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GOLDSEA |
ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
KOREA OR COREA?
(Updated
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025, 06:38:55 AM.)
e at GoldSea choose to honor the more natural rendering commonly used in the English-speaking world prior to the Japanese annexation and colonialization of Corea beginning in 1905.
American and English books published during the latter half of the 19th century generally referred to the nation as "Corea" as recently as the years immediately preceding Japan's formal annexation of Corea in 1910. An 1851 map of East Asia by Englishman John Tallis labels the nation Corea. The same spelling is used in The Mongols, a 1908 history of the Mongol race by Jeremiah Curtin, the world's foremost Asia scholar of the day, as well as in several books by American missionaries published between 1887 and 1905.
Japan's annexation of Corea didn't become formal until 1910, but for all practical purposes Japan had become the power that regulated Corea's relations with the outside world in 1897 when it defeated China in a war over Japan's ambition to exercise control over Corea. The only other power willing to contest Japan's supremacy in the Corean peninsula was Russia. When it was easily defeated by Japan at Port Arthur in 1905, the annexation of Corea became a fait accompli. Anxious to avoid a costly Pacific conflict, President Wilson ignored the pleas of a delegation of Corean patriots and their American missionary supporters and turned a blind eye to Japan's acts of formal annexation and colonization of Corea. During that period Japan mounted a campaign to push for the "Korea" useage by the American press. Why? For one of Japan's prospective colonies to precede its master in the alphabetical lineup of nations would be unseemly, Japanese imperialists decided.
Japan's colonial rule over Corea ended on August 15, 1945 when it lost World War II. Now that Corea is eagerly shedding the last vestiges of the colonial period, even demolishing public buildings erected by the Japanese (for example, the monstrously immense colonial governor's mansion), forward-thinking Corean and Corean American journalists, intellectuals and scholars are urging the American media to revert to the original, more natural rendering of Corea.
The changeover will pose a problem only in English-speaking nations as other western nations never accepted the "K" spelling. For example, France, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, among many others, use the "C" rendering.
English convention, too, is on the side of the Corea rendering. Non-European names are romanized with a "C" (Cambodia, Canada, cocoa, Comanche, Congo, and even old Canton, for example) except where the first letter is followed by an "e" or an "i", (as in Kenya). Other than that, the "K" spelling is used only in connoting childlike ignorance of spelling conventions ("Kitty Kat" and "Skool", for examples).
Therefore, the American "K" spelling is
- offensive from a historical standpoint (remember "Peking" and "Canton"?);
- violates western rendering conventions;
- suggests a lack of sophistication toward Corea; and
- by connoting naiveté, imputes a lack of sophistication to Corea and its people.
The Corea rendering will ultimately become universal when more Americans are educated as to the offensive and relatively recent origin of the "Korea" rendering. The English-speaking world was responsible for agreeing to Japanese efforts to change the spelling of Corea's name in English useage. Who better than concerned Asian Americans to help change it back?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
I heard about this outrageous letter change done by the Japanese imperialists from my father and several other Koreans. At first, I felt indignant, violated, but eventually became quite indifferent. It was just another pitiful example of impotent shameless old Korean ruling class who let the sovereignty of entire nation be invaded and trampled upon, once again, by no other than those despised, barbaric Japanese pirates from across the East Sea(or is it Sea of Japan?).
I have tons of negative/critical things to say about the Korean politicians and leaders from the past to the present, but this is not the right forum, so I'll move on to more important issues.
Let's face it; Koreans and Japanese are basically like two brothers in relation. There are hardly any two ethnic groups existing in this world today that are as closely related to one another as Koreans and Japanese are. It's been proven through reliable researches that close to 80% of modern day Japanese people have been descended from Korean ancestors. Truly. Heck, even all the Japanese emperors are direct descendants of 6th century political refugees from one of ancient Korean kingdoms. Korean people had greatly contributed to the makeup of Japanese racial stock and influenced its early civilization a great deal.
What does Korea get in return?
Two separate devastating invasion campaigns in 16th century left Korean peninsula in utter shambles and total ruins in their aftermath. It set the country back by 200 years in terms of development. Many national treasures/monuments/documents/etc., were completely/irrevocally damaged/destroyed/stolen/desecrated.
