Haedong chegukki

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  • Date: 1471
  • Author: Sin Suk-chu
  • Korean/Japanese: 海東諸國紀 (Haedong chegukki / Kaitou shokokki)

The Haedong chegukki ("Account of the Various Countries of the Eastern Sea") is a compilation of the history, geography, language, and foreign relations of Japan and Ryûkyû, compiled by Korean official Sin Suk-chu (1417-1475) in 1471. It has been identified as an important source for understanding Joseon Dynasty Korean views and attitudes towards Japan and Ryûkyû.[1]

This text drew upon earlier precedents and regulations for diplomatic relations, and codified them into a new, streamlined system, which would then serve as a basis for the protocols followed in the Korean embassies to Edo during the Tokugawa period. The text was also read by Japanese scholars, including Arai Hakuseki, who wrote a highly detailed annotated version with his own commentary.

The volume includes one of the earliest extant maps of Ryûkyû included in any work.[2]

References

  • Etsuko Hae-Jin Kang, Diplomacy and Ideology in Japanese-Korean Relations: From the Fifteenth to the Eighteenth Century, Palgrave Macmillan (1997), 74.
  1. Kang, 74.
  2. "Ryûkyû-koku-zu and Kaitô shokoku ki," gallery label, Okinawa Prefectural Museum.[1]