Foreign Koreans: History Pages

A significant part of Koreans, about 5 million people, now lives outside the country of their ancestors. Along with the Jewish, Armenian, Chinese and Polish diasporas, Koreans are one of the most economically and politically active national groups in many countries of the world. Koreans are now almost everywhere, and it seems even strange that emigration from this country began quite recently, just a hundred and a little years ago.

Until the end of the last century, the Korean government belonged to emigration (and for trips abroad at all) approximately as the Soviet authorities during the Comrade Stalin. For two and a half centuries, from the middle of the XVII to the end of the XIX century, the boundaries of Korea were tightly closed, and the departure from it was categorically prohibited. In those days, Koreans, like residents of the Stalinist Soviet Union, could only be abroad in official business trips. Of course, permission for such a trip could only receive high-ranking faces, and for them it was not very easy. Attempting to leave Korea’s limits armedly considered a grave crime for which they could have executed. In addition, and it was especially nowhere to run, in the Koreans neighboring Korea, let’s say softly, did not wait. Up to 1872. The Chinese Government Strumbering forbade the settlement in the areas of Manchuria bordering the Korea. NNU was the exception of this rule and the Chinese themselves, and to live in Manchuria were allowed only to nomads – manchurams, which in those days ruled to all China. Japan to 1856. was the state even more closed than Korea, the entry of any foreigners there was categorically prohibited. About the other countries then in Korea did not hear and did not hear, and the Korean peasant had no opportunity to get into America.

The situation has changed dramatically 100 years ago, when after 1876. Restrictions on departure from the country were substantially weakened, and then – and completely canceled. Almost simultaneously with this, Russia forced weakened China to refuse rights to the territory of the current Primorsky Territory, and thus became a neighbor Korea. The Chinese authorities also removed the processes for the relocation in Manchuria. All this meant that the Koreans appeared where to move, and they did not slow down to take advantage.

First wave of immigrants, which in 1870-1890s. moved to the Russian Far East and in Chinese Manchuria, was primarily from the peasants of the northern provinces. Emigration This wore, no matter how they said, a purely economic nature. The peasants who were tired of the lack of land and robbing taxes, from the lack of lack of lack of poverty, went beyond the Cordon, to China and Russia, where the Earth was enough, and where the officials were oppressed, then much less than in native places.

We took the migrants of the power of China and Russia in different ways, but in general – quite benevolently. True, sometimes the Vladivostok authorities began to relate to the Koreans settled in the Far East with suspicion, perceiving them as a kind "Fifth column", But much more often the Koreans were brought. They worked a lot, raised the virgin lands, turned the slopes of hots in the fields, paid taxes, took Orthodoxy, and in general behaved as law-abiding Russian subjects.

In China, for the Manchurian authorities, the working Korean immigrants were simply just a gift from heaven. It turned out that they knew well how to keep the farm in the complex climate of Manchuria. Taxes that Koreans paid were a considerable help for the Chinese authorities who were in those years in a state of chronic financial crisis.

After 1905. Emigration from Korea increased sharply and acquired partly and political character. The main reason for this was the Japanese invasion. By 1905. Japan has established full control over Korea, and in 1910. Formally turned it into his colony. The Japanese faced considerable resistance, including with an active partisan movement, but in the end the technical and financial superiority of the colonialists decided the outcome of the struggle. Remains of broken partisan detachments often went out to Russian and Chinese territory. Leaving Vladivostok and Harbin, Shanghai and Khabarovsk and opposition-minded intelligents. Finally, the peasants who initially did not bring anything but new taxes at first, continued to leave native places.

Japanese authorities did not object to emigration, and even encouraged her. First, you left the most restless and, therefore, the most dangerous. Secondly, leaving from their country, Koreans like "Released places" For the Japanese resettled there – after all, the colonial authorities tried to settle the colony from the metropolis, to jap. As a result, by 1920. Russian Koreans have already been about 100 thousand, and Chinese Koreans – without a small half a million (more precisely, 490 thousand).

However, by the end of the twenties, emigration and China, and slowed down to Russia. Reducing emigration to China was caused mainly by economic factors. Free lands in Manchuria almost left, and resettlement there no longer meant a sharp improvement in life. On the contrary, the migrant was most likely waiting for the fate of the powerful bare. In the case of Russia, the reasons for the decline (and then – and the termination) of the emigration were mainly political: as it is known, the Soviet government the farther, those with great suspicion referred to the people from abroad, especially those who formally considered the subjects of Japanese Empire. About 1930. The Soviet border turned out to be how they spoke with pride, "locked", and Korean emigration to the Far East almost stopped. In 1937. All Soviet Koreans, who at that time lived in the Far East, were forcibly resettled in Central Asia, thus becoming the first "repressed" Soviet people.

