Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Pages: 692
•
Trim: 6 x 9
978-0-8108-7163-2 • Hardback • June 2015 • $174.00 • (£115.00)
978-0-8108-7093-2 • eBook • June 2015 • $165.00 • (£105.00)
James E. Hoare retired from the British Foreign Service as a Research Counselor in 2003. He is now a writer, broadcaster, and occasional teacher.
Editor’s Foreword Jon Woronoff
Preface
Reader’s Note
Acronyms and Abbreviations
Chronology
Maps
Introduction
THE DICTIONARY
Bibliography
Appendix A: Government Structure of the Republic of Korea
Appendix B: Presidents, Vice-Presidents, and Prime Ministers
Appendix C: Presidential Elections
Appendix D: National Assembly Elections
Appendix E: Text of the December 1991 Agreement on Reconciliation, Nonaggression and Exchanges and Cooperation between the South and the North
Appendix F: North-South Joint Declaration of 15 June 2000
About the Author
The year 2015 marks two significant milestones in Korea's history: the 70th anniversary of the peninsular division at the end of WW II (1945) into the communist Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the non-communist, pro-Western Republic of Korea (South Korea), and the 65th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War (1950). The echoes of these two seminal events still fuel tensions and influence politics in both states. The need for an informative overview of the Republic of Korea's history and the pace of change in both Koreas make a new release of this historical dictionary desirable. While retaining the same format as the 1993 and 2004 dictionaries, this third edition has been considerably expanded. The chronology and the introduction are longer to take account of events of the last decade. The main body has been lengthened from 313 to 525 pages. A number of larger issue-oriented entries (e.g., on education or the economy) have been rewritten, and new entries cover political, economic, cultural, scientific, and military developments during 1948–2014. Significant entries (e.g., on aspects of the Korean War) run longer, to four or five pages. As before, there is no subject index, but boldfaced cross-references and see also references point out related entries. All researchers will find the bibliographic essay and subject bibliographies very helpful. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All libraries. All levels.
— CHOICE
Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Korea is an essential purchase for an academic library specialising in Asian studies and libraries supporting undergraduates and postgraduate courses in Asian history and international relations. It aims to appeal to the specialist academic and the student looking to develop their knowledge, but there is a lot here for the general reader wishing to learn about South Korea. The introduction, in particular, is a fascinating account of the history of the country for a general reader. It would also be a useful reference companion for a secondary or sixth form student. This is an impressively comprehensive and informative historical dictionary that is eminently readable.
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