The document outlines the historical evolution of Korea from ancient times to the modern era, detailing the origins, cultural, and political developments throughout various dynastic periods. Key highlights include the establishment of the Gojoseon kingdom, the rise of Buddhism, the influence of Confucianism during the Joseon dynasty, and Korea's modernization and economic development post-World War II. It also addresses the cultural, social, and geopolitical dynamics between Korea, China, and Japan, culminating in the ongoing division between North and South Korea.

1. Origins to 600 c.e.
Ancient Korea
Korea
Siberian origins of the Korean people
Tribal hunter-gatherers who also fished
8000 b.c.e pottery
Mastered iron by the third century B.C.E. – from China
Sometime around 1200 to 900 BC, rice cultivation spread to
Korea from China and Manchuria.
Millet-based agriculture also spread from Northern China
© 2014, 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. 2
Ancient Joseon (Gojoseon)
2333-108 B.c.e
2333 BC: Legendary establishment by Dangun – northern Korea
Dangun founder
son of Hwanung (the son of the Lord of heavenHwanin) and a
bear who turned into a woman
Invention of acupuncture and moxibustion (mugwort burn
therapy)
Dangun
Shamanism (Muism)
Continuing tradition: Priests = Mu or baksu
Linked to Dangun
Related to Shinto – Sindo is another word for Muism
Trance states, healing, rituals

3. Shinbyeong (possession)
Politics and China
Theocratic state
Capital at Pyongyang
Trade with China by 700 b.c.e
Invasion by Han China 108 b.c.e.
Dolmen Tombs
Simple Pottery: Mumun Style

4. Pit Houses
Burial Jars
Paekche, Silla, and Koguryo
Three States Period
Paekche (Baekje) 18 bce-660 c.e. southwest
Silla (57 bc.e. – 935 c.e.) – Golden Kingdom – central and
south
Koguryo (37 b.c.e – 668 c.e.) north/central

5. Paekche
Rule by hereditary aristocracy
Chinese Taoist influences early
Close ties to Japan – diplomats lived in Japan
As counter to other hostile states
Possible family relations
Military support, perhaps better iron technology, Chinese
characters…
Issues with sources – Japanese invasion or simply close ties
Buddhist influences by 500s
Many aristocrats emigrated to Japan at end of the kingdom
Shrine Mirror

6. Silla
Legendary foundation by king who hatched from an egg laid by
a white horse – King Park (Bak)Hyeokgeose (Radiant King)
Centralized state w/ absolute monarch
Sacred Bone vs. true bone
Rigid class dictated all social exchanges/dress/marriage
King or queen had to be pure sacred bone
Chinese style bureaucracy – 1-6 ranked
Buddhism by 500s
Silla
Koguryo
37 b.c.- 668 c.e.
King Jumong founder: son of the prince of Buyeo (Ancient
kingdom: Manchuria and N. Korea) and the daughter of the
river deity Habaek
Conflict with China and other Korean States will lead to the

7. decline
Religion
King Jumong, the founder, worshipped
Temple in Pyeongyang dedicated to Jumong.
Annual Dongmaeng Festival performed for Jumong, ancestors,
and gods.
Mythical beasts and animals considered sacred.
The phoenix and dragon were worshipped.
A three-legged crow that represented the sun considered the
most powerful animal.
Believed in 4 mythical animals.
1. Chungryong or Chunryonga (blue dragon) guarded the east, 2.
baek-ho (white tiger) guarded the west, 3. jujak (red phoenix
(bird)) guarded the south, 4. hyunmu (black turtle (sometimes
with snakes for a tail)) guarded the north.
Buddhism arrived in 372
Government sponsorship of missionaries, monasteries, and
shrines.
First Korean kingdom in the region to adopt Buddhism.
Royal Tomb

8. Bird of Heaven
Tomb Painting: Snakes and Dragons
crown
Seated Buddha

9. Haechi: Protection from Enemy Yang Energy
Gumiho the Nine tailed Fox
Dragons
Samjoko: Three Legged Crow – sun symbol

10. Gender
Role of women is one of maintaining harmony, be a good
daughter, a good wife, and a good mother.
When a woman married, she accompanied her husband to live in
her in-laws house
Women in Ancient/Medieval Korea
A woman was expected to produce sons - To have many sons
was highly regarded
Power was equated with the number of sons in a family and it
was considered "shameful" to depend on daughters
Relations between spouses: "By day, like seeing a stranger; by
night, like seeing a lover."
Only men allowed to divorce or take 2nd wife
Unable to bear son or get along with in-laws
Law prohibited widows from remarrying
sons and grandsons of widows who defied the ban were not
allowed to take the civil service examinations and become
scholar-officials.
Food
Soybean Paste Stew

