The Chosun Ilbo — clearly the Korean standard bearer in the Goguryo “History War” with China — ran some pretty interesting pieces by Dongguk University history professor Yun Myeong-ch’eol on the truly astounding geographic, economic, cultural, and ethnic diversity that characterized the Goguryo kingdom. If anybody wants me to translate them, let me know — I just might do it for the Chosun, anyway — but I will translate the conclusion of his main piece right here:
Like this, Goguryo was a multi-ethnic nation that encompassed, within its broad territory, diverse natural environments and heterogeneous cultures co-existing. It was a unique experience in our history, with the nation possessing mainland, sea, and peninsula territories at the same time, while different cultures lived in harmony with one another.
How did Goguryo’s Korean leaders maintain control over such a far-flung and diverse empire, you might ask? This is how (same writer, mind you):
Goguryo employed a number of ruling methods to control its vast territory and diverse races. In the territories that formed the core of the state, governors were dispatched and direct rule employed, but in those further territories where nomads and hunters lived, Goguryo’s leaders employed indirect rule, guaranteeing their subjects’ territories and ways of life in return for taxes and military manpower. Moreover, through the Jungwon Goguryo Monument [in lovely Ch'ungju] we can see how Goguryo exercised a strong influence on Shilla, which called Goguryo an “elder brother nation” despite Goguryo recognizing Shilla’s independence. In this way, Goguryo exercised influence on a number of levels.
Lee Seon-min points out, however, that Goguryo might not have been the happy little melting pot at first, and this required the introduction of Chinese culture:
Goguryo, which ruled over vast territories and an ethnically and culturally diverse state, needed to find solutions to inter-ethnic tensions and cultural chaos. In order to do this, Goguryo tried to achieve cultural unification, against a backdrop centered on the “Dangun Myth” and the belief that Goguryo’s rulers were “Descendants of Heaven,” by actively accepting China’s high culture.
Goguryo’s founder, Ju-mong, was described as the “Son of Heaven” and “the Son of the Sun and Moon.” Goguryo also stressed its lineage with the Old Chosun (Gojoseon) kingdom by describing Ju-mong as the son of Dangun. The fusion of Heaven and Earth, of Heaven and Water — an element of the Dangun Myth — is an important subject of the wall murals found in Goguryo tombs.
Meanwhile, Goguryo also actively imported high-level ideologies like Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. In 373 AD, during the second year of King Sosurim’s reign, a Confucian High Academy was established in Goguryo’s capital, with smaller private schools for the masses established in the territories. At these schools, loyalty to the nation and unity among society’s constituents was strengthened through the teaching of the Five Classics — Confucianism’s basic texts — and Chinese historical works and literature.
Also in the second year of King Sosurim, Buddhism was brought to Goguryo by the monk Sundo, from Qian Qin Dynasty China. Moreover, we can see that the influence of Taoism was also significant when we see how Taoist hermits and fairies are well represented on Goguryo tomb murals and the Tao Te Ching — Taoism’s basic text — was widely read.
Interesting stuff. And I need not remind you that you can always get your Goguryo fix over at the Chosun’s Ah! Goguryo section.
4 Comments
I do not know much about Koguryo history, but I think people need to be careful when reading some of the newer versions of history that have come out since the China-Korea feud over Koguryo erupted. I fear that Korean nationalist historians may start taking liberties with the written and archaeological evidence of that period to counter claims by Chinese historians. In fact, in a Hankyore article, I read today, a Korean language professor at Daegu Christian University suggests that the Korean government delete passages in Korean high school textbooks that talk about different languages being used on the pennisula during that period of history. The professor is worried that Korean students may begin to question whether Koguryo was really Korean.
Korean high school textbooks say that the Korean pennisula was first divided into two language groups, with the people in the northern half of the pennisula speaking the “puyeo-gye” language and the people in the southern half speaking the “han-gye” language. Later, these two language groups divided into the Koguryo, the Baekje, and the Silla languages. Korean textbooks go on to say that medieval Korean did not really begin to appear until the founding of Koryo.
The professor lamely tries to justify deleting the passages by saying that even though the Chinese text, “Samgukji,” talks about the “puyeo-gye” and “han-gye” languages, it did not actually say that the languages were different. Of course, the professor does not explain why the Chinese text would refer to one language by two different names.
The professor suggests that the person who wrote the section on the history of the Korean language in Korean textbooks might have been influenced by Japanese historians during Korea’s colonial period, which, to some, would be reason enough to delete the passages without question.
Great link! I’ve been looking for something like that. I just wish they would devote sections like that to all parts of Korean history!
I take it from what you translated, the guy didn’t mention anything about “cultural imperialism” or “colonialism” and in fact tried to argue against those notions without directly stating them???
You see this with studies of ancient Egypt too. I’ve watched a good many documentary and read articles by Egyptian and other scholars going out of their way to say that the fabulous construction work done was “not by slaves.” There seems to be a new archeological movement to look at the remains of places around the pyramids and such where the workers lived, and finding such places where workers slept and ate and made crafts and what not — means they weren’t slaves. As if in the US and other areas that had slaves, nothing was done to provide food and shelter and other basic necessities of a large group of people.
Which reminds me of when I was in elementary school and was taught that the Maya people had a garden of Eden type society where they lived in harmony with the land and with other tribal groups. But, many years later, I learned (after they broke the code for the Mayan writing system) that Maya society was just as blood thirsty as and had human sacrifices like the others.
I found out that the interesting ball game that was something like soccer and something like basketball that my elementary teacher spoke glowingly about actually often resulted in the losing team being sacrified. Nice…
I’d like to read a good history book about the northern areas of Korea including Koguryo. I’ve heard no such study has been done, and it is impossible given the current realities jof North Korea and China for that matter.
But, even in the later Chosun period, special govenment policy sought to encourage migration from southern Korea to the norther areas. Things like allowing slaves to move and become free if they settled a piece of land up there. People from the northern half of Korea even this late could also not hold official government posts. They were also administered as military districs which was unique to them alone.
All this seems to tell me that even in later Korean history, this area still had a strong current of “non-Korean-ness” to it. In fact, I believe Manchurian tribal groups were also encouraged to settle in these areas if they would stop raiding and plundering Korean settlements. Which seems to suggest to me that the Koguryo and Parhae dyansties probably had a minority Korean segment (of elites) ruling a majority non-Korean society made up of differing tribes.
Can we say, “Imperialism”? I wouldn’t say that, but if we are going to take post-modern techniques and interpretations, I’d guess we’d have to say it.
Of course, there could have been a mass exodus of ethnic Koreans out of the Manchurian tribal region after the founding of Silla. In fact, if I remember correctly, at the unification of Silla, didn’t the Silla start to send an army up north but they were met by a Koguryo contengent sent by their king to surrender itself to Silla?
But, regardless, if Parhae is considered “Korean” it would be hard to skate around the “imperial” label — as defined in contemporary academia.
This thread is probably a dead letter by now, but just in case . . .
Korea University has a conference starting this Thursday, March 25, 2004, on the issue of Goguryeo. It’s an international conference and is supposed to last for two or three days, with scholars from Korea, China, Japan, Russia, the United States, and other places. I don’t yet know the schedule, but I hope to attend a few sessions. There’s supposed to be a webpage at Korea University’s website, but my wife couldn’t find it. Maybe somebody else will have better luck.
Jeffery Hodges