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The Popular Field of Korean Studies in France

  Korean studies in France have remarkably grown over the past two decades. This development can be attributed to the global popularity of Korean culture and the general interest in East Asia as an explanation. For instance, in the early 2000s, Korean studies programs in France attracted only 10 to 15 new students each year. However, in recent years, the competition for admission to universities for this major has become fierce, with 1,500 to 2,500 new students applying annually, even in the provincial areas. This current situation reminds us of Professor Anders Karlsson’s article, “The Korean Wave and Koreanology in the United Kingdom”, published in the September 2023 issue of the Foundation’s newsletter, Northeast Asian History Foundation News. As Professor Karlsson mentioned, Koreanology, which had been overshadowed by Sinology and Japanology in Europe for a long time, has now become one of the most popular departments with the highest number of students.

A Glimpse into the History of Koreanology in France

   In 1670, The Journal of the Unfortunate Voyage of the Jaght the Sperwer written by Hendrik Hamel was translated into French, becoming the main source of information about the Korean Peninsula in France until the 19th century. As the 20th century approached, the efforts of Catholic missionaries and diplomats provided a much more comprehensive picture of Korea. Some of their monographs remain valuable sources of information even today, with certain ones being published in Korean translations.  One of them, Maurice Courant(1865-1935), an interpreter and professor, is considered the founder of Korean studies in France. His Répertoire historique de l’administration coréenne, completed in 1892, is available online in digital and facsimile formats, making it the most complete glossary of Korean history in Western languages. Korean studies programs were introduced at two universities in Paris in the 1950s and began to spread to the provincial areas in the 1980s.

  At the same time, research institutions such as the French National Center for Scientific Research(CNRS) also hired Korean specialists for the first time. The research trends of the time mainly focused on pre-modern literature, history, and linguistics. Today, the situation has significantly changed, with a growing number of departments (or sections) of Korean studies offering regular curricula. Some universities in Paris even provide Master and PhD degrees in Korean studies, along with access to essential Korean-related collections in their libraries. With a growing number of faculty members enjoying permanent positions, students can access a wide selection of majors, including history, geography, politics, anthropology, religion and thought, literature, linguistics, and such.

Unity Makes Strength

  French Koreanists are not just nourishing the fierce will to develop the field of Korean studies in higher education and research. They have created three academic associations, sharing a strong sense of community. The ‘French Association for Korean Studies(AFPEC)’ was founded in 1985, followed by the ‘French Association of Teachers of Korean Language and Culture(AFELACC)’ in 2009. Subsequently, the ‘Franco-Korean Association for the Study of the History of Independence Movements(LĪBERTĀS)’ was established in 2017. The teamwork of Korean scholars in France also led to the establishment of the first Francophone Korean research network, ‘Réseau des Études sur la Corée(RESCOR)’, forming a consortium of three Parisian institutions. This consortium has been selected as a Core University for Korean Studies Abroad by the Korean Studies Promotion Service(KSPS) from 2010 to 2020 to foster the next generation of Francophone Korean scholars, receiving generous financial support. It established the most extensive database of French academic papers, books, translations, and unpublished research papers in the country by providing various scholarships and creating a blog and website. However, the RESCOR  activities have been suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and they are currently waiting for a fresh start.

Future Prospects of Korean studies in France

  Korean studies in France are now one of the mainstays of Koreanology in Europe. The ‘Association for Korean Studies in Europe(AKSE)’ and the ‘European Association for Korean Language Education(EAKLE)’ both have offices at Université Paris Cité , just like the ‘French Association for Korean Studies(AFPEC)’ and the ‘Franco-Korean Association for the Study of the History of Independence Movements(LĪBERTĀS)’ mentioned earlier. Furthermore, Korean language education in France ranks first in Europe in terms of faculty and students’ numbers. In Paris alone, , more than twenty full-time professors and senior research fellows are enrolled in academic institutions.

  This concentration of many Korea specialists is just unprecedented in Europe and even in North America. However, Koreanology in France currently lags far behind Sinology and Japanology in terms of the number of experts and overall resources. Therefore, upgrading the level of Korean studies in France to that of Chinese and Japanese studies will be a challenging but interesting task in the coming years.