11. Fermentation Pots: Soybean, Soy sauce, chili paste, fish sauce
Salted Seafood & Kimchi
Fertility: Haeshindang Park
Legend
One day, a husband dropped his wife off at a rock that was at a
distance from the beach. After promising to pick her up later, he

12. returned to the beach to do his work. Later, the weather
changed, and brought with it strong winds and pummeling
waves. The man couldn’t rescue his wife and she ultimately
drowned. Since then, the village people caught no fish and some
said that it was because of the dead women. To soothe the spirit
of the dead maid, the village people made several wooden
carvings of penis and held religious ceremonies on her behalf.
After a while, the fish slowly returned and the villagers were
able to live comfortably again.
The place where the maid died was named Aebawi Rock and the
building where the religious ceremony is held twice a year was
named Haesindang. The ceremony is still honored today as a
traditional folk event.
Korea
Medieval to Modern
+
Silla Unified Kingdom
Later Silla 668-935 c.e.
King Munmu of SIlla

13. Conquered Baekje 660 and Goguryeo 668
Aided by Tang forces from China
+
Ties to China
Close ties with Tang Dynasty China
Korean Buddhist monks sent to China for training – others to
India
Pure Land and Zen Buddhism brought back to Korea
Confucian College established in 7th century
Woodblock printing from 751 c.e.
China had oldest in the world
+
Goryeo Dynasty 918-1392 c.e.
Founded by General Taejo Wang Geon (King Taejo)
Goal to restore territory of ne China lost earlier
Name Goryeo is - English Korea
Buddhism strong
Buddhist canon (Tripitaka) compiled in Korea
Blue-green celadon trade high
+

14. Printing
Worlds first movable type invented in China in 1040 and spread
to Korea
Worlds first movable metal printing 1234 c.e.
First book Jikji in 1377
“Anthology of Great Buddhist Priests' Zen Teachings”
Collection of excerpts from the analects of Buddhist monks -
guide for Buddhism - Korea's national religion under the
Goryeo Dynasty (918–1392).
+
Jikji
+
Mongolian Invasion
993 Mongolian Liao Dynasty invaded
The Goryeo commander, Seo Hui, negotiated with them
Goryeo agreed to end its alliance with the Southern Song, to
adopt Liao's calendar, and to become a tributary state to Liao
Continued on and off until 13th century
+
Korea and Mongols
Joint Mongol-Korean attack on Liao
Mongols then turned on Korea and attacked
1270 vassal state of the Yuan Dynasty – supported by marriages

15. between Mongols and Koreans
+
Sojo Production
Distilled drink: Ethanol and water
Rice, wheat or barley
When receiving a glass,
hold the glass with two hands and bow
the head slightly.
When it is your turn to drink,
turn away and cover your mouth and glass with hands.
If you are pouring a glass for others,
hold the bottle with your right hand, support your right
arm with your left hand by touching its elbow.
Never pour your own, do not refill your glass until it is empty.
+
Choson aka Joseon
1392 General Yi Seonggye overthrows Goryeo; King Taejo
Supporters of the Ming Dynasty in China
Adopted Confucianism to limit power of Buddhists
Civil Service Exams for government service
Allowed for limited social upward mobility
Great intellectual output
Disdain for commerce & manufacturing, value on academics
+

16. King Sejong the Great
1418-1450 c.e.
Korean alphabet Hangeul created by royal academy
Agriculture, irrigation,
Investment in astronomy
Sundials, astronomical maps, water clocks, and celestial globes
+
King Sejo (1455-1468)
Census, mapped the country, restructured the government to rid
it of old artistocracy, id tags required for all
Supported Daoism and Buddhism
National Code
Legal system compiled under reign of King Sejo (1455-1468)
Medicine:
King Sejong had suffered from illnesses as did he, so he had
also learned a lot about the medical field
In 1463, he published Treatise on Medicine, which described a
ranking of qualifications for physicians and placed a priority on
the physicians' degree of moral commitment.
+
Yeonsangun 1494-1506
Purges and executions – after he found out his mother had been

