[KS] Spelling of "P'yǒngyang" in 1897-1905 English-language sources

[Eugene Y. Park]

Dear all,

I would like to know various ways the U.S., British, Canadian, and other 
English-language sources during the 1897-1905 era spelled the city name, 
P'yǒngyang. For some time, I have been working on a project looking at 
how Imperial Korea (Taehan Cheguk, 1897-1910) formally designated the 
city as the Empire's "Western Capital" (/Sǒgyǒng/) in 1902 and began 
constructing a royal palace and other edifices befitting a secondary 
capital. So far, my research has focused on the project in the context 
of the Kwangmu emperor's modernizing reform geared toward tapping into 
the talent and resources of a broader social base, including specialist 
/chungin/, Northwesterners, and Protestants. For sure, official rhetoric 
stressed the illustrious history of P'yǒngyang as the epicenter of early 
Korean civilization and the capital of Koguryǒ, Chinese historical 
precedents of a dynasty having 2 capitals, and some geomantic concepts 
providing official justifications.

It is not difficult to detect that underneath such a rhetoric is a 
strategic planning geared toward shifting Korea's center closer to 
Russia. Not surprisingly, the Japanese ascendancy upon the commencement 
of the Russo-Japanese War nipped the project in the bud. Given all this, 
I am trying to find out if any American, British, and other foreign 
countries took note of the Korean government's intention as they 
perceived through the Western Capital project. Thank you in advance for 
your help.

Best,

Gene

-- 
Eugene Y. Park
Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History
Director, James Joo-Jin Kim Program in Korean Studies
University of Pennsylvania

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