Hundreds of thousands of civilian people got killed and numerous were taken back to Japan as slaves. Hey, those people with last name COREA are indeed direct descendants from one of captured Korean slaves, who eventually ended up in Italy. There was this one Corea family who immigrated from Italy to Canada in the 1980s; well, the father knew about his roots, and later proudly joined a local Korean Association chapter as a full member!
His family might be the only "white" people who belong to such an organization on the whole planet.
Anyway I digress...
And the humiliating and brutal colonization period from 1919-1945, yes, once again, at the hands of damn bad-teethed short Japanese pirates.
(Japanese people had been almost 2" shorter than Koreans throughout ancient times).
No human words can't adequately/eloquently describe the unspeakable atrocities commited by Japanese during this period.
Korea was basically raped!
From time to time, Korea had been a victim of invasion by other outsiders before, e.g., Chinese, Mongols, Tartars/Turks, etc., to a varying degree,
but, damn barbaric inferior Japanese???
Of all the invaders, the Japanese singlehandedly caused the most damage and destruction to Korea, way way more than the whole rest of them combined. And then some more.
But, I'll say this; we have only ourselves to blame. If you are Korean with decent intelligence, you would understand. Who's better off now after all?
Bottom line = let's not the tragedy of the past happen to our ancestral homeland and its people ever again by all means.
If you are Japanese, just look at what Germans did after WWII and learn!
Also please teach your children right. They are your future...
Most of Japanese are good people, I know it from first hand; it's those old guard ultra-nationlistic bigots in leadership positions that are the source of all controversy spewing out utter stupidity.
As far as choosing a "C" over a "K", I would definitely advocate using a "C" although I see many problems arising from such an adoption.
Meanwhile, for personal preferance, I wold like to adhere to a "K" just a little while longer...
One Korean Man
Sunday, May 19, 2002 at 03:30:52 (PDT)
> by connoting naiveté, imputes a lack of sophistication to Corea and its people.
Your are kidding, right? On the other hand, showing the stubbornness of the people?
The whole thing just strikes me as being very silly and irrelevant to the healing process or any new dialogue that is deemed to be needed to resolve the “settling of the accounts”.
If the settling of accounts is the issue – then I think a different campaign and at government or organizational level is the proper venue. If it is to be symbolic, then along with that we need to TEACH and REMIND the basis of the symbolism to each person that needs to be converted – again, a wrong vehicle and irrelevant to most English speakers in my opinion. Tremendous effort and energy will need to be expended on a questionable “symbolism” campaign.
xboy
Thursday, May 16, 2002 at 12:41:42 (PDT)
[Education and change begin with symbolic acts. --Ed]
To Mike:
It looks like I have to chime in, since "Japanese Education," either in Japan or in the U.S. is lacking, to say the least.
Why is it that the Japanese are ignorant of the genocidal atrocities that the Japanese Imperialists committed before, during, and after WW II? Why do they deny history?
It's not anti-Japanese education; it's called HISTORY, something that the Japanese aren't taught in Japan or here in the U.S.--I'm just flabbergasted at the blatant and purposeful ignorance. All of Asia, except Japan, is educating their citizens of historical facts--of Japan and its murderous (did I mention genocidal?) atrocities. Do you have any idea???
Proof??? Don't irritate me. First, read up on Japanese history, before making generalized comments.
Why, indeed, did Japan bother with Roma-ji spelling of Corea, when it has an innate word in Hiragana to describe Corea and not in Katakana?
"K" is for trademarks, "C" is for Corea. What's superficial is the blatent and purposeful ignorance of history on the part of Japan in educating its citizens.
Asian-American History Educated
Tuesday, May 14, 2002 at 23:07:24 (PDT)
I believe that the name should be changed to "Corea". It's not merely a letter change...it's symbolic.
I send my letters to "Guangzhou", not Canton because that's what the U.S. postal service and myself recognizes it to be now.
If people start using the term "Corea" from now on, it'll spread and it might eventually be changed and recognized worldwide.
Beijing, not Peking
Tuesday, May 14, 2002 at 16:37:49 (PDT)
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