[KS] Jews in Korea during the Second World War

gpodoler gpodoler at research.haifa.ac.il
Sun Jul 28 03:39:56 EDT 2013


 

I too was intrigued by that question while I was doing research on
how the Hebrew-language press in Mandatory Palaestine depicted East Asia
at the turn of the 20th century. Obviously, this press closely followed
the developments regarding Jewish communities all over the world. Yet
with regard to Korea, I found only 2 brief references. One reference,
dated mid 1904, mentioned that in Seoul there was a small Jewish
community that had arrived from Galicia, and that in other cities there
were small communities that originated from Romania. The second brief
report, from January 1920, quoted one of the Korean (unofficial)
delegates to the Paris Peace Conference who too stated that there
weren't many Jews in Korea, yet there had been a few in Seoul. 

And
that is all I have found so far. So I am guessing that either almost no
information about Jews in Korea reached Palestine, or that the Jewish
"community" there was practically non-existant. Or perhaps both
assumptions are true. 

Best, 

Guy Podoler 

The Department of Asian
Studies, The University of Haifa

:כתב Robert N, 28.07.2013 04:52 בתאריך


> Prof. Hoffman 
> 
> Thank you very much for translating that
article. I found the information very interesting. There was at least
one Jew who worked for the Korean Government in the 1880s....German I
believe but I will have to go back and check my notes as I am using my
phone to write this note. 
> 
> Robert Neff 
> On Jul 28, 2013 4:42 AM,
"Frank Hoffmann" <hoffmann at koreanstudies.com [4]> wrote:
> 
>> Some
Hints, Some Clues, Some Sources:
>>
======================================
>> 
>> It seems Dr. Levkowitz'
notes are summing the topic up. Still, Korea is
>> always good for
surprises, and so is the vitality of Jewish culture
>> around the
globe.
>> 
>> Those from on the list from Germany sure know Professor
Choi Chong-ko 崔
>> 鍾庫, now retired, before a professor of Law at SNU who
had once
>> studied in Germany and who wrote a thick book on the history
of
>> Korean-German Relations (in the early 1980s), and in general wrote
many
>> articles on European-Korean relations (law and otherwise). In
any case,
>> he seems now to be working on the history of Jews in
Korea:
>>
http://www.khdi.or.kr/ver2/system/bbs/board.php?bo_table=review&wr_id=293
[1]
>> On the other hand, some of those early assumptions may be taken
with a
>> grain of salt, and maybe also by considering the specific hype
about
>> Jewish culture in Korea--see the May 12th article in the online
_Jewish
>> Chronicle_ to see what I refer to:
>>
http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-features/48771/why-south-koreans-are-love-judaism
[2]
>> 
>> As for Jews in Korea during the colonial period and more
specifically
>> WW II:
>> 
>> We all know Jewish communities have a long
history in CHINA. By the
>> late 19th century these Jewish communities
had dwindled in size and
>> most synagogues had disappeared. With the
Nazis taking over much of
>> Europe those communities, in Shanghai and
some other key cities,
>> started again to grow through the influx of
Jewish emigrants. Some of
>> those emigrants had direct and active
contacts to the Korean resistance
>> there. Those were contacts on a
personal level, no institutional
>> coalitions. And JAPAN, although one
of the Berlin-Rome-Tokyo Axis
>> powers--as a young Japanese student
once confidently told me in
>> Beijing, "next time without the
Italians"--well, JAPAN was for obvious
>> reasons not so interested in a
superiority of the Nordic-Aryan race. So
>> there was a sizable number
of European Jews coming through Japan, and
>> some of them stayed for
longer. The famous architect Bruno Taut
>> immediately comes to mind,
who fall in love with Japanese culture,
>> influenced Japanese modernism
while at the same time being influenced
>> by traditional Japanese
culture (a very complex story). There were many
>> others. In most
cases, though, Japan was just the gate to the U.S.,
>> Canada, or South
America. As for KOREA I am not aware of even a single
>> case of a
Jewish émigré to have stayed on there.
>> 
>> Typically, Jewish and also
some political émigré from European
>> countries just traveled through
Korea to get to Japan. Here they may
>> have stayed on for a week or two
or in some cases longer, before
>> boarding a ship to their final
destination.
>> Professor Alexander Chajes (of Amherst, USA), in a short
typescript
>> with handwritten frontispice, written in 1991, describes
his family's
>> emigration in June/July 1940 from Vienna via Berlin,
Moscow, Manchuria,
>> Korea, Japan, to Seattle. Only his maternal
grandmother was left behind
>> in Vienna and was later murdered in the
Theresienstadt concentration
>> camp. I quote:
>> "Because World War II
had already started, we could not take the
>> obvious route from Europe
to America via the Atlantic Ocean. (...)
>> through Russia (...) This
route was open to us only because of the
>> infamous nonaggression pact
that existed between Russia and Germany.
>> (...) 12,000 miles and last
approximately two months. Without the help
>> of the Joint Distribution
Committee we could not have made it. This
>> American philanthropic
organization, dedicated to providing relief for
>> Jews in distress,
gathered together a group of about twenty refugees
>> and made all the
arrangements for the entire journey." (pp. 1-2) And on
>> the
handwritten frontispice he summarizes: "Transsiberian Train 5-6
