古代史のなかの朝鮮文化 : 東アジア世界と日本

Abstract

Korean Migrants who settled down in the Japanese archipelago from the Korean Peninsula played a great role in the history and the culture of ancient Japan. We can find a lot of traces such as Chinese characters used in Japan, Buddhism for religious belief and Confucianism for ethics and morality around us even now. Although Korean Migrants relocated several times, those who made the greatest impact on Japanese history and culture were the ones in the 5th century. The foundation of Japan was formed around that time and we normally call it “The Early State.” The advanced culture and civilization brought by Korean Migrants are acknowledged as background factors. Korean Migrants greatly advanced the history and the culture of Japan: the Japanese archipelago, which is separated from outside by an ocean, was far from isolated. China, the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese archipelago formed their history and culture through active interaction and contacts. Although many researchers point out that fact that Korean Migrants settled in Japan, their route remains to be confirmed. A concrete case of Korean Migrants is discussed in this article, using the ancient Japan sea or Donghae (East Sea) which is shown as “Kitatsu-umi” in Chronicles of Japan.