Joseon

For other uses, see Joseon (disambiguation).

Joseon
조선
고려국
(1392–1393)
高麗國
조선국
(1393–1894)
朝鮮國
대조선국
(1894–1897)
大朝鮮國
1392–1897
Royal emblem Emblem (c. 1884–1897) of Joseon
Royal emblem
Emblem
(c. 1884–1897)
Royal Seal
Territory of Joseon after King Sejong's conquest of Jurchens in 1433 (with current borders)
Territory of Joseon after King Sejong's conquest of Jurchens in 1433 (with current borders)
StatusTributary relations with the Ming and Qing
(1401–1895)a

Qing intervention
(1882–1894)a[1][2][3][4]
Japanese intervention
(1894–1896)
CapitalMain:
Hanseong
(now Seoul) (1394–1399/1405–1897)
Temporary:
Gaegyeong
(1392–1394/1399–1405)
Official languagesMiddle Korean,
Early Modern Korean,
Classical Chinese[5][6]: 243, 329 [7]: 74  (literary Chinese or Hanmun in Korean)
Religion
Confucianism
(state ideology),
Buddhism,
Shamanism,
Taoism,
Christianity
(recognized in 1886)
Demonym(s)Korean
GovernmentAbsolute monarchy[8]
King 
• 1392–1398
Taejo (first)
• 1864–1897
Gojong (last)
Chief State Councillor[note 1] 
• 1392
Bae Geuk-ryeom (first)
• 1894–1898
Kim Byeong-si (last)
LegislatureNone (rule by decree) (until 1894)
Jungchuwon [ko] (from 1894)
History 
• Coronation of Taejo
August 5 1392
• change the name of a country from Goryeo to Joseon
March 28, 1393
October 9, 1446
1592–1598
1627, 1636–1637
February 26, 1876
April 17, 1895
October 13 1897
Population
• 1519[9]
3,300,000
• 1648[10]
2,576,000
• 1717[10]
10,056,000
• 1777[10]
9,074,000
• 1807[10]
9,377,000
CurrencyMun
(1423–1425, 1625–1892)
Yang
(1892–1897)
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Goryeo
Tamna
Korean Empire
Today part ofNorth Korea
South Korea
  1. The diplomatic system of East Asia was hierarchical, lacking in equality.[11] Joseon Korea enjoyed a high level of independence and sovereignty in domestic and foreign affairs while ritually subservient to the Ming and Qing dynasties of China.[12] However, the Qing dynasty was directly involved in the affairs of Joseon from the Imo Incident of 1882 until the Treaty of Shimonoseki of 1895.[1]
Korean name
Hangul
조선
Hanja
朝鮮
Revised RomanizationJoseon
McCune–ReischauerChosŏn
IPA[tɕo.sʰʌn]
North Korean name
Hangul
조선봉건왕조[13][14]
Hanja
朝鮮封建王朝
Revised RomanizationJoseon Bonggeon Wangjo
McCune–ReischauerChosŏn Ponggŏn Wangjo
Official name
Hangul
대조선국
Hanja
大朝鮮國
Revised RomanizationDaejoseonguk
McCune–ReischauerTaejosŏn'guk
IPAKorean pronunciation: [tɛ.dʑo.sʰʌn.ɡuk̚]

Joseon[a] (English: /ˈtʃoʊsʌn/ CHOH-sun; Korean: 조선; Hanja: 朝鮮; MR: Chosŏn; [tɕo.sʰʌn]), officially Great Joseon State (대조선국; 大朝鮮國; [tɛ.dʑo.sʰʌn.ɡuk̚]),[15] was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years.[16][17] It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897.[18] The kingdom was founded following the aftermath of the overthrow of Goryeo in what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul. The kingdom's northernmost borders were expanded to the natural boundaries at the rivers of Amnok and Tuman through the subjugation of the Jurchens.

During its 500-year duration, Joseon encouraged the entrenchment of Confucian ideals and doctrines in Korean society. Neo-Confucianism was installed as the new state's ideology. Buddhism was accordingly discouraged, and occasionally Buddhists faced persecutions. Joseon consolidated its effective rule over the Korean peninsula and saw the height of classical Korean culture, trade, literature, and science and technology. In the 1590s, the kingdom was severely weakened due to the two failed Japanese invasions of 1592 and 1598. Several decades later, Joseon was invaded by the Later Jin dynasty and the Qing dynasty in 1627 and 1636–1637 respectively, leading to an increasingly harsh isolationist policy, for which the country became known as the "hermit kingdom" in Western literature. After the end of these invasions from Manchuria, Joseon experienced a nearly 200-year period of peace and prosperity, along with cultural and technological development. What power the kingdom recovered during its isolation waned as the 18th century came to a close. Faced with internal strife, power struggles, international pressure, and rebellions at home, the kingdom declined rapidly in the late 19th century.

The Joseon period has left a substantial legacy to modern Korea; much of modern Korean culture, etiquette, norms, and societal attitudes toward current issues, along with the modern Korean language and its dialects, derive from the culture and traditions of Joseon. Modern Korean bureaucracy and administrative divisions were also established during the Joseon period.

  1. ^ a b Lin 2014, pp. 69–71.
  2. ^ Kim 2012, p. 293.
  3. ^ "Japan–South Korea Joint History Research Project" https://www.jkcf.or.jp/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/3-03j.pdf Archived May 8, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Was Korea Ever a Part of China?: A Historical Review". The Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security (외교안보연구소).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Met was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lee was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Orchiston-Green-Strom was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Choi, Sang-hun (2017). Interior Space and Furniture of Joseon Upper-class Houses. Ewha Womans University Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-8973007202. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved November 1, 2020 – via Google Books. Joseon was an absolute monarchy
  9. ^ Sung-Ho Kang (2014). Reorienting Reorient: East Asia and 15th–19th Century Joseon.
  10. ^ a b c d Ki-joo Park and Donghyu Yang (2007). The Standard of Living in the Chosoˇn Dynasty Korea in the 17th to the 19th Centuries.
  11. ^ Kang, david (2019), "International Order in Historical East Asia: Tribute and Hierarchy Beyond Sinocentrism and Eurocentrism", International Organization, 74, Cambridge University Press: 65–93, doi:10.1017/S0020818319000274
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference Em was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ 조선력사 시대구분표. Naenara (in Korean). Archived from the original on July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  14. ^ "Korean History in Chronological Order". Naenara. Archived from the original on July 1, 2019. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  15. ^ Li, Jun-gyu (이준규) (July 22, 2009). (세상사는 이야기) 왜색에 물든 우리말-(10) (in Korean). Newstown. 1392년부터 1910년까지 한반도전역을 통치하였던 조선(朝鮮)은 일반적으로 조선왕조(朝鮮王朝)라 칭하였으며, 어보(御寶), 국서(國書)등에도 대조선국(大朝鮮國)이라는 명칭을 사용하였었다. (translation) Joseon which had ruled from 1392 to 1910 was commonly referred to as the "Joseon dynasty" while "Great Joseon" was used in the royal seal, national documents, and others.[permanent dead link‍]
  16. ^ "Chosŏn dynasty | Korean history". Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Archived from the original on May 3, 2015. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  17. ^ Women Our History. D.K. 2019. p. 82. ISBN 978-0241395332. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  18. ^ 조선. Encyclopedia of Korean Culture.


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