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The horse holds a special place in Korean culture and history. This paper explores how this animal is manifested in Seoul, aiming to reveal the interests and agendas that these manifestations serve, and what this nonhuman presence can tell about contemporary Seoul and South Korea. The paper adds a new perspective to the literature on Seoul’s development and identity formation. It also provides a case study on the interaction between humans and nonhuman-animals. Lastly, it intervenes into cultural landscape theory by offering the concept of ‘collaged cultural landscape’. It is argued that, the multilayered presence of the horse in Seoul represents South Korean aspirations for economic success, positive branding, and post-colonial strength, confidence, and legitimacy, by conveying a wide range of images, including beauty, cuteness, vigor, and valor. Furthermore, there is no other animal in Seoul, and perhaps in all of South Korea, that matches the horse’s complex presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of the legitimacy battle between the two Koreas, a tension exists between utilising cultural heritage to serve the interests of the two respective national-identity projects, and, at times, negotiating it to express the single Korean nation. The theoretical framework we adopt to explore this condition relies on two ideas: heritage as a building block of national identity and 'heritage diplomacy'. By analysing the interplay between the place of martial arts in constructing identities and their 'heritage as diplomacy' practice, we make three contributions: we offer a hitherto unexplored angle on Korean identity-formation processes and inter-Korean relations; we introduce a unique case study pertaining to the involvement of non-Western states in heritage diplomacy; and, we contribute to the scant literature on intangible heritage in heritage diplomacy. More than a sports-diplomacy tool, the case of martial arts reveals the seemingly paradoxical nature of inter-Korean cultural heritage politics: the struggle to reinforce separate Korean national identities by resorting to the same heritage concomitantly contributes, in several ways, to the idea and sense of Korean 'oneness'. The paper also maintains that such inter-Korean collaborations are advantageous in the growing competition among Asian nations for UNESCO's recognition of cultural heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite their number in East Asia never exceeding 36,000 (currently around 10,000), Jews there are the subject of both distinctly strong positive and negative views. The presence of these attitudes is astounding not only because most of those who hold them have never come across a Jew, but also because the region misses most of the 'classical' motives for either philosemitism or antisemitism. An analysis of contemporary attitudes towards Jews in China, Japan and South Korea, including reactions to the still ongoing Israel–Hamas war, reveals that the distinctions between antisemitism and philosemitism are more blurred and nuanced than is often acknowledged. In East Asia, these two attitudes tend to reflect similar functions, and people often express both views without being aware of their historical and religious context elsewhere. Accordingly, this study by Kowner, Ainslie and Podoler calls for a reassessment of antisemitism beyond the Christian and Islamic spheres, to address this new and changing world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

President Park Chung-hee played a predominant role in shaping South Korean history, yet he remains a controversial figure. This paper explores the way this controversy has manifested itself in the memorial landscape and its significance within the context of national identity politics. It is argued that the debate between conservatives and progressives over the memory of Park has complicated the discourse beyond the prevalent focus on ethnic nationalism. The increasing place allocated for Park in the memorial landscape since 2008 is a tangible manifestation of a memory boom that appeared a decade earlier. Thus, the creation of an encouraging atmosphere in this regard can explain the correlation between the establishment of consecutive conservative governments and said trend. The way the memorial landscape has changed has offered an opportunity to think about a form of national identity which is more intricate. However, with the socio-political camps entrenched in their respective positions, the high-profile controversy has reflected the competing agendas and the degree to which the two sides differ on the fundamental components of national identity. The controversy over the memory of Park has thus both reinforced the divide between the political camps and demonstrated the extent to which it is deep., Author(s): Guy Podoler[sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Department of Asian Studies, The University of Haifa, Mt Carmel, 3498838, HaifaIsrael Introduction President Park Chung-hee is undoubtedly one of the most influential figures [...]

