고대 한일관계사의 쟁점과 사료

Issues and Historical Records in the Ancient History of the Korean-Japanese Relations

The Nihonshoki has many articles related to the relationship between Korea and Japan in the ancient period. In the Nihonshoki the countries in the Korean peninsular are described as subordinate to Japan. Two theories occupy the central position in this view of history; One is the theory of Japanese colony in southern part of Korea whose assumption is based on the argument that the ancient Japanese state rule the Kaya for a long time. The other is the battle of the Paekchon river in the late seventh century for which Japan send its massive forces to help subordinate Paekche. These theories are far from the objective scholarly description. They view the international relations of the time from the Japanese perspective, and they reflected the view of the Japanese state in the eighth century. In the ritsuryo system Silla was viewed as a tributary state, and Japan wanted to confirm this fact in the history. Silla was a country from which Japan imported the advanced culture. Since Silla conquered both Kaya and Paekche which had maintained friendly relations with Japan, it had been projected as a potent rival to be overcome by Japan. The risturyo code and the publication of the historical texts were closely related to the Japanese efforts to invent a new ideology to overcome rivaling Silla. This requires a through scrutiny of the Nihonshoki. The correct view of international relations in ancient East Asia can be achieved only by the objective and reasonable comparison of all the related extant documents.