뉴스레터

In 1900, the Korean Empire issued 'Imperial Edict #41' to upgrade Ulleungdo to Uldo-gun, the status of administrative unit gun, and place the entire Ulleungdo as well as 'Jukdo(竹島)' and 'Dokseom (石島)' under the jurisdiction of Uldogun. Jukdo and Dokseom as mentioned in the edict refer to 'Daetseom,' the island located right next to Ulleungdo, and present-day Dokdo, respectively. Even though it is plain that Seokdo (石島) is Dokdo, some Japanese researchers think of it differently. They argue that 'Seokdo' mentioned in the Imperial Edit #41 is not Dokdo, as maintained by the Korean academia, but 'Gwaneumdo.'

Studies of the Various Written Forms of 'Dokseom' in Chinese Characters

The NAHF has compiled the results of in-depth studies conducted by researchers in related fields who have been studying the name 'Seokdo' and Dokdo, and published them in its 55th special research book titled 『Studies of the Korea-Japan Border and the Perception Thereof during the Transitional Period toward Modern Times–with Focus on Dokseom (石島) and Liancourt Rocks』. This is a noteworthy book composed of papers that took brand-new approaches to the 'Seokdo' issue. The traditional explanation of the name 'Seokdo' and its origin has been largely a linguistic one that 'Seokdo' comes from 'Dokseom,' a vernacular term used by fishermen in South Jeolla Province, written in Chinese characters. The NAHF's 55th special research book corroborates this linguistic explanation with more specific and objective evidence based on the in-depth studies of the various written forms of 'Dokseom' in Chinese characters found in other areas across the country. Furthermore, it also provides a detailed explanation as to how Dokdo, traditionally called 'Usando,' became 'Seokdo' from the perspective of understanding the history of Dokdo.

In addition to the results of the various studies of the name Seokdo and its origin, the book also features a paper on ''Liancourt Rocks,' the name that was used in Japan from the late 19th century to refer to Dokdo. This paper examined the essence of Japan's persistent argument that Dokdo is its inherent territory, and how such argument is invalid in terms of logic, international law, and maritime law.

Written from the Perspectives of Experts in International Law, Korean History, Japanese History, and Geography

This book features papers by a total of five different researchers in fields as diverse as international law, Korean history, Japanese history, and geography based on the results of their longtime studies on Dokdo and from the perspectives of their own fields. First of all, the international law expert Kim Byung-ryul, a professor of the National Security College at the Korea National Defense University, who was the first to discover and disclose the draft of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1998, wrote 'The Effect of the Name of an Island on Claims to the Island.' And the Korean history expert Yim Young-Jung, a professor emeritus of the Department of History Education at Dongguk University who has been studying for a long time various historical records of Korea and Japan with focus on the name Dokdo, wrote 'A Study on Woosando(于山島) during the Late Joseon Period.'

And Dr. Hong Jung-Won at the Academy of Korean Studies, another expert in Korean history making a lot of achievements in the studies of modern historical records, wrote 'A Study on Dokdo (Woosando, Seokdo) Featured in Modern Documents.' The geography expert Lee Gi-bong, an expert in rare books at the National Museum of Korea whose accomplishments in the studies of old maps and Dokdo-related maps from the Joseon period date back to his early career at the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies at the Seoul National University, wrote 'A Study on Seokdo/Dokdo from the Relationship between Place Names in Pure Korean Words and their Written Forms in Chinese Characters.'

And I, who study Japanese history and Korean history, and have published a number of translations of Korean and Japanese rare documents and papers, wrote 「'A Study on Confusion in Island Names' of Japan and Liancourt Rocks.' 」

Hopefully Another Cornerstone for the Defense of Dokdo

If you asked Koreans what they think is the great obstacle to Korea-Japan relations today, most of them would answer the Dokdo issue. But it is not a recent issue but rooted in a series of events dating back to as early as the late 17th century or as recent as the early 20th century. The studies of Japan's ban on voyages to Ulleungdo during the 17th century have produced substantial results. On the other hand, relatively fewer studies have been done on the 20th-century circumstances under which Japan incorporated Dokdo into its territory in order to use it for the Russo-Japanese war.

In this regard, I believe that the undertaking of the studies of the Korea-Japan border and the perception thereof in modern times undertaken by researchers in related fields is very significant as it has laid another cornerstone for the defense of Dokdo.