Newsletter

Editor's Note: On June 25, 2014, the Northeast Asian History Academy for Foreigners produced its second class of graduates. Some of them have contributed letters sharing their experience and thoughts about this program's education and field trips.

Twebaze Justus Benard
Nationality: Uganda
Affiliation: The ThD Program at Korea Nazarene University

For a long time, I have been looking for an opportunity to learn about Korean culture. However, there were not many programs for foreign students, unlike programs for foreign workers or multi-cultural families. One day I came across information about the program for foreign students in Korea run by the Northeast Asian History Foundation. I contacted the NAHF immediately and finally got the rare opportunity that I had been looking for.

On the day of class, I had to travel a long distance by train from Daejeon where I lived to Seoul. Although friends of mine couldn't understand that I was willing to spend a lot of time, and especially money since I didn't have much of it as a student, on attending a class about Korean history, I found it interesting to learn about the culture and history of another country. After all, any country has a unique culture of its own. Once I return to Uganda, I want to introduce Korean culture and history to my country.

Calling for Cultural Exchange Bringing the North and the South Together

Our field trips to the places we learned about in the class also gave me an unforgettable experience. In Dokdo, for example, I felt the invisible war going on between Japan and Korea. While looking around the DMZ, I was sad that the division of Korea had not been intended by its own people but had been the result of a political confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Although I am aware that there is still a long way to go before the two Koreas can become one, I think that we should start seeking ways that will allow North and South Korea to share their unique sentiment and culture wisely with each other even before they become one.

Let me express my deepest gratitude to the Northeast Asian History Foundation for providing such an excellent program for foreign students in Korea.

Wong Sze Nga
Nationality: Hong Kong
Affiliation: Yonsei University Korean Language Institute

Through the Korean Language Institute at Yonsei University, I signed up for the Northeast Asian History Academy for Foreigners by the Northeast Asian History Foundation. This program taught me about Korean history from ancient to comtemporary periods, and presented many photos featuring major historical events, which helped foreign students new to Korean history feel interest in the subject. Having learned Chinese history and world history since middle school, I found it interesting to compare the world history as I had learned and Korean history for their differences and similarities.

What I Realized While Learning History

This program reminded me why we should learn history. We learn history in order to find the root of the history and culture of our own country and avoid repeating the mistakes of our ancestors. So it is sad to see that young people these days are trying to avoid studying history. There is a theory in Chinese history known as 'dynastic circle.' As we study history, we should learn from the mistakes of our ancestors and learn what we should do in the future. In other words, I believe that learning history is about resolving problems at hand while remembering the past and preventing the crisis expected to come.

Finally, I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude once again to those at the Northeast Asian History Academy for Foreigners who helped me learn about historical challenges in Northeast Asia (e.g. Northeast Project, textbook controversies) as well as Korean history.