Editing Agency of Korean History

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Editing Agency of Korean History
Hangul:
조선사편수회
Hanja:
朝鮮史編修會
Revised Romanization: Joseonsa Pyeonsuhoe
McCune-Reischauer: Chosŏnsa P'yŏnsuhoe

The Agency for Editing of Korean History (Kyūjitai: 朝鮮史編修會; Shinjitai: 朝鮮史編修会) was established in June 1925 by the Japanese government of Royal edict in order to legitimate Japan's 1910 annexation of Korea.

朝鮮史 means "history of Korea"; 編修 means "to edit and correct" or "to compile"; 會 means "committee" or "agency".

The main objectives of this agency were to reduce the territory of ancient Korean states into the Korean Peninsula and to describe Gojoseon's history as myth [1], [2] . A total of 975,534 Korean Won (not adjusted for inflation) was spent over 27 years, and a considerable amount of books was published for these purposes. The books can be categorized into Joseon History (25 volumes), History Collection (102 volumes), and Reprint of Historical Records (1623 volumes). However, no copies of the Reprint of Historical Records are known to exist today.

Contents

[edit] Outline of the Works

[edit] Burning the old books about Korean history

Even though this Reogarnization Agent was officially established at 1925, the work for reduction of Korean history had been implemented before the establishment. The Agent confiscated the Korean history books from 1910 to 1937. The aim of confiscating the history books is to distort and annihilate the ancient history of Korean such as Gojoseon, Buyeo, Goguryeo and Baekje. Based on the Outline of the Agent's Works (조선사편수회사업 개요, 朝鮮史編修會事業槪要), the number of history books that were gathered and burned from 1923 to 1937 was 4,950. The subject of seizured books is the ancient history books related to Dangun and geography of Joseon. This seizured subject even included the history of indpedence of USA. They only leave Samguk Sagi without burning because this books is only describing after the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and most of its contents are identical with those of Chinese history books. Burning the Korean history books is advanced work to reduce the Korean history into the Korean peninsula, and make the history of Gojoseon into legend.

[edit] Making Gojoseon's History as Myth

After they seizured the Korean history books, they made a regulation to re-write the Korean history, and as follows.

  1. Korean peninsula history should be written as chronicles
  2. The whole volumes include
    1. Samhan
    2. Three Kingdoms of Korea
    3. Silla
    4. Goryeo
    5. Joseon and
    6. Modern Chōsen (Joseon)
  3. The origin of Korean history, national developing procedure and historical legend are totally ignored.
  4. The re-organized Korean history books must be written in the Japanese script.

The first regulation for Korean history compilation did not contain the history of Gojoseon (legendary: 2333 BCE–293 BCE) and succeeding several states after Gojoseon's destruction to validate their colonization because Japanese history does not exist before 100 CE. In an inquiry commission, Jeong Manho (정만호), Yi Neunghwa (이능화) and Eo Yunjeok (어윤적) suggested the history of Gojoseon should be included and Korean script should be used as well. But, only Japanese committee influenced the regulation.

After the regulation is fixed, the second regulation was modified to reduce the history of ancient Korean, and as follows:
2. The volumes include

  1. The era before unified Silla
  2. Unified Silla
  3. Goryeo
  4. foregoing Joseon
  5. middle Joseon
  6. latter Joseon

The second regulation further cut down the history before the unified Silla (the unified Silla starts from about 700AD). The three volumes (i, ii and iii) in the first regulation were aggregated into the one volume in the second regulation (The era before unified Silla). And then the agent described the history of Gojoseon as myth.

[edit] Fabrication of Samguk Yusa

To hide the history before the three kingdoms of Korea, the Agent fabricated the original history book such as Samguk Yusa. The Samguk Yusa says that there was a state called Hwanguk in very ancient time'(昔有桓囯). However, the Agent fabricated the Samguk Yusa such that there was a person called Hwanin(昔有桓因) to make the ancient Korean history as myth (See Figures)[3].

The left is the original Samguk Yusa in Gyujanggak Seoul National University, and the right is the fabricated Samguk Yusa by the Agent. The Chinese script 囯(state) is fabricated into 因(cause) to make Hwanguk as myth
Enlarge
The left is the original Samguk Yusa in Gyujanggak Seoul National University, and the right is the fabricated Samguk Yusa by the Agent. The Chinese script 囯(state) is fabricated into 因(cause) to make Hwanguk as myth


Thus, the three states history of Hwanguk by Hwanin, Shinshi by Hwanung and Gojoseon by Dangun is reduced as the mythical state of Gojoseon by Dangun, who was the son of Hwanung and the grandson of Hwanin.

[edit] Distorting the ancient Korean history

Finally, the Agent distorted the ancient Korean history to validate Japanese colonization of Joseon. The ancient Korean history was distorted by the Agent and as follows; i) Korean history was only part of Korean peninsula history (Korean history had never rule over Manchuria), ii) North Korean peninsula was the colony of China by Chinese Commanderies, iii) South Korean peninsula was the colony of Japan by Imnailbonbu (任那日本府). In order to demonstrate their theories, they moved the a stone monument (棕蟬縣神祠碑), which was originally located at Liaodong, into Pyongyang [4], and then distorted the location of Chinese commanderies such that they existed in Pyongyang. In addition, the Agent fabricated the Gwanggaeto_Stele to validate the ancient colonization of south Korean peninsula by Japan. For more detail of fabrication of the stele, see Gwanggaeto_Stele#Debate_over_an_ancient_message.

[edit] Organization

[edit] The Chairman

[edit] Advisors

  • Kwon Junghyeon (권중현)
  • Bak Yeonghyo(박영효, 朴泳孝)
  • Lee_Wan-Yong (이완용)
  • Naito (內藤虎次郞)
  • Koroita Hatori(服部宇之吉)

[edit] Committe memeber

  • Oe Yunjeok (어윤적, 魚允迪)
  • Yi Neunghwa (이능화, 李能和)
  • Oda (小田省吾)
  • Imanishi ryu (今西龍)

[edit] Commission member

  • Choi Namseon (최남선, 崔南善)

[edit] Manager

  • Inabe and the others 3 people.

[edit] Investigator

  • Sin seokho (신석호, 申奭鎬)
  • Yi Byeongdo (이병도, 李丙燾)
  • Hong Hee (홍희, 洪熹)
  • Inanba
  • Hujita (藤田亮策)

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ 김, 삼웅 (2004). 한국사를 뒤흔드는 위서 (The Forged History Books to Shock the Korean History). 서울: 인물과사상. ISBN 8988410912.
  2. ^ 김성민, 조선사편수회의 조직과 운용(Management and Organization of Joseonsa Pyeonsuhoe ), 국민대 석사논문(MS Thesis, Kukmin Unversity), 1987
  3. ^ Daum Encyclopedia or Korea Britanica Encyclopedia. Retreived from [1]
  4. ^ 리, 순진 (2001). 평양일대 락랑무덤에 대한 연구(A Research about the Tombs of Nangnang around Pyongyang). 서울: 중심. ISBN 89-89524-05-9.

[edit] References

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