뉴스레터

The Korean and French governments have designated the years 2015 and 2016 as the period for official events to celebrate the 130th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries. During this period, many such events are scheduled to be held by various organizations in various fields. For example, an international conference with the theme of "Korea and France Looking Back on 130 Years of Exchange" to foster an interest in Korea in France, co-hosted by the Northeast Asian History Foundation and AFELACC (Association Française des Enseignants de Langue et Culture Coréennes), was held at Paris Marriott Rive Gauche Hotel from May 28 to 29, 2015.

This conference was a meaningful event participated by experts in various fields, such as the history of Korea-France relations, Korean and French literature and education, exchange between the two countries in politics, economy, science, culture, and art, for the presentation and sharing of their research findings so far. It was particularly meaningful that experts in Korean Studies, including Professor Lee Jin-myeong, a scholar based in France, gathered together for the presentation and discussion of the history of relationship and exchange between the two countries over the past 130 years.

The close relationship between Korea and France dates back to a time when France started sending Catholic missionaries to Korea even before their diplomatic relations were officially established. The two countries concluded a commercial treaty in 1886, and have since maintained a close cooperation with each other on many fronts ranging from politics to economy, society, culture, and science and technology, except during the 35 years of the Japanese occupation of Korea.

Papers Presented on the General History of Exchange and Cooperation between Korean and France

In a total of four sessions at this conference, 22 papers in total were presented. In his keynote speech on "Developments in Korea-France Relations: From the Origin to the Present," Professor Emeritus Lee Jin-myeong at Lyon 3 University, a leading expert in Korean Studies in France, addressed questions about what lies at the core of exchange between the two countries with different traditional values, material or spiritual, and at a geographically far distance from each other, and gave an overview of the development of Korea-France relations so far.

In his presentation on 'The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea and the French Concession in Shanghai, China,' Research Fellow Chang, Se-yun at the NAHF talked about the recently discovered materials on the French Concession concerning Koreans, and discussed Korea's independence movement during the colonial period and the French government's policies regarding the Korean residents in Shanghai. This was an interesting attempt to review the bilateral relations in the unique terms of Korea's independence movement during the Japanese occupation, even through it was a period in which there was only limited exchange between the Korean and French peoples.

In my presentation on '19th-century Japan's Perception of Ulleungdo and Dokdo Reflected in the Making of World Maps,' I discussed the French explorers who had reached the Korean islands. In particular, by explaining how Japan had not been even aware of Dokdo throughout the 19th century in the history of the making of world maps, I tried to logically prove Korea's sovereignty over Dokdo.

Pierre Cambon, Senior Curator at Musée National des Arts Asiatiques Guimet (Guimet Museum) in France, presented a paper titled "Hong Jong-woo, a Korean in Paris: 1890-1892" which highlighted various aspects of Hong Jong-woo's career of three years in Paris by using new materials that had been unknown to Korea. Mr. Cambon said, "Hong Jong-woo was not simply an employee of the Guimet Museum, nor was he simply a translator immersed in his work and nothing else. His mission was essentially to understand Western culture, and, at the same time, come into contact and interact with European society through literary exchange."

The Importance of Exchange with France as the Leader in Geography and Cartography

During the period of this conference, two exhibitions were held at the same time: 'The East Sea and Dokdo in Maps and Photographs' and 'Korean Traditional Paper Meets French Literature.' The photographs and maps of Dokdo and the world maps related to the name East Sea were exhibited in hopes of promoting Korea's sovereignty over Dokdo in French-speaking countries and contributing to the global spread of the name East Sea.

Currently, France wields a still relatively strong influence over French-speaking countries. Its power and status in geography and cartography is also quite strong, strong enough to change the world's opinion regarding the name East Sea. Hopefully, this international conference has deepened the mutual understanding between Korea and France and helped more French-speaking scholars understand and support Korea's argument and the logic behind it.