Names of Korea
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For complex historical reasons, there are three names of Korea in use today. In Korean, Korea is referred to as "Chosŏn" (조선; 朝鮮) in the North and "Hanguk" (한국; 韓國) in the South. The western name "Korea" (from Goryeo (고려; 高麗)) is a neutral name often used by both countries in international contexts. This article explains the historical evolution and modern usage of these names.
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Ancient History
Historically speaking, "Chosŏn" (also romanized as "Joseon" meaning "Land of the Morning Calm") referred to the northern area and "Han" (한; 韓) to the southern region in general. Until about 2000-3000 years ago, several ancient kingdoms in northern Korea had the name "Joseon," including Go-Joseon, Wiman Joseon, and Gija Joseon. After the fall of Go-Joseon, some refugees settled in the south. Around the same time, several tribes were established in southern Korea, collectively called the "Three Han" (Samhan; 삼한; 三韓), thus introducing the name "Han."
It is usually assumed that "Joseon" originates from the transliteration of the native name into Chinese characters. However, writing in 1985, the South Korean historian Yi Byeong-do suggested that "Joseon" came from the translation of "Asadal" (아사달; 阿斯達), the capital of Go-Joseon (which doubled as a name for the state), into Chinese characters. "Asadal" (Asatar*) has been analysed as asa*, meaning "morning", and tar*, meaning "land" or "mountain". There may be a legitimate connection there, as jo (朝) is the Chinese character for "morning" (asa*), but the relationship between seon (鮮; "bright" in this context) and tar* is more problematic.
The Three Kingdoms
By the beginning of the Common Era, northern Korea was controlled by the kingdom of Goguryeo (고구려; 高句麗). Soon after, the three southern Han tribal confederacies resolved into the kingdoms of Baekje (백제; 百濟), Silla (신라; 新羅), and the loose confederation of Gaya (Garak). Several centuries after the fall of the Baekje's and Goguryeo's fall to Silla and Silla's subsequent fall to Goryeo, the Samguk Sagi ("History of the Three Kingdoms") was written, which gave the collective name "Three Kingdoms" (Samguk; 삼국; 三國) to Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla.
Unified Silla
Baekje and Goguryeo came under Silla's control in the 660s, making Silla the first kingdom to rule most of the entire peninsula. Thus, Korea's name became "Silla." The country is often referred to today by historians as "Unified Silla" (Tongil Silla; 통일 신라; 統一新羅) to differentiate it from the Silla of the Three Kingdoms Period.
During this period, Muslim traders brought the name "Silla" to the world outside the traditional East Asian sphere for the first time. Geographers of the Arab and Persian world, including ibn Khurdadhbih, al-Masudi, Dimashiki, al-Nuwairi, and al-Maqrizi, left records about Silla.
Goryeo
In the 930s, the new kingdom of Goryeo (고려; 高麗) conquered Silla. The name "Goryeo" (a shortened form of "Goguryeo") was translated into Italian as "Cauli," the name Marco Polo used when mentioning the country in his Travels, perhaps derived from the Mandarin Chinese form Gaoli. From "Cauli" came the English names "Corea" and the now more commonly used "Korea" (see Western names below).
Joseon
After Yi Seonggye founded the Joseon Dynasty in 1392, he renamed the country "Joseon," reviving the old name. The country's full name was Daejoseonguk (대조선국; 大朝鮮國; "Great Joseon Nation"), a name that is almost never used today. In 1897, King Gojong became the first emperor of the newly formed Korean Empire (Daehan Jeguk; 대한 제국; 大韓帝國), or literally "Great Han Empire," modifying the country's old official name by replacing "Joseon" with "Han" and changing Guk ("nation") to Jeguk ("empire").
Japanese Colonial Period
When Korea came under Japanese control in 1910, the country reverted to the name Joseon (the official name being the Japanese Chosen (朝鮮)). During this period, many different groups outside of Korea worked or fought for independence. One group was the Shanghai-based Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (Daehan Minguk Imsi Jeongbu; 대한 민국 임시 정부; 大韓民國臨時政府), adopting the name Daehan Minguk ("Republic of Korea", literally "Great Han People-Nation"), a modified form of Daehan Jeguk ("Great Korean Empire").
