Mimana

Southern Korea at the time of Gaya State . Mimana is believed to have been in this region.

Mimana (任那), also Romanized as Imna or Yimna after the Korean pronunciation and spelling ( 임나 ), is the name of a presumed state at the time of the Gaya Empire (approx. 1st to 5th centuries), which is mainly used in Japanese Text Nihonshoki from the 8th century is used. According to Atkins (2010), the location and size of Imnas / Mimanas as well as belonging to ancient Japan are one of the most controversial topics in East Asian historiography . Seth (2006) also notes that the very existence of Mimana remains controversial.

Use of the term

Mimana
Japanese name
Kanji	任那
Rōmaji after Hepburn	Mimana
Korean name
Hangeul	임나
Hanja	任那
Revised Romanization	Imna
McCune-Reischauer	Imna

The name 任那 (pronounced Mimana in Japanese , Imna in Korean, and Rènnà in standard Chinese ) is used over 200 times in the Japanese text Nihonshoki . Even before that, the name is mentioned in the historical Chinese text Song Shu from the 5th century . It is also used in two Korean epigraphic relics and in some Korean texts such as the Samguk Sagi .

state of research

The Japanese Empress Jingū , who, according to legend, founded Mimana.

Until the 1970s and 1980s, the view that Mimana was a Japanese colony was accepted academically. Japanese scholars first hypothesized, based on interpretations of the Nihonshoki , that the Korean Peninsula was a Japanese-controlled state. The outpost, also called Mimana Nihonfu, is said to have existed from the time of the conquest by Empress Jingū in the 3rd century until it was brought down by Silla in the 6th century . This interpretation laid the foundation for portraying the colonization of Korea in the 20th century as a legitimate return. This early Japanese point of view was also often reproduced in old Western works. The modern literature, however, moved away from the hypothesis based on the Nihonshoki . A colonization of Gaya by a foreign power is considered unlikely. Although the affiliation and history of Gaya (Mimana) is controversial, according to Brown (1997) the state "had the closest ties with Japan [and] helped the Japanese to gain a foothold on the peninsula until the middle of the sixth century" .

Korean researchers initially ignored the old Japanese views. When archaeological excavations could not prove the hypotheses of the Japanese side, however, they increasingly devoted themselves to these theories. Korean historians interpret the claim of a Japanese colony in Korea as nationalist, colonial historiography.

Rurarz (2009) describes five main theories about mimana. The first listed is that of Suematsu Yasukazu , who in 1949 advocated that Mimana should be seen as a Japanese colony. This hypothesis builds on the Nihonshoki and Japanese scholars saw themselves reinforced by the Gwanggaeto stele . This was excavated in Manchuria in the mid-1870s . On this it is described that the king of Goguryeo , Gwanggaeto , ended the occupation of Sillas, Baekjes and Gayas and expelled the "Wa" people (Japan) from the Korean peninsula. However, Mohan (2016) argues that it is presumably an exaggeration and should not be used as evidence of the Japanese presence in the Korean Peninsula.

A counter theory came from the North Korean scholar Kim Sok-hyong , who argued that Korea had a colony in Japan, near Oyama. Therefore, the Nihonshoki only refers to Japan and not to the Korean Peninsula. This is related to another thesis that horse riders from Korea successfully invaded Japan.

A third theory comes from the Japanese researcher Inoue Hideo , who argues that the Japanese Wa people may have settled on the Korean Peninsula as early as the Neolithic . Another theory comes from the South Korean Cheon Gwan-u . According to this, it is about the history of the state of Baekje , which was allied with Japan and whose leaders fled to Japan after the fall of the state. In this version, Mimana would refer to Baekje, or part of the state that fought against Gaya. According to Mohan (2016), Nihonshoki was shaped by writers from Baekje who fled to Japan in 660 after the fall of their empire. They rewrote several passages about their kingdom to turn a past shame into glory.

According to Rurarz (2009), the fifth theory is a compromise between younger researchers from Japan and Korea. According to this view, a state of Mimana never existed and instead the term denotes Japanese envoys on the Korean Peninsula.

According to Han Yong-u , Yamato-era Japan may have opened an office in Gaya to trade iron and export it to Japan.

Perspectives and controversies

The Mimana controversy is a recurring topic in South Korea . The Korean version of the Encarta encyclopedia, published in 1997, caused outrage in South Korea, as it described Gaya / Mimana as “dominated by Japanese”. According to Bill Gates, a newspaper is said to have called for a boycott of Microsoft products.

The subject of mimana (as well as its depiction in Japanese history books) remains a controversy in Japanese-Korean relations.

In 2010, Japan and South Korea agreed through their jointly established history research group, consisting of Japanese and South Korean historians, that Gaya was never colonized by Japan, but that Japan was present in the sixth century.

