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Mahan Confederacy
Mahan () was a loose confederacy of statelets that existed from around the 1st century BC to 5th century AD in the southern Korean peninsula in the Chungcheong and Jeolla provinces. Gina Lee Barnes, 《State Formation in Korea: Historical and Archaeological Perspectives》, Psychology Press, 2001, , p.29-33 Arising out of the confluence of Gojoseon migration and the Jin state federation, Mahan was one of the Samhan ("Three Hans"), along with Byeonhan and Jinhan. Baekje began as a member statelet, but later overtook all of Mahan and became one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. History Mahan probably developed from the existing bronze society of third to second centuries BC, continuing to absorb migration from the north in subsequent centuries. King Jun of the kingdom of Gija Joseon in northern Korea, having lost the throne to Wiman, fled to the state of Jin in southern Korea around 194 - 180 BC. He and his followers are thought to have established a base within Jin territory. ...
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Korean Peninsula
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic of Korea) comprising its southern half. Korea consists of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and several minor islands near the peninsula. The peninsula is bordered by China to the northwest and Russia to the northeast. It is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait and the Sea of Japan (East Sea). During the first half of the 1st millennium, Korea was divided between three states, Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla, together known as the Three Kingdoms of Korea. In the second half of the 1st millennium, Silla defeated and conquered Baekje and Goguryeo, leading to the "Unified Silla" period. Meanwhile, Balhae formed in the north, superseding former Goguryeo. Unified Silla eventually collapsed into three separate states due to civi ...
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Samguk Yusa
''Samguk yusa'' () or ''Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms'' is a collection of legends, folktales and historical accounts relating to the Three Kingdoms of Korea (Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla), as well as to other periods and states before, during and after the Three Kingdoms period. "Samguk yusa is a historical record compiled by the Buddhist monk Il Yeon in 1281 (the 7th year of King Chungnyeol of Goryeo) in the late Goryeo Dynasty." It is the earliest extant record of the Dangun legend, which records the founding of Gojoseon as the first Korean nation. The ''Samguk yusa'' is National Treasure No. 306. Samguk yusa is a history book which is composed of five volumes in total and is divided into nine parts within the five volumes. The samguk yusa can be described to the documentation of tales and legends, which are categorised by the two parts such as extraordinary historical events and diverse Buddhist narratives. This book deals with various historical sources such as tales of ...
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Jeong-an Kingdom
Jeongan or Ding'an (; ko, 정안국; 938–986) was a successor state of Balhae (Bohai) founded by Yeol Man-hwa (Lie Wanhua). Establishment and Downfall The early history of Jeongan is mostly unknown. Large number of rebels emerged on the former Balhae territories after the kingdom's conquest by the Liao dynasty in 926, although most were quickly defeated by Liao forces. General Yeol Manhwa (Lie Wanhua) established Jeongan in the mid-930s, at a time when the Liao puppet state of Dongdan was abolished and the main Liao forces left the region. Jeongan is recorded to have enlisted the assistance of neighboring tribes with the hopes of overthrowing the Liao dynasty, but apparently failed to do so. The Yeol clan was replaced by the Oh clan in 976, and was ruled by Oh Hyeon-myeong (Wu Xuanming) until before it was finally destroyed by the Liao dynasty in 986 CE. Jeongan only entered historical records because of its contact with the Song dynasty. In 970, the king paid tribute to ...
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Choe Chiwon
Choe Chiwon (; 857–10th century) was a Korean philosopher and poet of the late medieval Unified Silla period (668-935). He studied for many years in Tang China, passed the Tang imperial examination, and rose to the high office there before returning to Silla, where he made ultimately futile attempts to reform the governmental apparatus of a declining Silla state. In his final years, Choe turned more towards Buddhism and became a hermit scholar residing in and around Korea's Haeinsa temple. Choe Chiwon was also known by the literary names Haeun "Sea Cloud" ( ), or, more commonly, Goun "Lonely Cloud" ( ). He is recognized today as the progenitor of the Gyeongju Choe clan. Early life and study in Tang Choe Chiwon was born in the Saryang district of the Silla capital of Gyeongju in 857. He was of the so-called "head rank six" (''yukdupum'' ) class, a hereditary class in Silla's stringent bone rank system affixed to those of mixed aristocratic and commoner birth. As a member of ...
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Goryeo
Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians as it not only unified the Later Three Kingdoms but also incorporated much of the ruling class of the northern kingdom of Balhae, who had origins in Goguryeo of the earlier Three Kingdoms of Korea. The name "Korea" is derived from the name of Goryeo, also spelled Koryŏ, which was first used in the early 5th century by Goguryeo. According to Korean historians, it was during the Goryeo period that the individual identities of Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla were successfully merged into a single entity that became the basis of modern-day 'Korean' identity. Throughout its existence, Goryeo, alongside Unified Silla, was known to be the "Golden Age of Buddhism" in Korea. As the state religion, Buddhism achieved its highes ...
