Behind the Myth: Gojoseon

Few Koreans still believe that God’s grandson Dangun founded the first Korean kingdom in 2333 BCE, but even school textbooks still teach that the legendary country itself really existed.

This original Korea was called Joseon, according to the earliest writings known. Medieval Koreans must have loved the idea of Joseon, because when King Taejo began his Confucian dynasty in 1392, he renamed the whole peninsula after it. Koreans continued to refer to their nation as Joseon for over 500 years. North Koreans, in fact, call themselves Joseon today. To differentiate between the Confucian Joseon and its namesake, modern Koreans refer to the latter as Gojoseon. The prefix “go” means “old.”

The strongest proof of the kingdom lies in archaeology. Researchers have found many artifacts that are unique to the region in which Gojoseon is said to have existed. The most obvious are the above-ground tombs that Koreans call goindol (고인돌). Similar structures exist around the world, but Gojoseon’s are distinctively stylized and account for over 40 percent of the world’s total. Smaller relics exclusive to the area include knives and pottery.

Scholars also think that although a demigod Dangun never existed, someone with the name or title of Dangun did. After all, Dangun means “Altar King,” and priest-kings have existed in many ancient cultures. This theory is supported by references to multiple Danguns in other writings.

This all indicates truth behind the myth. However, the same evidence suggests Gojoseon’s real story is different from the stories which have developed over time. The first complication is that none of the artifacts are as old as Gojoseon is said to be. Korea’s Mumun Pottery Period dates from only 1500 BCE and replaces an older pottery style. That means a new people group may have moved into the area at that time, either displacing or absorbing the earlier inhabitants. Thus, the people who lived in the region in 2333 BCE were likely not the same who lived there in 108 BCE, when the Chinese conquered the area. As for the knives and tombs, they only appeared after 800 BCE.

More importantly, the traditional date of 2333 BCE turns out to have an unscientific origin. The date was chosen because medieval documents say Dangun founded Gojoseon during the 50th year of the morally perfect Chinese emperor Yao, which corresponds to 2333 BCE. Yao is likely fiction himself, however, so the dates of his reign are circumspect.

Another problem with the artifacts is what they don’t prove. Evidence of a culture is not evidence of an empire. For example, a Celtic culture dominated much of pre-Roman Europe from 450 BCE to the 100s BCE, but no nation produced it; many tribes simply shared the culture. Just so, many scholars now think Gojoseon was never a centralized state, but rather an alliance of cities, like Ancient Greece.

Lastly, there is the issue of whether Gojoseon was “Korean.” In his book “Korea’s Place in the Sun,” Bruce Cumings explains that “there was way too much warfare, migration and intermingling [at the time] to make for a homogeneous race of people.” Gojoseon’s people may be better labeled “proto-Korean,” ancestors of Koreans.

All of which begs a question: if Gojoseon was not the first kingdom, what was? The answer is likely Shilla – another subject.