Sea of Japan naming dispute
There is a long-running dispute over the name of the Sea of Japan between Japan and Korea. The two countries disagree over what the sea should be called in English. The Japanese government insist that it be called Sea of Japan which it claims has been the international de facto standard since the 19th century. The South Korean government challenge this name, contending it is a symbol of Japan's imperialistic past, and want the name East Sea to be used. It points to its own tally of historic maps referring to the sea as Sea of Korea/Corea or East/Oriental Sea (see below). The North Korean government use East Sea of Korea in their English publications.
- The Japanese call it the Sea of Japan or sometimes Japan Sea
- North Koreans call it the East Sea of Korea
- South Koreans call it the East Sea
The South Korean government and media use East Sea consistently in their publications. Since the 1990s, South Korea have increased their campaign efforts to change the sea's official international name. Neither the UN (UNCSGN) nor the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) have so far accepted their claims, but left the issue open to discussion (see below).
Some international and media organizations, however, have begun using the names Sea of Japan and East Sea together. This might also be caused by a general trend to use local names, since this is often considered politically correct.
The dispute does not attempt to get the respective countries to adopt each other's preferred terms in their own languages. South Koreans generally do not object to Japanese maps calling the sea 日本海 (which translates as Japan Sea), and Japanese do not object to Korean maps calling it 동해 (which translates as Eastern Sea).
History of the dispute
According to Japan's count, this sea is mainly called Sea of Japan on most maps earlier than the 19th century, but some maps call it by various names including Bay of Korea, Chinese Ocean, Sea of Corea, Oriental Sea, or Sea of Korea. According to South Korea's count, it is mainly called "Sea of Korea/Corea" or "East/Oriental Sea" on most maps of the same period.
At a 1919 meeting of the International Hydrographic Bureau (IHB) to officially determine internationally acceptable names of bodies of water, Japanese delegates submitted the name Sea of Japan as the official name of the sea. Korea could not participate during these talks because it was under Japanese colonial rule.
In 1928, Limits of Oceans and Seas, the first edition of the guideline by the IHB adopted Japan Sea with many other geographic names.
In 1974 the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) released technical resolution A.4.2.6 independently of this dispute. This resolution is frequently referred to, although it only gives general guidance. It endorses the principle that when the sharing countries of a geographical feature do not agree on a common name, the different names should be recognized simultaneously.
In 1992, South Korea raised the issue at the 6th UN Conference on the Standardization of Geographic Names (UNCSGN). Japan objected and the issue was not addressed.
In 1995, South Korea deleted Japan Sea from its official nautical charts. Before then, South Korea's nautical charts showed both Japan Sea and Tong Hae (the then used romanization of Donghae), out of respect for international conventions.
In 1997, South Korea raised the issue again at the 7th UNCSGN and Japan opposed. The issue was not addressed but the resolution III/20 (adopted by the 3rd UNCSGN in 1977) is recollected, which urges Japan and South Korea to reach a consensus. To date, however, neither country is willing to compromise their position.
A July 2001 survey by Korea of 377 mostly 18th century maps in the British National Library showed that of the maps which name the sea, 72 refer to it as Sea of Korea and/or East Sea, and 10 use Sea of Japan. [1]
In 2002, the University of Southern California published their East Asian map collection on the internet, consisting of 172 maps made between 17th and 19th centuries. The names of seas begin to appear on maps beginning in the 18th century, 95 of which called the sea "Sea of Korea" or "Eastern Sea" while "Sea of Japan" is found only on one map. Of the 19th century maps, "Sea of Japan" is found on 9, "Sea of Korea" is found on 30. Among all 165 maps in the collection, 135 used "Sea of Korea" or "Oriental Sea" while only 10 used "Sea of Japan." [2] [pnclink.org/annual/annual2004/2004%20Prroceeding/PDF/101902.pdf]
In 2002, South Korea raised the issue again at the 8th UNCSGN. Japan objected again and the issue was not addressed.
In 2002, the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) distributed a circular letter asking for a vote for omitting pages containing the Sea of Japan from the fourth edition of Limits of Oceans and Seas. After Japan's objection, the IHO withdrew the letter.
Around the same time, the volunteer Korean cyber-organization VANK began an aggressive e-mail campaign. They targeted webmasters insisting that Sea of Japan is a shadow of the colonial period and thus its use on the site was inappropriate and racist.
Some publishers and media outlets have responded to the dispute by either adapting both names on maps, or—in very rare cases—leave the area blank, until a consensus can be reached between Japan and Korea.