Establishment period

There are several Japanese historical records of the establishment of Mimana. One version states that the king of Baekje 367 ( Nihonshoki 247) sent an embassy to Yamato. He was looking for a strong ally against the threat from Goguryeo from the north. Two years later, an expedition set out from Yamato and, together with Baekje troops, took over a large part of the Nakdong river basin, which belonged to the ancient area of Byeonhan . Most of the small local leaders appear to have retained their posts. The establishment of garrisons enabled Yamato to influence Korean domestic politics.

According to another legend, the Kingdom of the king of Gaya was Tsunuga Arashito ( Jap. 都怒我阿羅斯等 ; kor reading. : Tonoka Arasăteung ; possibly is Tsunuga (also: Tsunoga) is not part of his Korean name) ever by a powerful Neighboring state threatened. When he heard of a great ruler on the Japanese chain of islands, he decided to place his kingdom under his sovereignty. In this way he wanted to guarantee the security of his empire. In 33 BC He sent the envoy Sonaka-Cheulchi ( 蘇那曷叱知 , purely Japanese reading: Sonaka-Shichi ) with a tribute and his request to Yamato. The following year he returned to the Korean Peninsula and delivered the imperial orders. In it, the Emperor Suinin asked King Arashito to adopt Mimana as the new name for his kingdom in memory of his late father Mimaki ( Sujin -tennō). At the same time, he also sent the able statesman Shionoritsuhiko ( 塩乗津彦命 ) along with a strong armed force. He represented the Japanese emperor as local ruler at the head of the Nihon-fu authority.

literature

Chun-gil Kim: The History of Korea . Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005, ISBN 978-0-313-33296-8 , The Mimana Fallacy, pp. 27-29 ( Google Books ).

Web links

Commons : Mimana - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ ^A ^b ^c E. Taylor Atkins: Primitive Selves: Koreana in the Japanese Colonial Gaze, 1910-1945 . University of California Press, 2010, ISBN 978-0-520-94768-9 , pp. 114–117 ( text in Google Book Search [accessed January 19, 2017]).
^ ^A ^b ^c Michael J. Seth: A Concise History of Korea: From the Neolithic Period Through the Nineteenth Century . Rowman & Littlefield, 2006, ISBN 978-0-7425-4005-7 , pp. 31 f . ( Google Books [accessed January 19, 2017]).
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Joanna P. Rurarz: Historia Korei . Dialog, 2009, ISBN 978-83-8989928-6 (Polish).
^ ^A ^b ^c Yoshi S. Kuno: Japanese expansion on the Asiatic continent . tape 1 . University of California Press, 1937, pp. 193/194 ( online - here Shihotare Hiko, which, however, is a misreading of 塩乗津彦命 , in which 乗 was probably confused with 垂 ).
↑ Jonathan W. Best: Diplomatic and Cultural Contacts Between Paekche and China . In: Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies . tape 42 , no. 2 , 1982, p. 447 , doi : 10.2307 / 2718942 (English).
^ Manabu Waida: Sacred Kingship in Early Japan: A Historical Introduction . In: History of Religions . tape 15 , no. 4 , 1976, p. 323 , JSTOR : 1062152 (English).
^ Gina Barnes: State Formation in Korea: Emerging Elites . Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-1-136-84097-5 , pp. 38 ( Google Books [accessed January 21, 2017]).
^ ^A ^b Stella Xu: Reconstructing Ancient Korean History: The Formation of Korean-ness in the Shadow of History . Lexington Books, 2016, ISBN 978-1-4985-2145-1 ( Google Books ).
^ ^A ^b Andre Schmid: Korea Between Empires, 1895-1919 . Columbia University Press, 2002, ISBN 978-0-231-12539-0 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Pankaj Mohan: The Controversy over the Ancient Korean State of Gaya: A Fresh Look at the Korea – Japan History War . In: Michael Lewis (Ed.): 'History Wars' and Reconciliation in Japan and Korea. The Roles of Historians, Artists and Activists . Palgrave Macmillan US, 2016, ISBN 978-1-137-54102-4 , pp. 107-124 , doi : 10.1057 / 978-1-137-54103-1_6 ( Google Books [accessed January 19, 2017]).
↑ Delmer M. Brown (Ed.): The Cambridge History of Japan, Vol. 1: Ancient Japan . Cambridge University Press, 1997, ISBN 978-0-521-22352-2 , pp. 308 f .
↑ Helen Hardacre: The Postwar Developments of Japanese Studies in the United States . BRILL, 1998, ISBN 978-90-04-10981-0 , pp. 45-47 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).
^ ^A ^b Janet Lowe: Bill Gates Speaks: Insight from the World's Greatest Entrepreneur . Wiley, New York 2001, ISBN 978-0-471-40169-8 , pp. 139 f. & 246 .
↑ Chong-Sik Lee: Japan and Korea: The Political Dimension . Hoover Press, 1985, ISBN 978-0-8179-8183-9 , pp. 157–159 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).
^ Mark Peterson: Brief History: Brief History of Korea . Infobase Publishing, 2009, ISBN 978-1-4381-2738-5 , pp. 22 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).
^ The Daily Yomiuri: "History gap still hard to bridge; Japan-ROK experts group remains at odds over fundamental issues ”, authors: Yukiko Ishikawa and Masahiko Takekoshi, published on: March 25, 2010.
^ KHJ Gardiner: The early history of Korea . 1969, p. 48.
^ William George Aston: Nihongi. Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to AD 697 . Book VI. The Emperor Iku-me-iri-hiko-i-sachi. (Suinin Tennō.), P. 166/167 ( limited preview in Google Book Search - Tsunuga Arashito is the king's son there).

