[KS] Chinese influence in Korea

Hilary K Josephs hkjoseph at law.syr.edu
Fri Jul 1 12:58:11 EDT 2011


Dear colleagues:

By way of introduction I am a new member to this list. I received a Ph.D. in premodern Chinese history and literature, went to law school, and taught in US. law schools for more than 25 years. My most recent research project involved the household registration system (hukou zhidu) and the system of ethnic preferences (minzu shibie) in contemporary China. A complete CV can be accessed at law.syr.edu.

In connection with this recent project I read some works on the Qing dynasty and Manchu-Chinese relations. When I was an undergraduate I had been taught that the Manchus "simply" were assimilated and lost their separate ethnic identity. Recent research disputes that conclusion. How Chinese influence spread throughout Asia but local peoples retained their own languages and distinct customs is a very interesting subject, with important consequences for international order.

1. My first question concerns the presence (or absence) of ethnic Han Chinese communities in Korea. In correspondence with George Kallender, who teaches Korean history at SU, I learned that there was migration from China to Korea in the early dynasties, but those families became Koreanized and today are only identifiable by their surnames. Then, during the late Qing, a small community of Chinese merchants was established in Incheon. The numbers of overseas Chinese华侨 in modern Korea is very low. May one conclude that there was essentially no Han Chinese migration to Korea during the Ming and Qing dynasties, even though Korea participated in the Chinese tribute system?

2. My second question concerns the study of the Confucian classics in Korea. Maybe five years ago I found a photograph of a historical re-enactment of the Korean civil service examinations. The "examinees" are dressed in traditional Korean costume and are sitting cross-legged in a palace courtyard in Seoul. Under the traditional system did people preparing for the exams have to study the same curriculum that was studied in China (Confucius, Mencius, etc.)? Was it possible for Koreans to take the civil service exam in China? Even after the beginning of the Japanese occupation, would it have been possible for a Korean child to get a solid education in the Confucian classics? Certainly the Confucian classics--indeed all of traditional Chinese history and literature--were intensely studied in Japan. The Japanese produced monumental works like the Morohashi dictionary and Takikawa's edition of Sima Qian.

Unfortunately I cannot read Korean. I can read Chinese, Japanese, and French.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,Hilary K. Josephs




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