In December 2002, South Korea produced a report on the names used on 228 maps published prior to 1800 that are held by the U.S. Library of Congress, showing that two-thirds of the maps naming the sea between Korea and Japan used terms favorable to Korea's position, assuming Oriental Sea and East Sea are essentially synonymous. Of the 103 maps that named the sea, 66 percent named it the Sea of Korea, East (or Oriental) Sea, or East Sea and/or Sea of Korea. [3]
In September 2003, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan published a report [4] on a field study of antique maps possessed by the British Library and the University of Cambridge from October 2002 to June 2003, to examine whether the name "Sea of Japan" is recorded in the maps published in Europe between 1801 and 1861. Among the maps published in Europe between 1801 and 1861, there were 37 maps [5] containing the areas surrounding the Sea of Japan in the British Library, of which 32 or 86.5% recorded the name "Sea of Japan" and 5 recorded the name "Sea of Korea." The report states that among the maps published during the same period, 21 maps [6] containing the areas surrounding the Sea of Japan in the University of Cambridge, of which 18 or 85.7% recorded the name "Sea of Japan" and 3 recorded the name "Sea of Korea."
In March 2004, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan published a report [7] with the list of maps it investigated [8] on the investigation of maps at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France. The study shows that from the 1,495 maps possessed by the Bibliotheque Nationale de France and published between the 16th and 19th century show that of 407 maps for which a name was recorded, 249, or 61% bore the name "Sea of Japan" and 60, or 15% bore the name "Sea of Korea." No maps were found that bore the name "East Sea." Furthermore, of the maps published in the first half of the 19th century, 90.0% or 99 maps bore the name "Sea of Japan" and of the maps published in the latter half of the 19th century 100% or 105 maps bore the same name.
On April 23, 2004, the United Nations affirmed the principle that it will continue using the name Sea of Japan in its official documents to refer to the body of water encircled by Japan, the Korean Peninsula and Russia, with the Japanese government in a written document. However, it has agreed to leave the topic open for further discussion. In a letter to South Korea, it was explained that the UN was not determining the validity of either name, but using the currently most widely used term until the parties resolved the disagreement.
In July 2005, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan published a report [9] (English abstract) of the investigation it conducted on the dispute. According to the report, the investigators from Geographical Survey Institute of Japan looked into maps published between 1300 and 1900 at the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, and from 1,435 maps [10] which mention the disputed sea, 1,110 maps use Sea of Japan.
In an undated report available on its website as of September 2005, South Korea's Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Fisheries shows that by its count, of 763 historic maps in various government and university libraries, 440 maps use Sea of Korea, East Sea or variants, and 123 use Sea of Japan or variants. [11]
Arguments
Both sides in the dispute have put forward a number of arguments to support their claim, either for a change, or against it. It is worth noting that many of these arguments are not supported by the respective governments, but rather by nationalist organizations.
Geographical reasons
Japanese groups argue that as a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, the sea should be named for Japan. South Korean groups take a different point of view and argue that the sea is really located at the eastern end of the Asian continent, and thus should be called East Sea.
Historical reasons
Both sides use a selective sample of old maps to support their claim. South Koreans use old maps that show names other than Sea of Japan, whereas the Japanese use maps to demonstrate that the said name was in use before their imperial time. Many old maps are ambiguous and some even do not include Korea or Japan.
Japanese groups argue that the term Sea of Japan was originally named by Westerners and became the de-facto standard before Japan gained commercial and political influence in the region. South Korean groups claim historical precedence of the name East Sea, and argue that this should be restored. They regard the dominance of the name Sea of Japan a reflection of Japan's imperial past. Part of the dispute boils down to the disagreement over when Sea of Japan became the de facto standard. Japanese groups claim dates in the early 19th century, whereas Korean groups claim dates on the early 20th century when Korea was colonized by Japan.
Ownership
Some Koreans argue that Sea of Japan implies ownership over an international body of water. Japanese counter by saying that the name of a body of water does not imply ownership. It is merely a name. Some Koreans also claim that the name Sea of Japan was really established after the Russo-Japanese War in 1904. Others argue that the name Sea of Japan is related to ownership because it was the Japanese delegates who submitted the name to the IHB when Korea was a part of Japan.
Ambiguity
Japanese groups claim that the name East Sea is not suitable as an international geographic name, because it could refers to various places including the neighbouring East China Sea. Much of this argument is based on translations of local names into English. Commonly cited potential confusions are the Vietnamese name for the South China Sea Bien Dong, which literally means East Sea, or the Baltic Sea which in many European languages is called the equivalent of East Sea. It is sometimes also argued that East Sea is a mere translation of the local Korean name Donghae, and thus not really an English name.
Precedence
Some Japanese groups insist that renaming or showing both simultaneously runs counter to the spirit of geographic standardization and will be a troubling precedent. Since the name Sea of Japan is the internationally established name, some people think renaming is an unnecessary complication.
See also
External links
- East Sea Map Study - by the Korean Overseas Information Service
- Sea of Japan - Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs defends the use of Sea of Japan.