Runner Sohn Kee-chung (1912–2002) was a top athlete in the mid-1930s who won the marathon in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Sohn was a Korean, yet he competed for Japan because Korea was a Japanese colony. To his contemporaries and in post-colonial Korea, Sohn became an admirable symbol of anti-colonial resistance, yet, at the turn of the 21st century anxieties have surfaced following indications that his place in national collective memory may not be stable. I identify that meaningful moment and argue that the challenge to Sohn's iconic image sparked a major commemorative wave to memorialize him and confirm his status as a national hero through concrete representations. I demonstrate how the related sites create through Sohn a sports heritage that celebrates the Korean nation and the values of reunification and peace, yet at the same time actually anchors South Korea's legitimacy vis-à-vie the rival sister to the north. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyclist Um Bok-dong (1892–1951[1952?]), nicknamed 'Bicycle king of the East', was the biggest Korean sports hero from the 1910s and into the 1920s, a time when Korea was subjected to Japanese colonial rule (1910–1945). He beat Japanese rivals and inspired his fellow compatriots, becoming their source of pride at a difficult era. In post-colonial South Korea, however, Um was nearly completely forgotten. There are barely any commemorative initiatives for him and hardly any Korean-language academic works on him. Scholarly works in English on Um are non-existent. By exploring this phenomenon the paper opens up a discussion on sports heroes and their place in heritagisation, and it contributes to the relatively scant scholarship on sports heritage. The discussion revolves around tracing when, why, and how South Korea began paying much more attention to sports heritage, and, in light of the findings, it analyzes Um's forgetfulness in the process. I argue that while South Korea began investing more meaningfully in sports heritage since the early 2000s, Um was forgotten primarily because another athlete, Sohn Kee-chung, occupied the representative spot of the 'sports hero of the colonial period'. In this context, I stress the importance of influential agents for successful heritagisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diplomatic relations between South Korea and Israel were formed only in 1962. Furthermore, as the two countries from both ends of the continent cooperated in various areas during the 1960s and 1970s, relations were becoming more complicated and even officially rather cool in light of Korea’s evolving relations with the Arab world. Against this backdrop, and based on the reading of contemporaneous Israeli press, the study argues that culture mattered very much in the early stages of the relations. Cultural contacts between Koreans and Israelis started well before the establishment of full diplomatic relations, and cultural diplomacy played a significant role in maintaining them in the decades that followed. Like today, both parties often emphasized the cultural and historical affinities between the two peoples, and in the process, the Israeli public was exposed to early glimpses into Korean culture while images of Korea and its people were created as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study on the prevalence of public and academic discourse on South Korean politics. It argues that amid the backdrop of an already critical South Korean public, there was no added value to the progressive coverage of the newspaper "Hankyoreh" in terms of information and challenging viewpoints. The study focused on the Gaza War between late December 2008 and January 2009 as a manifestation of the high-profile conflict in the Middle East.

The two states that were created with the split of the Korean nation have been vying with each other over legitimacy and supremacy for most part of their postcolonial history. This essay explores the relations between the two nationalisms and football - a game that is highly popular at, and particularly appreciated by, each of the sister-adversaries. As demonstrated, on the one hand Korean football remains a popular political tool for displaying and bolstering particular nationalist and patriotic agendas, while on the other hand it serves at times as an arena for bringing, or perhaps symbolically keeping, the two Koreas together through a nationalist display of a one-ethnic Korea. Thus Korean football encapsulates the tragedy of a divided nation which has unclear prospects for unification; yet at the same time it helps keep alive the hope for a smoother rapprochement in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the relationship between South Korean national identity and the country's patriotic landscape. It attempts to decipher the images and the codes that museums, memorial halls, and monuments transmit to the local audience in order to establish a sense of spatial and temporal sameness and unity among the members of the nation. The analytic tool which is employed for that purpose is the distinction between "mythology" and "memory," which makes it possible to avoid the commonly metaphorical use of the latter term. The framework of the analysis is presented in the form of a historical survey of the interaction between governing mythology, i.e. the dominant narrative preferred and advanced by the state, and collective and personal memories in South Korea. This underscores the fact that the present day natural image of a landscape, which is dominated by images of the colonial past, is actually a late development. Only in the 1980s, when new socio-political conditions allowed for governing mythology and memory to converge and place the colonial past at the forefront of national identity, was this demonstrated by a wave of constructing memorial sites for the colonial past. In this context, it is possible to analyze which images are transmitted and how, and why specifically those images are important. Both external and internal challenges have influenced the decision to base governing colonial mythology on the role of South Korea as the legitimate son, who is responsible for the commemoration of deceased patriots, by relying on a set of familiar cultural and religious images. A highly passionate patriotic language that echoes early twentieth century rhetoric, not only assists in strengthening the connection between the post-colonial South and pre-divided Korea, but it also mirrors the ongoing concern for the stability of the country. Also, the patriotic landscape sanctifies the death of the patriots, though death as a value is not sanctified. This demonstrates the way through which the concept of patriotism, which forms the emotional linchpin of nationalism, is tied to the idea of civic consciousness and the fulfillment of daily national obligations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]