>> days
- Lake Baikal - Manchuria (occupied by Japan) - Harbin - Korea
>> (under
Japan) (...) Yokohama - ship to USA via Pacific." In Harbin they
>> took
the train to Korea through Dandong [Antung]-Sinŭiju, via Seoul,
>> and
then directly to Pusan, where they took a ferry going to
>> Shimonoseki.
[The Chajes typescript is in the collection of the Leo
>> Baeck
Institute.]
>> 
>> In another, far more detailed description of that
basic same journey
>> (route)--there must have been many such
groups--that a Jewish emigrant
>> to Ecuador describes, Elisabeth
Bamberger, the author states the 1940
>> train journey from the Korean
border to Pusan took "one day and one
>> night" (p. 13), passing through
Seoul during the night, being in Pusan
>> at lunch. In spite of this
pass-through experience the writer is
>> completely taken by the beauty
of the Korean landscape! [The Bamberger
>> manuscript is also at the Leo
Baeck Institute.]
>> 
>> It might be interesting to look into the
history of *possible* Jewish
>> communities before the times of Japanese
occupation. Paul Georg von
>> Möllendorff (1847-1901), advisor to King
Kojong with various important
>> offices in Korea, a man who had studied
Hebrew and who had written an
>> article on "Die Juden in China" [The
Jews in China], a man with his
>> interests, I think, would have
mentioned it somewhere if there was a
>> Jewish community in Korea. He
did not, as far as I know. Maybe Prof.
>> Ingeborg Göthel who has gone
through all his published and unpublished
>> papers would know for sure
if he did?
>> 
>> Yet, around 1900 the situation *may* have changed.
This seems a pretty
>> important article, actually, if the content is
verifiable! I am
>> therefore translating it for you. It is from _Die ✡
Welt_ (of October
>> 1902), the original follows beneath the
translation:
>> 
>> -----------------------
>> The Jews in Korea.
>>
Even the uttermost tip of the farthest Far East, a peninsular
shrouded
>> by ice-cold winds and mist, has a Jewish community. The Jews
of Korea,
>> of course, were not born here but come from faraway
countries. Their
>> birthplaces are in the ghettos of Russia, Galicia,
and Romania, and
>> only because of the persecution of Jews did they end
up in the Far
>> East. Most of them came through London and India to
Korea, others
>> through New York, San Francisco, or Japan, and some
even through rough
>> Siberian landscapes. Highly interesting is the
fate of some Jews who
>> have come to the country via Shanghai after
having experienced plenty
>> of failures and calamities in China,
Sumatra, Borneo, and Java, before
>> finally finding refuge in Korea.
Korea now has presumedly around 300
>> Jewish families who live among
the "wicked heathens" ["gottlose
>> Heiden"] far more trouble-free than
before in the "countries of
>> religion and love." This is because the
Koreans soon enough understood
>> what a valuable asset they had gotten
with the Jews, since they
>> stimulated trade and caused unprecedented
growth of activities around
>> their establishments, importing Russian
sugar to Korea, alcohol and
>> kerosene, and also introduced to Korea
products from the Lodz (Łódź)
>> industrial complex. Furthermore, the
Jews introduced a large number of
>> crafts that had till then been
entirely unknown in Korea; thus, culture
>> was brought to East Asia in
the most noble sense. It is hardly
>> surprising therefore, that the
people and the government of Korea are
>> cordially welcoming the Jews
and the continuing growth of two
>> communities in Seoul and Masampo
through new immigrants. A lot of
>> promotion [Propaganda] about the
immigration of Jews to Korea is done
>> by the head of the Jewish
community in Seoul, a Jew from Austria who
>> came 12 years ago via
Hongkong to Seoul, and who worked so hard that he
>> succeeded in now
having a regular Jewish community with a synagogue, a
>> shohet, and
chasan. A similar organization should soon be materialized
>> in
Masampo, so that Korea can pride itself of having well organized
>>
Jewish communities.
>> 
>> SOURCE:
>> "Die Juden in Korea" [The Jews in
Korea], _Die ✡ Welt: Zentralorgan der
>> Zionistischen Bewegung_ 43
(October 24, 1902): 8.
>> -----------------------
>> 
>> The reference
to Masampo (today Masanhapp'o-gu, Kyŏngsangnam-do) and to
>> products
from Lodz and Russia are interesting, as these references show
>> a
clear connection to Russia, thereby at least indicating how Russian
>>
trade interests were willingly or unwillingly represented in Korea.
>>
Masampo istelf was before the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) an
>>
important subject for the quarrels between Japan and Russia, both
being
>> interested in managing that port with its new railroad to trade
its own
>> products. Might well be that Russian pre-revolution archives
would have
>> some surprising documents in this regard … might well be
that the
>> Japanese after the Russo-Japanese War saw the Jews as
representing
>> Russian interests (-- just speculating, have no facts,
didn't look into
>> it).
>> 
>> Best,
>> Frank
>> 
>>
--------------------------------------
>> Frank Hoffmann
>>
http://koreanstudies.com [3]

 

Links:
------
[1]
http://www.khdi.or.kr/ver2/system/bbs/board.php?bo_table=review&wr_id=293
[2]
http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-features/48771/why-south-koreans-are-love-judaism
[3]
http://koreanstudies.com
[4] mailto:hoffmann at koreanstudies.com
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