Ancient Korea

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Ancient Korea
hwarangdo.com

• Presentation created by Robert L. Martinez
• Primary Content Source Prentice Hall World
  History
• Images as cited.

zlatni.org
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Korea is located on a peninsula that juts south
from the Asian mainland with its tip pointing
toward Japan. At the northern end of the
peninsula, mountains and the Yalu River separate
Korea from China.
en.wikipedia.org
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Low but steep mountains cover nearly 70 percent
of the Korean peninsula. The most prominent range
is the Taebaek. It runs from the north to the
south along the eastern coast, with smaller
chains branching off to form hilly areas.
photius.com
starofsophia.blogspot.com
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Because farming is difficult on the mountains,
most people live along the western coastal
plains, Koreas major farming region.
en.wikipedia.org
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Korea has a 5400 mile coastline with hundreds of
good harbors. Since early times, Koreans have
depended on seafood for most of the protein in
their diet.
busan.for91days.com
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Koreas location on Chinas doorstep has played a
key role in its development. From its powerful
mainland neighbor, Korea received many cultural
and technological influences.
jspivey.wikispaces.com
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At various times in history, China extended
political control over the Korean peninsula.
Throughout its history, Korea served as a
cultural bridge linking China and Japan.
buddhanet.net
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Despite strong ties, the Korean language is not
related to Chinese. The earliest Koreans probably
migrated eastward from Siberia and northern
Manchuria during the Stone Age.
columbia.edu
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They evolved their own way of life before the
first wave of Chinese influence reached the
peninsula during the Han dynasty. In 108 B.C.E.,
the Han emperor Wudi invaded Korea and set up a
military colony there.
history.cultural-china.com
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Confucian traditions and Chinese writing and
farming methods spread in Korea.
historyhaven.com
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Between 300 C.E. and 600 C.E., powerful local
rulers forged separate kingdoms Koguryo in the
north, Paekche in the southwest, Shilla in the
southeast, and Kaya in the south.
emersonkent.com
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Although they shared the same language and
cultural background, the kingdoms often warred
with one another or with China. Still, Chinese
influences continued to arrive (i.e. Buddhism.)
flickr.com
tourdechina.cn
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In 668, with the support of the Tang empress Wu
Zhao, the Shilla kingdom united the Korean
peninsula.
imthiskid.blogspot.com
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Under the Shilla dynasty, Korea became a
tributary state, acknowledging Chinese
supervision but preserving its independence.
north-korea-travel.com
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Over the centuries, Korea came to see its
relationship to China in Confucian terms, as that
of a younger brother who owed respect and loyalty
to an older brother. Koreans adopted the
Confucian emphasis on the family as the
foundation of the state.
asadalthought.wordpress.com
spiritofmaat.com
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Confucian ideas affected the rights of women.
Early on, Korean women had the right to inherit
property. Some upper-class women held public
roles. Over time, as Confucian views took root,
womens rights became restricted. Women could no
longer inherit property, and a womans position
within the family became more subordinate.
krmdi.blogspot.com
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At the same time, Koreans adapted and modified
Chinese ideas. For example, they adapted the
Chinese civil service examination to reflect
their own system of inherited ranks. In China,
even a peasant could win political influence by
passing the exam. In Korea, only aristocrats were
permitted to take the test.
dipity.com
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During the Koryo age, Buddhism reached its
greatest influence in Korea. Korean scholars
wrote histories and poems based on Chinese
models, and artists created landscape paintings
following Chinese principles.
seokjae.com
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Koreans used woodblock painting from China to
produce a flood of Buddhist texts. Later, Korean
inventors made movable metal type to print large
numbers of books.
china-mike.com
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They learned to make porcelain from China, but
then perfected techniques of making celadon, a
porcelain with an unusual blue-green glaze. Koran
celadon vases and jars were prized throughout
Asia.
artlex.com
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The Mongols occupied Korea until the 1350s. In
1392, the brilliant Korean general Yi Song-gye
set up the Choson dynasty. Yi reduced Buddhist
influence and set up a government based upon
Confucian principles. With a few generations,
Confucianism had made a deep impact on Korean
life.
hompi.sogang.ac.kr
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Despite Chinese influence, Korea preserved its
distinct identity. In 1443, Koreas most
celebrated ruler, King Sejong decided to replace
the complex Chinese system of writing. Sejong had
experts develop hangul, an alphabet using symbols
to represent the sounds of spoken Korean.
crystalinks.com
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Although Confucian scholars rejected hangul at
the outset, its use quickly spread. Hangul was
easier for Koreans to use than the thousands of
characters in Chinese. Its use led to an
extremely high literacy rate.
self-learner.com
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In the 1590s, an ambitious Japanese ruler decided
to invade China by way of Korea. Japanese armies
landed and for years, looted and burned across
the peninsula.
www2.hawaii.edu
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To stop the invaders at sea, the Korean admiral
Yi Sun-shin used metal-plated turtle-boats.
After six years, the Japanese armies withdrew
from Korea. As they left, they carried off many
Korean artisans to introduce their skills to
Japan.
historum.com