17. forced to drink poison and he had been raised thinking another
women was his mother
He captured 1000 women to entertain him
Abolished the Office of Censors – designed to criticize
inappropriate actions and policies of the king
Banned the use of Hangul when the common people wrote
critically about him
He was finally deposed in a coup and his half-brother Jungjong
became Emperor 1506.
Period of civil war, pirate problems
+
Japanese Invasion
1592 Japan invaded led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi armed with
Portuguese guns and canons
Plan was to use Korea as a means to reach Ming China
Korean Admiral Yi Sun-Shin (1545-1598) perhaps invented the
first ironclad battleship in Asia
+
Manchurian Invasions of the 1620s
Despite defeating the Japanese, Korea left weakened
Manchurian Kingdom and Ming China both demanded loyalty
Manchurian Qing attacked and forced Korea to accept control
and marriages
Finally, peace
+

18. Silhak (Practical Learning)
By 17th century, investment in industry & agriculture
Reforms in land distribution
Tax reforms
Government factionalism as conservatives resisted reforms
+
Western Influence 19th century
Korea opposed to Western trade and diplomacy
Japan expressed renewed interested in Korea
Annexed Korea and instituted colonial rule in 1910
Attempts to ban Korean language and Korean nationalism leads
to anti-colonial demonstrations
+
Independence Movement
March 1st 1910 Independence Movement launched but failed
Korea established a Provisional Government in Shanghai China
and organized armed resistance to Japanese from China
Korea occupied thru WWII by Japan
Comfort Women
+
Republic of Korea

19. Colonized during WWII
Cold War ideologies lead to tensions in Asia
U.S. occupies s. Korea and Soviets occupy the North
1947 call by U.N for free general elections
Soviets resist only south of 38th parallel were elections held
+
Korean Conflict
Dividing line between South and North at 38th still exists
North Korea became a communist regime under Kim Il-Sung
President of the Southern Republic of Korea Syngman Rhee
1950 N. Korea invades the South leading to a three year war
that included China, Russia, the U.S.
Ceasefire in 1953
+
Modern S. Korea
In the 1950s, Korea ranked among the poorest countries.
Now, its economy is the 13th largest in the world
2002 co-hosted World Cup games
Active player on the global economic stage following the
hosting of the G20 Summit in 2010.
+

20. Modern South Korea
Heavy Chinese influence, but growing Western influence
Western foods like pizza and coffee are popular
Konglish is a mix of English and Hangul
K-pop popularity
Increasingly technologically advanced
Religions: no affiliation 46%, Christian 26%, Buddhist 26%,
Confucian 1%, other 1%
+
North Korea
Today: Kim Jong-un rules a nuclear-armed state with an
enormous army.
Military used perpetuate a cult of personality surrounding the
hereditary ruler
Freedom of religion and the right to religious ceremonies are
constitutionally guaranteed,
But religions are restricted
Religious Intelligence: 64.3% of the population are not
religious, 16% practice Korean shamanism, 13.5% practice
Confucianism, 4.5% Buddhist and 1.7% Christian
+
Pick one of the option to answer the following question. At
least 350 words
Option A: Discuss those elements of Chinese culture that
become popular and accepted in Korea during this period and
explain why these were accepted and popular? How did Korean

21. culture differ from Chinese? In what ways did relations between
Korea and China, and the adoption of Confucianism, impact
Korea?
http://www.pbs.org/hiddenkorea/history.htm
http://www.ibiblio.org/chinesehistory/contents/04ear/c03.html
Option B: Discuss the development of Vietnam from ancient
through medieval periods. Compare and contrast
Vietnamese/Chinese relations to those of Korea and China. Be
sure to discuss the Trung Sisters and the roles available for
women in Vietnam. How did the women on Vietnam respond to
Chinese Confucianism and why?
http://asia.isp.msu.edu/wbwoa/southeast_asia/vietnam/history.ht
m
http://asianhistory.about.com/od/vietnam/p/The-Trung-Sisters-
Heroes-of-Vietnam.htm
Option C: Discuss the development of Hangul in Korea. Why
was it so important, what makes it so distinctive, and what did
it do for the Korean people?
http://asianhistory.about.com/od/southkorea/p/Sejong-the-Great-
of-Korea.htm
https://zkorean.com/korean-alphabet-hangul