After World War II
Korea became independent with Japan's defeat in 1945. The country was then jointly divided into a Soviet occupation zone in the north and an American occupation zone in the south. The non-Communist Shanghai group had more influence in the south, which in 1948 became the "Republic of Korea," adopting the former provisional government's name of Daehan Minguk. Meanwhile, ex-Soviet Red Army major Kim Il-sung's Korean Workers' Party had more influence in the north, which in 1948 became the "Democratic People's Republic of Korea" (Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk; 조선 민주주의 인민 공화국; 朝鮮民主主義人民共和國), adopting "Joseon" (Chosŏn), a name with ancient and northern connotations.
The Situation Today
Today, North Koreans use Chosŏn refer to Korea as a whole, and refer to the two countries specifically as Bukchosŏn (북조선; 北朝鮮; "North Chosŏn") and Namjosŏn (남조선; 南朝鮮; "South Chosŏn"). In contrast, South Koreans call Korea Hanguk and refer to North Korea as Bukhan (북한; 北韓; "North Han") and South Korea as Namhan (남한; 南韓; "South Han").
North Koreans never use Hanguk and South Koreans do not use Chosŏn (with a few exceptions, such as Chosun Ilbo, a South Korean newspaper). The Korean language is called Chosŏnŏ or Chosŏnmal in the North and Hangugeo or Hangungmal in the South. Chosŏn'gŭl is the North Korean name for what the South Koreans call Hangul. The Korean Peninsula is called Chosŏn Pando in the North and Hanbando in the South.
When writing in English, a few authors write "north" and "south" in lowercase because they are not part of the countries' official names, and because of the belief that Korea should be considered as one connected socio-cultural nation. (In the same vein, official maps in both countries usually do not show the Military Demarcation Line that divides the two countries, giving the illusion that it is possible to travel freely back and forth between North and South.)
East Asian names
Newspapers in the People's Republic of China tend to use the names that each of the two sides prefer, by referring to North Korea as Chaoxian (朝鲜 "Chosŏn") and to South Korea as Hanguo (韩国 "Hanguk"). This is similar to the situation in Vietnam, where people call North Korea Triều Tiên ("Chosŏn") and South Korea Hàn Quốc ("Hanguk").
The Republic of China in Taiwan, on the other hand, uses the South Korean name, referring to North Korean as Beihan (北韓 "North Han[guk]") and South Korean as Nanhan (南韓 "South Han[guk]"). Similarly, people in Hong Kong and Macau call North Korea Bak Hon (北韓 "North Han[guk]") and South Korea as Nam Hon (南韓 "South Han[guk]"). Until recently, the People's Republic of China tended to use the North Korean name, by referring to South Korea as Nanchaoxian (南朝鲜 "South Chosŏn").
In Japan, the names preferred by each of the two sides is used, but North Korea's north is prefixed with "north", so that North Korea is called Kita-Chosen (北朝鮮; "North Chosŏn") and South Korea Kankoku (韓国 "Hanguk"). The Korean language is most frequently referred in Japan to as Kankokugo (韓国語) meaning language of Hanguk. However, when NHK broadcasts a language instruction program for Korean, the language is referred to as Hangulgo (ハングル語) meaning language of the Hangul writing system. This term is not used in ordinary Japanese, but was selected as a compromise to placate both nations in a euphemistic process called kotobagari.
Western names
Both North and South Korea use the name "Korea" (or its equivalent in other western languages) when referring to their countries in English or other western languages. The name "Goryeo" (the source of "Korea") has therefore come back into fashion in Korean as an alternative, more or less neutral name for Korea. Thus, Russian and Central Asian citizens of Korean descent call themselves "Goryeo people" to avoid the North-South conflict. More recently, Koria (코리아; a back-translation from English) has also been used.
In English, until the end of the 19th century, the name "Corea" was used almost exclusively, with "Korea" only coming into common use at the turn of the 20th century. This has given rise to a widespread ideas that says that the name "Korea" was favored by the Japanese around the turn of the century. Since Japan was after Corea in alphabetical order, Japanese nationalists would have decided to favor the upper-case "C" into a "K", thus changing "Corea" into "Korea" in order to gain alphabetical supremacy. However, "Korea" was also used along with "Corea" in English-language documents very early in very limited amounts. The Japanese-modification theory, while widely in favour among nationalists, is dismissed as an urban legend by most Japanese.