[Atkins-2010-1] A ^b ^c E. Taylor Atkins: Primitive Selves: Koreana in the Japanese Colonial Gaze, 1910-1945 . University of California Press, 2010, ISBN 978-0-520-94768-9 , pp. 114–117 ( text in Google Book Search [accessed January 19, 2017]).

[Seth-2006-2] A ^b ^c Michael J. Seth: A Concise History of Korea: From the Neolithic Period Through the Nineteenth Century . Rowman & Littlefield, 2006, ISBN 978-0-7425-4005-7 , pp. 31 f . ( Google Books [accessed January 19, 2017]).

[Rurarz-2009-3] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Joanna P. Rurarz: Historia Korei . Dialog, 2009, ISBN 978-83-8989928-6 (Polish).

[Japanese_expansion-4] A ^b ^c Yoshi S. Kuno: Japanese expansion on the Asiatic continent . tape 1 . University of California Press, 1937, pp. 193/194 ( online - here Shihotare Hiko, which, however, is a misreading of 塩乗津彦命 , in which 乗 was probably confused with 垂 ).

[5] Jonathan W. Best: Diplomatic and Cultural Contacts Between Paekche and China . In: Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies . tape 42 , no. 2 , 1982, p. 447 , doi : 10.2307 / 2718942 (English).

[6] Manabu Waida: Sacred Kingship in Early Japan: A Historical Introduction . In: History of Religions . tape 15 , no. 4 , 1976, p. 323 , JSTOR : 1062152 (English).

[7] Gina Barnes: State Formation in Korea: Emerging Elites . Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-1-136-84097-5 , pp. 38 ( Google Books [accessed January 21, 2017]).

[Xu-2016-8] A ^b Stella Xu: Reconstructing Ancient Korean History: The Formation of Korean-ness in the Shadow of History . Lexington Books, 2016, ISBN 978-1-4985-2145-1 ( Google Books ).

[Schmid-2002-9] A ^b Andre Schmid: Korea Between Empires, 1895-1919 . Columbia University Press, 2002, ISBN 978-0-231-12539-0 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).

[Mohan-2016-10] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Pankaj Mohan: The Controversy over the Ancient Korean State of Gaya: A Fresh Look at the Korea – Japan History War . In: Michael Lewis (Ed.): 'History Wars' and Reconciliation in Japan and Korea. The Roles of Historians, Artists and Activists . Palgrave Macmillan US, 2016, ISBN 978-1-137-54102-4 , pp. 107-124 , doi : 10.1057 / 978-1-137-54103-1_6 ( Google Books [accessed January 19, 2017]).

[11] Delmer M. Brown (Ed.): The Cambridge History of Japan, Vol. 1: Ancient Japan . Cambridge University Press, 1997, ISBN 978-0-521-22352-2 , pp. 308 f .

[Hardacre-1998-12] Helen Hardacre: The Postwar Developments of Japanese Studies in the United States . BRILL, 1998, ISBN 978-90-04-10981-0 , pp. 45-47 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).

[Lowe-2001-13] A ^b Janet Lowe: Bill Gates Speaks: Insight from the World's Greatest Entrepreneur . Wiley, New York 2001, ISBN 978-0-471-40169-8 , pp. 139 f. & 246 .

[14] Chong-Sik Lee: Japan and Korea: The Political Dimension . Hoover Press, 1985, ISBN 978-0-8179-8183-9 , pp. 157–159 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).

[15] Mark Peterson: Brief History: Brief History of Korea . Infobase Publishing, 2009, ISBN 978-1-4381-2738-5 , pp. 22 ( Google Books [accessed January 20, 2017]).

[TDYHgshtbJRegraoofi-16] The Daily Yomiuri: "History gap still hard to bridge; Japan-ROK experts group remains at odds over fundamental issues ”, authors: Yukiko Ishikawa and Masahiko Takekoshi, published on: March 25, 2010.

[The_early_history_of_Korea-17] KHJ Gardiner: The early history of Korea . 1969, p. 48.

[18] William George Aston: Nihongi. Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to AD 697 . Book VI. The Emperor Iku-me-iri-hiko-i-sachi. (Suinin Tennō.), P. 166/167 ( limited preview in Google Book Search - Tsunuga Arashito is the king's son there).