Discovering Korea through Iberian Writings of the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries

This article analyzes ethnographic information about the Korean peninsula that can be found in texts produced by Iberian missionaries during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Although Korea did not generate the same degree of interest as neighboring countries such as China and Japan in which...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: González-Bolado, Jaime|||0000-0003-4005-388X
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repositorio:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:301276
Acceso en línea:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/301276
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Korea
Spanish literature
Cultural interchange
Jesuits
Imjin War
Descripción
Sumario:This article analyzes ethnographic information about the Korean peninsula that can be found in texts produced by Iberian missionaries during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Although Korea did not generate the same degree of interest as neighboring countries such as China and Japan in which Catholic missions had been established, members of religious orders, were nevertheless able to acquire a remarkable knowledge of the topography, the climate, and the social and political system of the country. These ethnographic references have great relevance for the history of cultural interchange between Korea and Europe, since they were the basis on which European readers formed their initial image of Korea and its people.