The History of Korea (vol. 1 of 2)Hulbert, Homer B. (Homer Bezaleel)
History
The History of Korea (vol. 1 of 2)
Hulbert, Homer B. (Homer Bezaleel)
Korea -- History
Besides the Mal-gal tribes there were two others of considerable note,
namely the Pal-hă and the Kŭ-ran of which special mention is not here
necessary, though their names will appear occasionally in the following
pages. They lived somewhere along the northern borders of Korea, within
striking distance. The last border tribe that we shall mention is the
Yŭ-jin whose history is closely interwoven with that of Ko-gu-ryŭ. They
were the direct descendants, or at least close relatives, of the Eum-nu
people. They were said to have been the very lowest and weakest of all
the wild tribes, in fact a mongrel tribe, made up of the offscourings of
all the others. They are briefly described by the statement that if they
took up a handful of water it instantly turned black. They were good
archers and were skilful at mimicing the deer for the purpose of
decoying it. They ate deer flesh raw. A favorite form of amusement was
to make tame deer intoxicated with wine and watch their antics. Pigs,
cattle and donkeys abounded. They used cattle for burden and the hides
served for covering. The houses were roofed with bark. Fine horses were
raised by them. It was in this tribe that the great conquerer of China,
A-gol-t’a, arose, who paved the way for the founding of the great Kin
dynasty a thousand years or more after the beginning of our era.
Chapter V.
Southern Korean.... Ki-jun’s arrival.... differences which he found....
three groups.... Ma-han.... position.... peculiarities....
characteristics.... worship.... tatooing.... numbers....
Chin-han.... Chinese immigration.... customs.... Pyön-han....
position.... habits.... the philological argument.... southern
origin.... Ki-jun and his descendants.
We must now ask the reader to go with us to the southern portion of the
peninsula where we shall find a people differing in many essential
respects from the people of the north, and evincing not merely such
different but such opposite characteristics from the people of the north
that it is difficult to believe that they are of the same origin.
When King Ki-jun, the last of the Ki-ja dynasty proper was driven from
P’yŭng-yang by the unscrupulous Wi-man, he embarked, as we have already
seen, upon the Ta-dong River accompanied by a small retinue of officials
and servants. Faring southward along the coast, always within sight of
land and generally between the islands and mainland, he deemed it safe
at last to effect a landing. This he did at a place anciently known as
Keum-ma-gol or “Place of the Golden Horse,” now Ik-san. It should be
noticed that this rendering is simply that of the Chinese characters
that were used to represent the word Keum-ma-gol. In all probability it
was a mere transliteration of the native name of the place by the use of
the Chinese, and the rendering here given was originally unthought of.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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