A Study on Social Adaptation and Identity of the Korean-Japanese

Yoon, Il-Seong

This paper deals with three subjects. First, it examines the names of the Korean-Japanese. Considering three names which are jainichi chosensin, jainich gangoku ch ...

A Study on Social Adaptation and Identity of the Korean-Japanese

Yoon, Il-Seong

This paper deals with three subjects. First, it examines the names of the Korean-Japanese. Considering three names which are jainichi chosensin, jainich gangoku chosenjin, and jainichi korean, I put emphasis on the political and social implications of the usage of the names. Second, this paper explores the changing characteristics of the Korean-Japanese. How has the identity of the Korean-Japanese changed from the first generation to the third generation? Third, it also develops the typology of the identities which the Korean-Japanese have. They are 'symbiotic', 'fatherland', 'individual', and 'naturalized' identities. This paper takes the formation and the characteristics of these identities into consideration.
These three subjects are examined not only in terms of conceptual discussions, but also in terms of empirical ones based on a social survey of 133 Korean-Japanese who lives in Osaka and Kobe in Japan. Analyzing the survey data, this paper suggests the varying characteristics of the identities which different generations of the Korean-Japanese have.

Key words: Korean-Japanese, Identity, Social Adaptation, Typology of Identity.