The Republic of Korea (South Korea) is a highly prosperous and urbanised country with a fascinating history. This substantial historical dictionary, part of the Historical Dictionaries of Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East series, is a rigorous introduction to this history.
This historical dictionary has been thoroughly expanded and updated since the previous edition published in 2004. The author notes in his preface that the aim of the book remains the same as the original 1993 edition by the late Professor Andrew Nahm, to provide a reference companion for those interested in the history of the Republic of Korea since its establishment in 1948. Domestic, political and social events are covered, along with foreign affairs, economic and cultural developments. Koreans and men and women of other nationalities who have influenced the country’s history are also included.
This third edition summarizes the important events and developments in South Korea up to autumn of 2014. As well as containing corrections to errors contained in the previous edition and rewritten and expanded entries in the light of current knowledge, this new edition contains new themes such as adoption, heath, the environment and industrialisation. There is a greater focus on poets, artists, musicians, scientists and the business world, and more cities are included.
Published in a single volume, this book consists of an alphabetical series of entries: from the Academy of Korean Studies, established in 1978 under President Park Chung-hee to promote scholarship in the field of Korean studies as well as to improve South Korea’s international image, to Zo Zayang, a Korean folklorist who tried to preserve the traditions of shamanism in face of the relentless modernisation of South Korea. Most entries tend to be no longer than two or three paragraphs, although there are longer essays of more than a page on crucial individuals and key topics such as North Korea–South Korea relations and the Korean War. Cross-referencing is used extensively within entries to good effect. Cross-references that have their own individual entries are in boldface type and “see” and “see also” are also used at the end of entries.
The entries are clear and concise. The longer entries are engaging and packed with facts and figures where relevant. The author James E. Hoare is a British historian who is currently an Associate Fellow on the Asia Programme at Chatham House, The Royal Institute of International Affairs. For many years, he was a member of the British Foreign Service which included postings to the British embassies in Seoul and Pyongyang. This background has enabled him to write extensively on North and South Korea including the companion volume to this title Historical Dictionary of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (Hoare, 2012) (RR 2013/123).
The dictionary section of the volume is accompanied by a chronology of events of major importance in the entire history of Korea, with greater focus on South Korea since 1945. There is also an introduction, offering an historical narrative for the entire peninsula, a list of acronyms and abbreviations, four maps and appendices. The volume ends with a comprehensive bibliography which has been updated to reflect the huge expansion in publications about Korea since the previous edition of this dictionary.
This book would complement other recent publications of historical dictionaries such as the author’s companion volume Historical Dictionary of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Korea: A Cultural and Historical Dictionary (Pratt and Rutt, 1999), which covers Korean civilization from early times to the present day.
Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Korea is an essential purchase for an academic library specialising in Asian studies and libraries supporting undergraduates and postgraduate courses in Asian history and international relations. It aims to appeal to the specialist academic and the student looking to develop their knowledge, but there is a lot here for the general reader wishing to learn about South Korea. The introduction, in particular, is a fascinating account of the history of the country for a general reader. It would also be a useful reference companion for a secondary or sixth form student. This is an impressively comprehensive and informative historical dictionary that is eminently readable.