But in the twenties, new emigration centers appeared, first of all – the United States. Since the end of the last century, the first Korean Westerners-intellectuals began to leave more often. Some of them (as, for example, the future first president of South Korea is the Son of Mans), they received education there, defended the dissertations and even became their people in American government corridors. However, in those days of mass immigration to the continental part of the United States, it began, it began a lot later, after 1945. Another thing is Hawaiian Islands, which lie halfway between the United States and Korea. At the beginning of the century, a sugar cane began to grow, and contract workers began to work on the reed flooring on Hawaii in increasing quantities. Many among them were Koreans.

Koreans went and in Japan. Many people went there to learn, because getting an education, especially higher, was then very difficult in Korea. However, the majority were just going on earnings, because, no matter how bad to Koreans did not belong to Japan, it was easier to earn there than at home. Unlike the Koreans of China and the Russian Far East, who were immigrants from the northern provinces, most of those who went to look for happiness to Japan, occurred from the south of the Korean Peninsula. Treated Koreans in Japan really no matter. In 1923. Tokyo even occurred Korean pogroms, during which several hundred people died. And, nevertheless, the Korean population in Japan grew very quickly: from 21 thousand in 1919. up to 690 thousand in 1936. The growth of the Korean minority in Japan in the war years became especially rapid, when tens of thousands of workers were exported to mobilization there. Some of them, by the way, were sent to work on the mines of southern Sakhalin, and after 1945., When this part of the island has departed to the USSR, they unexpectedly found themselves in Soviet territory.

In this regard, it should be noted that Koreans b.The USSR is clearly divided into two unequal groups. Most of them are descendants of immigrants from the provinces of the Korean northeast, their ancestors moved to Russia in the past and the beginning of our century. They are largely assimilated, and, if they own Korean in general, they speak the northern dialects, which are very unlike the literary Korean language (it is created on the basis of the metropolitan, Seoul dialect). The second group is the descendants of the Koreans of Sakhalin, which were in the territory of the USSR after the island occupation in 1945. They are much less assimilated, they say "Right" (that is, Seoul) language and are immigrants from the provinces of the south.

After the expulsion of colonizers in 1945. Emigration from Korea did not stop, but simply changed its direction. The main emigration from Korea in the post-war period goes to the USA, as well as (in a much smaller scale) to other English-speaking countries – Canada, New Zealand, Australia.

A truly immigration in the United States began only in 1965., When a new American law on emigration was adopted. This law canceled discriminatory (in fact – racist) quotas that previously limited "Necheless" Immigration to the country. Growth of the US Korean Community after 1965. It was rapidly, and now more than a million Koreans live there (by the number of the Korean community America is inferior only to China, where Koreans are two million). We went there mostly people with good education, qualified specialists. The peak of emigration in the USA fell on the end of the seventies. In 1980. Korea left 37 thousand people, and more than 90% of those who left went to the US.

After 1980. Emigration began to reduce quickly. "Economic miracle" I brought my fruits, and the Koreans are less likely to look for a good life behind the seas – they now live in general good. However, emigration did not stop completely. In 1998. From Korea abroad for permanent residence left 13.974 people. This is 11.9% more than in 1997. (Some emigration growth is caused by the economic crisis). Approximately 4/5 of all emigrants are sent to America, the Canada, Australia and New Zealand follow it with a large margin.

Throughout the half-century history of the Republic of Korea, emigration was not condemned here, but, on the contrary, was encouraged and supported by the authorities. Korea and these days remains one of the most populated countries of the planet, and the standard of living in it until early 1980s. was very low, so the authorities did not mind "Essential" The population left the peninsula. Of course, does not try to Korea and follow the example of Israel. She does not conduct policies to encourage reeemigration (or, as Israeli propaganda politely calls, "Repatriation"). The challenge again to assemble all the Koreans of the planet on the Seoul Peninsula is not at all, and few "Returns" can count only on their strength. However, at the same time, the government conducts a policy of supporting the Korean communities abroad, spends a lot of money for teaching the Korean language and culture.

The fate of the Korean communities in different countries was different. But this is already the topic of follow-up articles.