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Sanguo Zhi
The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). It is widely regarded as the official and authoritative source historical text for that period. Written by Chen Shou in the third century, the work synthesizes the histories of the rival states of Cao Wei, Shu Han and Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period into a single compiled text. The ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'' is the main source of influence for the 14th century historical novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms,'' considered one of the great four novels of Chinese classical literature. Major chunks of the records have been translated into English, but the tome has yet to be fully translated. Origin and structure The ''Records of the Grand Historian'', ''Book of Han'' and ''Book of the Later Han'', and the ''Records ...
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Cheonan
Cheonan (; 천안시, ''Cheonan-si''), also spelled Ch'ŏnan, is a city in South Chungcheong, South Korea. Cheonan has a population of 666,417 (2018), making it the most-populous city or county in South Chungcheong, and the third most-populous city in the Hoseo region after Daejeon and Cheongju. Cheonan borders the Gyeonggi cities of Pyeongtaek and Anseong to the north, the South Chungcheong cities of Asan to the west and Gongju to the southwest, Sejong Special Autonomous City to the south, the North Chungcheong city of Cheongju to the south east and Jincheon County to the east. Cheonan has been called "the core city of henation" due to its location south of the national capital, Seoul, in the northeast corner of South Chungcheong, serving as a transportation hub to the Seoul Capital Area and surrounding regions. Cheonan is connected to various freeways and railways including the National Highways 1 and 21, the Expressways 1-Gyeongbu and 25-Honam, and the city's Korail stat ...
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Gyeonggi
Gyeonggi-do (, ) is the most populous province in South Korea. Its name, ''Gyeonggi'', means "京 (the capital) and 畿 (the surrounding area)". Thus, ''Gyeonggi-do'' can be translated as "Seoul and the surrounding areas of Seoul". Seoul, the nation's largest city and capital, is in the heart of the area but has been separately administered as a provincial-level ''special city'' since 1946. Incheon, the nation's third-largest city, is on the coast of the province and has been similarly administered as a provincial-level ''metropolitan city'' since 1981. The three jurisdictions are collectively referred to as '' Sudogwon'' and cover , with a combined population of 25.5 million—amounting to over half of the entire population of South Korea. History Gyeonggi-do has been a politically important area since 18 BCE, when Korea was divided into three nations during the Three Kingdoms period. Ever since King Onjo, the founder of Baekje (one of the three kingdoms), founded the governm ...
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Han River (Korea)
The Han River or Hangang () is a major river in South Korea and the fourth longest river on the Korean peninsula after the Yalu River, Amnok (Yalu), Tumen River, Tuman (Tumen), and Nakdong rivers. The river begins as two smaller rivers in the eastern mountains of the Korean peninsula, which then converge near Seoul, the capital of the country. The Hangang River and its surrounding area have played an important role in Korean history. The Three Kingdoms of Korea strove to take control of this land, where the river was used as a trade route to China (via the Yellow Sea). The river is no longer actively used for navigation, because its estuary is located at the Korean Demilitarized Zone, borders of the two Koreas, barred for entrance by any civilian. The river serves as a water source for over 12 million South Koreans. In July 2000, the United States military admitted to having dumped formaldehyde in the sewer system connected to the river, causing protests. The lower stretches ...
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Goguryeo
Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most of the Korean peninsula, large parts of Manchuria and parts of eastern Mongolia and Inner Mongolia. Along with Baekje and Silla, Goguryeo was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. It was an active participant in the power struggle for control of the Korean peninsula and was also associated with the foreign affairs of neighboring polities in China and Japan. The ''Samguk sagi'', a 12th-century text from Goryeo, indicates that Goguryeo was founded in 37 BC by Jumong (), a prince from Buyeo, who was enthroned as Dongmyeong. Goguryeo was one of the great powers in East Asia, until its defeat by a Silla–Tang alliance in 668 after prolonged exhaustion and internal strife caused by the death of Yeon Gaesomun (). After its fall, its territory w ...
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Silla
Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Founded by Hyeokgeose of Silla, of the Park family, the Korean dynasty was ruled by the Gyeongju Gim (Kim) (김, 金) clan for 586 years, the Miryang Bak (Park) (박, 朴) clan for 232 years and the Wolseong Seok (석, 昔) clan for 172 years. It began as a chiefdom in the Samhan confederacies, once allied with Sui China and then Tang China, until it eventually conquered the other two kingdoms, Baekje in 660 and Goguryeo in 668. Thereafter, Unified Silla occupied most of the Korean Peninsula, while the northern part re-emerged as Balhae, a successor-state of Goguryeo. After nearly 1,000 years of rule, Silla fragmented into the brief Later Three Kingdoms of Silla, Later Baekje, and Taebong, handing over power to Goryeo in 935. ...
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