[KS] perspectives on Korean history

[Joel Bradshaw]

In the global competition for the prize of "most invaded territory" in history,
I suspect Korea would be eliminated in the early rounds, even in its favored
"most invaded peninsula" division. And the competition in the "most invaded
steppe" division is far more brutal. (In the "most invaded archipelago"
division, Japan--and Hawai'i--would probably not even be invited to the
tournament, despite their devastating recent histories.)

Even within the Eurasian peninsula division, the Anatolian, Balkan, Italian, and
Iberian peninsulas have certainly compiled far more impressive records than the
Korean peninsula, especially if you include coastal piracy. Sure, the Korean
peninsula has been invaded more than the Japanese archipelago over the last
couple of millennia, but both are in the bush leagues in the global scheme of
things. At least, that's how it looks from this distance.

Joel
--
Joel Bradshaw <bradshaw at hawaii.edu>
Journals & Web Manager, University of Hawai'i Press
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