Ancient Korea Presentation created by Robert L. Martinez Primary Content Source: Prentice Hall World History Images as cited. zlatni.org hwarangdo.com

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

Low but steep mountains cover nearly 70 percent of the Korean peninsula. The most prominent range is the T’aebaek. It runs from the north to the south along the eastern coast, with smaller chains branching off to form hilly areas. photius.comstarofsophia.blogspot.com

Because farming is difficult on the mountains, most people live along the western coastal plains, Korea’s major farming region. en.wikipedia.org

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

Korea’s location on China’s doorstep has played a key role in its development. From its powerful mainland neighbor, Korea received many cultural and technological influences. jspivey.wikispaces.com

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

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

Koreans evolved their own way of life before the first wave of Chinese influence reached the peninsula during the Han dynasty. history.cultural-china.com

Gojoseon 2333 BCE – 108 BCE

In 108 B.C.E., the Han emperor Wudi invaded Korea and set up a military colony there.

Confucian traditions and Chinese writing and farming methods spread in Korea. historyhaven.com

Between 300 C.E. and 600 C.E., powerful local rulers forged separate kingdoms: Goguryo in the north, Baekjae in the southwest, Silla in the southeast, and Gaya in the south. emersonkent.com

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

Silla Kingdom 57 B.C.E.-935 C.E.

Goguryeo Empire 37 B.C A.D

Baekjae Kingdom 18 B.C A.D

Gaya Kingdom B.C.-562

In 668, with the support of the Tang empress Wu Zhao, the Shilla kingdom united the Korean peninsula. imthiskid.blogspot.com

Under the Shilla dynasty, Korea became a tributary state, acknowledging Chinese supervision but preserving its independence. north-korea-travel.com

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.comspiritofmaat.com

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, women’s rights became restricted. Women could no longer inherit property, and a woman’s position within the family became more subordinate. krmdi.blogspot.com

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

Goryeo/Koryo Dynasty 918–1392

During the Koryo (Goryeo) 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

Koreans used woodblock printing 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

They learned to make porcelain from China, but then perfected techniques of making celadon, a porcelain with an unusual blue-green glaze. Korean celadon vases and jars were prized throughout Asia. artlex.com

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. Within a few generations, Confucianism had made a deep impact on Korean life. hompi.sogang.ac.kr

Choson Dynasty

Despite Chinese influence, Korea preserved its distinct identity. In 1443, Korea’s 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

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

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

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