Through the establishment and activities of the Cheong-gu Hakhoe(Cheong-gu Academic Society) in the 1930s, this study attempts to examine the process in which the history of colonialism (hereinafter referred to as colonial history) became academically ...
Through the establishment and activities of the Cheong-gu Hakhoe(Cheong-gu Academic Society) in the 1930s, this study attempts to examine the process in which the history of colonialism (hereinafter referred to as colonial history) became academically entrenched in the history academia of the colonized Joseon. To begin with, the study reviews the development process of a compilation project called The History of Chosen that was promoted throughout the 1920s as well as the establishment of Gyeongseong Imperial University and the foundation of its Department of History. Furthermore, this article seeks to examine the situation before the establishment of Cheong-gu Hakhoe by scrutinizing the trends among research groups of colonial history that were active in the 1920s. Through such attempts, this study aims to explain why it was not until the 1930s that colonial history, which had already preoccupied and monopolized the power of the academic system essential for history research, was not able to form a systematic academic society and eventually sustain in the long run.
Additionally, the foundation of Cheong-gu Hakhoe in 1930, the organization’s personnel structure and operations system are thoroughly analyzed in this research. It can be concluded that under the supervision and guidance of Shogo Oda, a first-generation Japanese colonial history researcher, Cheong-gu Hakhoe was established and operated mainly by young second-generation elite researchers, namely Hidetaka Nakamura and Yasukazu Suematsu, who came to Joseon right after graduating from Tokyo Imperial University. Moreover, this study found out that Cheong-gu Hakhoe, under the pretext of ‘research and dissemination of Far Eastern culture’, provided academic support to Imperial Japan’s invasion of the continent in the 1930s. As Cheong-gu Hakhoe is comprised of officials working for Governor-General of Chosen and Chosen History Compilation Committee, as well as teachers and professors from Gyeongseong Imperial University, it can be seen that Cheong-gu Hakhoe was founded with a more diverse pool of human resources compared to previous academic associations. At that time the history academia in Japan welcomed and had high expectations of the establishment as well as the purposes of Cheong-gu Hakhoe.
Meanwhile, through the activities of Cheong-gu Hakhoe during nine years, this study recognizes that colonial history was becoming academically entrenched in the history academia of the colonized Joseon. Cheong-gu Hakhoe planned various activities such as the issuance of Cheonggu Hakchong four times a year, frequent operations of lectures, publication of research materials and books, and promotion of history research. In particular, in comparison to the materials published by preexisting research groups of colonial history, Cheonggu Hakchong was far more superior in terms of format and content. Published annually until October 1939 when the 30th issue was released as the last publication, Cheong-gu Hakchong played a part in accumulating and dispersing research results of colonial history in the 1930s to both the academia and general public. The achievements of colonial history that were studied and distributed through Cheong-gu Hakhoe have remained deeply rooted in the Korean modern history and become the subject of criticism and reflection within Korean history academia even after liberalization.