Han Kang: Gwangju-Jeonnam’s Newest Superstar
By Park Nahm-Sheik
It was creeping towards midnight on October 10, when the news broke that the Korean author Han Kang had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for 2024. Interestingly, Korea’s two Nobel laureates to date, the late President Kim Daejung (Peace Prize, 2000) and Han Kang, both hail from the Gwangju-Jeonnan region. Together, these two Korean giants have certainly put Gwangju-Jeonnam on not just the Korean but the world map.
Our region of Korea is blessed with this one-of-a-kind distinction as the home ground of these two globally acclaimed Koreans. It is to be hoped that Korea would be honored with yet another Nobel laureate before long, and it in not unreasonable to think that this future third awardee might not again be of Gwangju-Jeonnam heritage. This would serve to further cement Gwangju-Jeonnam’s pride of it’s place in the pantheon of Nobel laureates. Our current laureates deserve to be forever honored as peerless champions of human rights and the rule of law in Korean society. Thanks to them and their fellow citizens of the Gwangju-Jeonnam area, who did not hesitate to lay down their lives in the 5.18 pro-democracy uprising of May 1980, the region has rightfully become the fertile garden of democracy in Korea. In the process, our region has become the de facto face of Korea’s struggle for human and civil rights.
Just as significantly, Gwangju-Jeonnam has been home to a number of sublime arts. This area is where such art forms as p[ansori (판소리) once thrived. It is also remembered as the birthplace of the novel Chunghyang-jeon (춘향전, Fragrance of Spring), which is a tale of love and loyalty between a woman of low birth and a man of nobility.
It is generally believed that the dance ganggang-sullae (강강술래) also originated in the Gwangju-Jeonnam area, somewhere around Mokpo (목포), centuries ago. Popular legend has it that Admiral Yi Sun-sin (이순신) had a troupe of colorfully dressed women dancers “trip the light fantastic” in huge circles around a gigantic stockpile of rice placed on the tallest peaks of Yudal-san (유달산) in Mokpo, making it visible for miles around as well as to the Japanese naval vessels further out on the high seas. Per folklore related to ganggang-sullae’s inception, this was designed to make the Japanese invaders suspect that the Korean forces onshore had sufficient stocks of food to tide them over for as long as needed, and through their partying, they suggested that they were not afraid of a Japanese naval attack.
By the way, Admiral Yi (1545–1598) distinguished himself as Asia’s naval strategist par excellence. Often mentioned in the same breath as Lord Nelson of England, Yi was in command of a fleet operating mostly off the shores of Jeonnam Province, primarily around Myeong-nyang in present-day Haenam. Not confined just to the Jeonnam waters, his naval operations ranged all over Korea’s southern archipelago. With but a makeshift fleet of just 12 jerry-built vessels, he famously routed a formidable Japanese armada comprised of a whopping 133 vessels!
Having overcome nearly impossible numerical odds of eleven to one, Admiral Yi is reverentially remembered still today as the genius behind the greatest naval triumph in Asian history, if not in world history. No wonder, this naval engagement is recorded in Korean history as the Great Victory of Myeong-nyang (명량 대첩). The story of this great sea battle was recently been adapted into a wildly popular Korean movie The Admiral: Roaring Currents. It went on to become one of the greatest blockbusters and box office hits in Korea.
And make no mistake here that the Gwangju-Jeonnam area has not also harbored quite a few other warrior heroes, Jang Bo-go (?-846 A.D.) being one of them. This Wando-born legendary archer-gladiator is popularly referred to as the Ruler of the East Asian Waves. Having been the ultimate martial figure of historic proportions, he was once revered as king of the East-Asian waters ranging over China, Korea, and Japan.
Let’s remember that Gwangju-Jeonnam has also long been an athletic powerhouse for the nation. It has produced such Olympic greats as Nam Seung-ryong, the marathon bronze medalist at the 1936 Berlin Olympics; Gi Bo-bae, the double archery gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympics; Ahn San, the triple archery gold medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; and Ahn Se-yeong, the badminton gold medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The late Nam Seung-ryong was my physical education professor when I was a freshman at Chonnam National University more than six decades ago. Still quite vivid in my memory is the tale he told us in class about the trick he was assigned to play in the marathon at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. In accordance with the coaching staff’s strategy, he ran the first two thirds of the race like an enchanted man fearing that all hell had broken loose. Amid the ensuing fuss and confusion, runners from other countries burned themselves out trying to catch up with him. This was designed to help still another Korean by the name of Son Kee Chung (손기정) win the marathon gold medal, which he did!
Gwangju-Jeonnam is richly endowed with brain and brawn and beauty – multiple times over. And Han Kang is the most recent exemplar of this. Our region has every right to be proud of itself, thanks especially to its high-achieving sons and daughters like Nobel laureate Han. Three cheers for Gwangju-Jeonnam as the spawning ground of pristine innocence, pure beauty, and peerless ingenuity! The Gwangju-Jeonnam region is entitled to a most prominent spot on the nation’s altar to freedom and justice and equality for all!
The AuthorPark Nahm-Sheik is a native of Gwangju. After graduating from Chonnam National University, he went on to receive a master’s degree at the University of Hawaii and a PhD (applied linguistics) at Georgetown University, both in the U.S. Upon completing an illustrious career at Seoul National University, Prof. Park served as president of the International Graduate School of English.