Claim: Sun Yat-sen was Korean

Xie   Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:01 am GMT
Now, folks, let me present another piece of interesting (I think) news by Xinhua News Agency.

http://big5.xinhuanet.com/gate/big5/news.xinhuanet.com/society/2008-07/31/content_8870166.htm

My disclaimer: I don't know Korean, so I can't prove whether Xinhua, a sort of national news press (I think), could be misinterpreting the Korean news article on purpose, but this is what the government (I think) news agency got from another newspaper based in China.

If you know Chinese, you might probably know what is happening, but if not, let me translate briefly. The main message is:

A scholar of history, as 朝鮮日報 writes, claims that some old Koreans in present-day Jeju were awarded by 周文王, King Wen of (Western) Zhou, in a place called 孫 (Sun), in present-day Henan. Their descendants, thus, were said to have adopted the place name as their surname, and thus (with reference to some old books) it was (one of the; I guess) origin(s) of the surname Sun.

This scholar also claims that, by referring to some historical sites in Guangdong, where the local Sun clan lived, there were signs (such as their life), along with the foreign loanwords in their "genealogy books" derived from old Korean (words), which suggested that Sun Yat-sen 孫逸仙 (or 孫中山, which is more common to the knowledge of average Chinese), the founder (to be exact, founding president) of the Republic of China in 1912, was Korean.

==

To the best of my knowledge, Sun WAS born somewhere in Guangdong, which has been named after him, Zhongshan. He was "certainly" a native of Guangdong, and spoke my language too, but now _a_ Korean scholar is claiming that he was Korean.

==

●韓國研究“成果”選摘

●西施是韓國人。

●李時珍是韓國人。

●姚明是韓國人後裔。

●毛澤東是韓國人後裔。

●熊貓的故鄉發源地在韓國。

●“端午”起源于韓國,為其申遺。

●佛教創始人、一直被認為是印度人的釋迦牟尼是韓國人。

●韓醫針灸為國際標準,“超過中國,證明了韓醫的優秀性”。

●在其新版的萬元紙幣上印著中國古代天文發明“渾天儀”,稱是其發明,為“國寶

This is what you get at the bottom of the Xinhua article, which is written by the webpage it is quoting from.

So, the interpretation of the (supposedly) journalists (perhaps from that site, and those are Chinese, not Korean) is:

(let me translate again)
-Xi Shi, one of the "four greatest beauties" of China, was Korean.
-Li Shizhen, as English wikipedia says, was "one of the greatest physicians and pharmacologists in Chinese history", who lived in the Ming Dynasty.
-Yao Ming of the US rocket team is Korean.
-Chairman Mao was Korean.
-Pandas (the treasure of China, we call them) originated from Korea.
-Duanwu festival originated from Korea, so Korea has applied for UNESCO heritage. (Here, it doesn't mention whether that was successful)

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dano_(Korean_festival))

-Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, who had been thought to be Indian, was Korean.
-Korean medicine (and) acupuncture is the international standard, "which (surpasses) the China, and proves the superiority of Korean medicine".
-on its 10000 dollar (should be won) banknotes, the Armillary sphere,

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armillary_sphere#Development_in_East_Asia), an astronomical invention in ancient China, was/is claimed to be its (Korean) invention, and national treasure

==

Now, my translations might not be very good, but first, again, I'd like to invite Korean natives to prove what you know about the history of your country.

Since very few Chinese know Korean (and its history), many of us simply say all these pieces of news are JOKES.

So now, our typical jokes about Korea, the Korean language, and the Koreans are:
- everything is Korean.
- everything Chinese is Korean (and so vice versa)
- every Chinese is Korean. Xie doesn't sound Korean, but my surname also contains one character only, somehow I could be Korean...so, it's convenient just to say: I'm actually Korean!
- all cultures and religions originated from Korea.
- everything on earth, and probably in the universe, is Korean.

and.... we have some other jokes:
- it's all about the Korean megalomania. Korean was Chinese colony (a tributary state, actually). Korea has been divided thanks to PRC intervention some 50 years earlier.

and.... our new ethnic slur for Koreans is: Kimchi guys/girls/folks/stupid people...etc.

