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Joseon
1392–1897 Korean dynasty / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Joseon[lower-alpha 1] (English: /ˈtʃoʊsʌn/ CHOH-sun; Korean: 조선; Hanja: 朝鮮; MR: Chosŏn; [tɕo.sʰʌn]), officially Great Joseon State (대조선국; 大朝鮮國; [tɛ.dɕo.sʰʌn.ɡuk̚]),[17] was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years.[18][19] It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897.[20] 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.
Great Joseon 조선국 고려국 (1392–1393) 高麗國 조선국 (1393–1894) 朝鮮國 대조선국 (1894–1897) 大朝鮮國 | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1392–1897 | |||||||||||
Royal Seal![]() | |||||||||||
![]() Territory of Joseon after King Sejong's conquest of Jurchens in 1433 (with current borders) | |||||||||||
Status | Tributary relations with the Ming and Qing (1401–1895)a Qing Intervention Period a (1882–1894)[1][2][3][4] Japanese intervention (1894–1896) | ||||||||||
Capital | Main: Hanseong (now Seoul) (1394–1399/1405–1897) Temporary: Gaegyeong (1392–1394/1399–1405) | ||||||||||
Official languages | Middle Korean, Early Modern Korean, Classical Chinese[5][6]: 243, 329 [7]: 74 (literary Chinese or Hanmun in Korean) | ||||||||||
Religion | Confucianism (state ideology), Buddhism (official), Shamanism, Taoism, Christianity (recognized in 1886) | ||||||||||
Demonym(s) | Korean | ||||||||||
Government | Absolute 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) | ||||||||||
Legislature | None (rule by decree) (until 1894) Jungchuwon [ko] (from 1894) | ||||||||||
History | |||||||||||
• Coronation of Taejo | 5 August 1392 | ||||||||||
• change the name of a country from Goryeo to Joseon | 28 March 1393 | ||||||||||
9 October 1446 | |||||||||||
1592–1598 | |||||||||||
1627, 1636–1637 | |||||||||||
26 February 1876 | |||||||||||
17 April 1895 | |||||||||||
13 October 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 | ||||||||||
Currency | Mun (1423–1425, 1625–1892) Yang (1892–1897) | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Today part of | North Korea South Korea Russia (Nokdundo)[11] | ||||||||||
|
Korean name | |
Hangul | |
---|---|
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | Joseon |
McCune–Reischauer | Chosŏn |
IPA | [tɕo.sʰʌn] |
North Korean name | |
Hangul | |
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | Joseon Bonggeon Wangjo |
McCune–Reischauer | Chosŏn Ponggŏn Wangjo |
Official name | |
Hangul | |
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | Daejoseon(-)guk |
McCune–Reischauer | Taejosŏn'guk |
IPA | Korean pronunciation: [tɛ.dɕo.sʰʌn.ɡuk̚] |
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.