Why Is Korea Called Korea? The Goryeo Dynasty Legacy

The English name "Korea" is a Western adaptation of "Goryeo" (고려, 高麗), a powerful dynasty that unified the Korean peninsula from 918 to 1392 CE. The name reached the Middle East and Europe through Arab and Persian merchants who traded with Goryeo via the Silk Road and maritime routes, rendering the name in Arabic as "Kūryā" and in Persian as "Kori." European mapmakers later adopted variations like "Corea," "Coree," and "Korea."

Introduction

Koreans themselves do not use the name "Korea." South Koreans call their country Hanguk (한국, 韓國), meaning "Land of the Han," while North Koreans use Chosŏn (조선, 朝鮮), meaning "Land of the Morning Calm." These two different names reflect the deep political division of the peninsula since 1945, with each government claiming a different historical lineage.

The Goryeo Dynasty

• Period: 918-1392 CE
• Founder: Wang Geon (King Taejo)
• Capital: Kaesong (modern North Korea)
• Significance: Unified the peninsula, name reached the wider world

The Goryeo dynasty was founded by Wang Geon in 918 CE after the fall of the Silla dynasty. Goryeo unified the Korean peninsula and established a sophisticated state with a civil service examination system modeled on China's, advanced celadon pottery production, and the world's first metal movable type printing (predating Gutenberg by 200 years). The capital at Kaesong became a major center of trade and culture.

The name "Goryeo" itself was adopted from "Goguryeo" (고구려, 高句麗), one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea that had dominated the northern peninsula and Manchuria from 37 BCE to 668 CE. Wang Geon chose this name to claim legitimacy as the successor to the powerful Goguryeo kingdom. The meaning of "Goguryeo" is debated — it may mean "high castle" or "elevated city" from Old Korean roots.

How the Name Traveled West

• Arab Traders: Rendered as "Kūryā" in Arabic sources
• Persian Merchants: Used "Kori" in trade records
• Marco Polo: Mentioned "Cauli" in his travels (13th century)
• European Maps: "Corea" and "Korea" from the 16th century onward

The Goryeo dynasty's extensive maritime trade brought Korean goods — particularly celadon ceramics, ginseng, and silk — to markets across Asia and the Middle East. Arab geographers like Al-Idrisi (12th century) recorded the existence of a prosperous kingdom in eastern Asia, and Persian traders carried the name "Kori" through Central Asian trade routes.

Marco Polo, traveling through Yuan (Mongol) China in the late 13th century, mentioned "Cauli" — his Italian rendering of the Chinese pronunciation of Goryeo (高麗, Gāolí). Portuguese and Spanish missionaries and traders in East Asia from the 16th century adopted forms like "Corea" and "Coree." The spelling "Korea" with a "K" became standard in English by the 19th century, though the "C" spelling persists in Italian, French, and Spanish (Corea, Corée, Corea).

What Koreans Call Korea

• South Korea: Hanguk (한국) — "Land of the Han"
• North Korea: Chosŏn (조선) — "Land of the Morning Calm"
• Han: Refers to the ancient Samhan confederacies, not Chinese Han
• Chosŏn: From the Joseon dynasty (1392-1897)

The split in self-naming reflects the peninsula's political division. South Korea's "Hanguk" (한국, 韓國) derives from the Samhan (三韓, Three Han), ancient tribal confederacies of southern Korea. The character 韓 (han) is distinct from the Chinese 漢 (hàn) and likely derives from an Old Korean word meaning "great" or "leader." South Korea's official name is Daehan Minguk (대한민국), literally "Great Han People's Country" — the Republic of Korea.

North Korea uses "Chosŏn" (조선, 朝鮮), derived from the Joseon dynasty (1392-1897) that succeeded Goryeo. The characters 朝鮮 are traditionally interpreted as "Morning Calm" or "Morning Freshness" (朝 = morning, 鮮 = freshness/calm), giving Korea its poetic epithet "Land of the Morning Calm." However, the name "Chosŏn" predates this interpretation and was used in Chinese texts as early as the 7th century BCE to refer to a territory in the Korean peninsula region.

Korea vs. Corea Controversy

• Original English: Both "Corea" and "Korea" were used
• Japanese Colonial Claim: Conspiracy theory that Japan changed C to K
• Historical Evidence: Both spellings predate Japanese colonization
• Current Usage: "Korea" standard in English; "Corea" in Romance languages

A persistent theory claims that Japan changed the English spelling from "Corea" to "Korea" during the colonial period (1910-1945) so that Japan (J) would alphabetically precede Korea (K) rather than follow Corea (C). This theory is widely believed in Korea but is not supported by historical evidence. Both "C" and "K" spellings appear in English texts from the 17th century, and "Korea" was already the more common English spelling before Japanese colonization.

The "K" spelling likely became dominant in English through German and Dutch sources, languages in which "K" is the standard way to represent the /k/ sound. Romance languages retained the "C" spelling because "C" before "o" represents /k/ in Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. The controversy, while historically unfounded, reflects the deep scars left by Japanese colonial rule on Korean national identity.

Key Facts

• Korea derives from "Goryeo" (고려), a dynasty that ruled the peninsula from 918 to 1392 CE.
• Goryeo itself was named after "Goguryeo," one of the ancient Three Kingdoms of Korea.
• Arab and Persian traders carried the name westward, where it became "Corea" and "Korea."
• South Koreans call their country Hanguk (한국, "Land of the Han"); North Koreans use Chosŏn (조선, "Morning Calm").
• The Goryeo dynasty produced the world's first metal movable type printing, predating Gutenberg by 200 years.

Fun Facts

• Marco Polo rendered the name as "Cauli" in his 13th-century travel accounts.
• The theory that Japan changed "Corea" to "Korea" for alphabetical superiority is widely believed but historically unsupported.
• The word "Goryeo" lives on in the English word "Korea" — a medieval dynasty's name frozen in time by international trade.
• Korean ginseng (Goryeo insam) is still sometimes marketed under the "Goryeo" name, preserving the old dynasty name in commerce.

Final Thoughts

Korea's name is a linguistic fossil — a medieval dynasty's identity, carried westward by Arab traders and frozen into European languages while the peninsula itself moved on to new names and new political realities. That South and North Korea cannot even agree on what to call their shared homeland underscores how deeply names are tied to political identity, and how a single peninsula can carry three names — Korea, Hanguk, and Chosŏn — each telling a different story.