My disclaimer, again: Now, admins, I'm not bashing Korea, the Korean language, and the Koreans. All I want is an understanding.

Please, explain to me, how true is it that Sun Yat-sen was Korean? What exactly are the scholars (esp. those who study history) doing in your country, namely, Korea?

I'm sorry to see that many of us keep on bashing your people as Kimchi folks who can only make up history by claiming everything is/was Korean. Please tell me the truth, and I'll help you spread a good word about your country, your language, and you.
lol   Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:07 am GMT
why not Koreans claiming either Bonaparte Napoleon or George Washington is Korean?

Lol!
George   Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:10 am GMT
Don't be surprised. There were No Koreans in history because "Korea" used to be a part of China. So, Koreans were Chinese.
sino   Fri Aug 01, 2008 10:17 am GMT
Guest   Fri Aug 01, 2008 10:42 am GMT
who cares... and what does it have to do with languages...
Guest   Fri Aug 01, 2008 1:08 pm GMT
Croatians are saying that Marco Polo is Croat. All Country without history claim heritage of others.
qing-china   Fri Aug 01, 2008 2:10 pm GMT
chinese claim mongolian history no?
Guest   Fri Aug 01, 2008 3:28 pm GMT
<<Don't be surprised. There were No Koreans in history because "Korea" used to be a part of China. So, Koreans were Chinese. >>

No. Koreans are a distinct nationality originating in Central Asia. They are not related to the ethnic Chinese, nor do they look like Chinese
Xie   Fri Aug 01, 2008 3:29 pm GMT
Thanks.

So, you see, the power of (Chinese) press. When people don't try to understand (esp. since they don't know Korean), they bash foreigners before they think, and they don't think at all.

While some claims above have been confirmed by other sources (some in English too), *some* others could be added by a press itself to create some outrage among a people.

Again, in this case, it's a shame to myself (and just me) that I can't read a single of Korean, but now I can see the importance of at least trying to know... now that I've written this post, I can get a useful response. Even a single response counts (though no Korean natives have posted yet).

If I were just as unwilling as many others, I'd keep on accusing Koreans with other Chinese about the sxxt they do with their and our cultures.
Super Korean   Fri Aug 01, 2008 5:25 pm GMT
I just saw the related news article on Korean website and it turned out to be a false report(rumor) of Chinese newspaper/website.

There is no Korean scholar who claimed such a stupid theory.
Even if a crazy Korean claimed he's Korean, Koreans are not that naive to believe such a nonsense.

Don't worry, Koreans are not very happy being related to Chinese.
I would deny it, even if it was a true.
Guest   Fri Aug 01, 2008 11:12 pm GMT
China is a totalitarian dictatorship! Boycott the Olympic Games! Freedom for Tibet! Freedom for the Uyghurs!
JIAJIA   Sat Aug 02, 2008 2:30 am GMT
Without great aid of China's government, Tibetan society might have been still in cruel slavery ages. The past had been a living hell for most of Tibetan people, before China's government took them out of hell, and did so much to lead them walking towards paradise. Sorry, I must tell you, Tibet was, is , and will be a part of China forever. Thanks!
Guest   Sat Aug 02, 2008 2:41 am GMT
<<and will be a part of China forever.>>

Technically yes, although soon China itself will belong to the United States of America. So while Tibet will still be a subset of China, China will be a subset of America, so Tibet will clearly also be a subset of America. Freedom will reign in the Orient.
Guest   Sat Aug 02, 2008 2:44 am GMT
<Technically yes, although soon China itself will belong to the United States of America. So while Tibet will still be a subset of China, China will be a subset of America, so Tibet will clearly also be a subset of America. Freedom will reign in the Orient.>


1, Tibet and Uyghur were, are , and will be 2 parts of China forever!

2, Wake up, stop dreaming and look out the window, you're in the earth!
Guest   Sat Aug 02, 2008 3:20 am GMT
《Don't worry, Koreans are not very happy being related to Chinese.
I would deny it, even if it was a true.》


Yes, thanks, Chinese are not happy to be related to Koreans, either.
And, I would not like to tell you this, but unfortunately it is very true.