Wei Man
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wei Man | |
|---|---|
| Chinese name | |
| Traditional Chinese: | 衛滿 |
| Simplified Chinese: | 卫满 |
| Hanyu Pinyin: | Wèimǎn |
| Wade-Giles: | Wei-man |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul: | 위만 |
| Hanja: | 衛滿 |
| Revised Romanization: | Wiman |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Wiman |
Wei Man (Wiman on Korean) came from the State of Yan of China who established a kingdom around Liaoning in 195 BCE. The Records of the Grand Historian simply calls him Man, so the surname Wei was probably added later.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Man was a general of the Yan Principality, which was ruled by prince Lu Wan (盧綰), Emperor Gao's old ally. However, Lu Wan fled to the Xiongnu in 195 B.C. because he was suspected of rebellion and was attacked by the Emperor. According to the Shiji, Man led 1,000 people, dressed in Eastern Babarian's costume and crossed the Pei River (浿水; probably Luan River). Based on the upper and lower fortressess of the former Qin Dynasty, he organized natives named the Zhenfan and the Gojoseon, and Chinese refugees from Yan and Qi. Wiman later rebelled and usurped the throne in 194 BC, and Kijoon fled south to Jin. He put the capital in Wanggeom. Shiji says that Wanggeom corresponds to Heomdokhyeon (험독현,險瀆縣) in Hebei and Liaoning of current China. According to Shiji, the king Gijun of Beonjoseon appointed him as a vassal, and allowed him to protect the people of Beonjoseon from babarians. So, chiefs of the babarians wanted to meet the king of Han of China for attacking Wiman Joseon. Thus, the babarians and Han of China attacked the small area of Wiman Joseon, and subjugated the Beonjoseon's land of which size was about a few thousand kilometers. Wiman's grandson, Ugeo (우거,右渠) received many exiles from Han China, and their numbers of exiles were so significant. In addition, Wiman prevented Jinjoseon from communicating to Han of China. Thus, in 109 BC, Wudi of China invaded against Wiman Joseon near the Luan River, but Wudi had failed several times to destroyed Wiman Joseon. So, Han Wudi tried to conciliate the princes of Wiman Joseon to kill the king of Wiman Joseon [1], which was the cause of destruction of the entire Gojoseon. After the war of Han China and Wiman Joseon, Wudi of Han China sentenced the two generals to death for failing the war against Wiman Joseon[2]. For more details of the war between Wiman Joseon and Han China, see the authoritative Chinese history book Shiji (Chapter 115) by Sima Qian.
The Weilue, which was written about 400 years later, offers more detailed but less reliable information. It says that Man took power in a coup from King Gijun, which is a descendant of Gija. Gijun fled to the south and proclaimed himself as a Heavenly King. The historical accuracy of this story is more or less questioned by historians. Some scholars believe that this story came from the Han clan of Korea, who claimed themselves as descendants of Gija, and have spread to China. It is, however, generally agreed that there were certain kinds of polities in Liaoning area before Man's kingdom, which was Beonjoseon according to Korean history recrods.
[edit] Characterization and political exploitation
Koreans incorporate Man and his kingdom into their own "national history" and call his kingdom "Wiman Joseon." Some Koreans claim Man was Korean. They project the modern concept of the Korean nation to ancient history, assume "barbarian costume" (蠻夷服) in the Shiji as "Korean" clothes, and claim his Korean ethnicity based on the costume.
[edit] References
- ^ http://staff.whsh.tc.edu.tw/~huanyin/anfa_shi_chi_115.htm
- ^ http://staff.whsh.tc.edu.tw/~huanyin/anfa_shi_chi_115.htm
- Mikami Tsugio 三上次男: Kodai no seihoku Chōsen to Ei-shi Chōsen koku no seiji, shakaiteki seikaku 古代の西北朝鮮と衛氏朝鮮国の政治・社会的性格, Kodai Tōhoku Ajiashi Kenkyū 古代東北アジア史研究, pp. 3-22, 1966.
