950 – Hangul only newspapers in South Korea first published in 1988
  • 10. National Creation Myth: Tangun 2333 BC • Hwan-ung (god figure) • Tiger and Bear want to be human • Live in cave 100 days eating mugwort and garlic • Bear endures and becomes a woman • She prays for a husband • Hwan-ung takes her as wife and they bear a son, Tangun who governs over the people of Korea See http://www.lifeinkorea.com/information/tangun.cfm for a simple but solid version of this story on the web.
  • 11. Native Religious Traditions • Animistic religious beliefs • Shamanism • Mudang: – Korean Shaman – Always Female • Kut: – Korean exorcism – Ecstatic dance
  • 12. Native Spiritual / Cultural Concepts • Han – Collective burden of historic pain – Centuries of oppression – Eons of suffering – Creates a sorrow, sense of ‘blues’ that is unique to Koreans and pervades their art, music and culture
  • 13. Native Spiritual Concepts • Nature of the Human Soul – Similar to China – spirit resides in the environment of its life/death. – Burial practices similar to China
  • 14. Native Spiritual Concepts Ancestor Veneration: • Chesa • Enhanced & formalized by Confucianism • Major part of civil responsibility in later Korean history
  • 15. Borrowed Religious Concepts • Daoism – Focus on nature – Fengshui • Confucianism • Buddhism • Christianity – arrives late
  • 16. Daoist ideas: Symbolism of the South Korean Flag • Center is the Korean version of the Yin-Yang symbol • The four trigrams are: • ☰; geon ( 건 ; 乾 ) = heaven 天 • ☷; gon ( 곤 ; 坤 ) = earth 地 • ☲; ri ( 리 ; 離 ) = sun 日 • ☵; gam ( 감 ; 坎 ) = moon 月
  • 17. Fengshui (Chinese) Pungsu (Korean) • Geomancy • Wind and Water • Used in: • Interior decorating • Architecture • City planning, etc. • 5 Frog Brothers Folk tale…
  • 18. Confucianism • Borrowed from China • Dominant Governing Ideology in later dynasties • Major impact on Korean Culture – Hierarchy – Ritualism and formality – Male dominance
  • 19. Buddhism • Borrowed from China – About 50 CE – Becomes important about 500 CE • Adopted by early dynasties • Political dominance early on • Coexists with Confucianism, Daoism and native traditions -- usually
  • 20. Christianity • Catholics enter 1774 • Protestants enter 1884 Myongdong Cathedral: Seoul • Both become politically and socially very important – Protestants 1900 to the present – Catholics briefly about 1800 and again since 1970 (much more to come in later history discussion)