✔ Research Summary

✔  Research Summary

1.    Research Objectives

The main objective of the current research is preparing the foundations of Korean studies in Macedonia. The first factor which determines the necessity of the development of Korean studies in Macedonia is the countries geopolitical significance. Situated in the central part of the Balkan Peninsula, Macedonia borders with Bulgaria to the east, Serbia – to the north, and Greece and Albania – to the south. Because of its geopolitical position, its closeness to Greece (Byzantine), to Bulgaria, and in modern times, to the Yugoslavian Federation, since ancient times it has been involved in constant intensive struggle becoming a spot of great strategic importance. In future, if Korean companies and institutions establish a foothold there and if the exchange of human resources intensifies, Macedonia can become a bridgehead to the Balkans, even to Europe.

In respect to culture, Macedonia has many characteristics which are similar to Korea. Because of the distinctiveness of its nation and state, up until twentieth century the historical and cultural contacts of Macedonia with the Korean Peninsula had been very limited. That is the reason why the interest of the Korean society towards Macedonia still does not surpass the level of curiosity with an exotic flavour. It is a fact that, especially after the fall the Berlin wall, which symbolized the collapse of the socialist system, because of the Korean capital and technological superiority, the prevailing attitude towards the Balkan region, was one of counter-orientalism. From a comparative historical perspective, even geographically Korean and Macedonia are quite distant, it can be said that historically they are very close. That closeness comes from the fact that both countries are situated on the periphery of the capitalist system. Common elements such as underdeveloped capitalism, lack of agricultural revolution and civil revolution, fragile civil class and strong intellectuals, and colonial experience exist between the two countries because with they have achieved the modernization of their societies through a process different from the countries of the western hemisphere. Hence, the fundamental reason for this research is not simply the development of Korean studies in Macedonia, but promoting the development and the spreading of Korean studies in Macedonia through in-depth understanding of the two countries’ cultures.

2.    Contents, Scope and Methods of Research

In order to set the basis for the official establishment and the consequent development of Korean studies in Macedonia, where Korean studies are still in their initial phase, the research needs to be conducted in the following two directions. The first direction involves restoring the records (The Science of Bibliography Database) and improving the image, while the second direction, which is to follow the first, is scientific and policy-oriented research on preparing specialists in the area, organizing educational programs and building the necessary infrastructure. The restoration of the records and the improving of the image constitute the most basic groundwork. ‘Restoration of records’ is a collective term referring to the gathering and systematizing of materials about Korea, promotional information, media articles and diplomatic documents, which can be found in Macedonia. As the current research is two-directional, respectively, it also involves the processing in the same way of the materials on Macedonia which have been accumulated in Korea. The restoration of the records, existing in both countries, is the foundation for improving the image of each country in its relation to the other one, and ultimately becomes the most significant source of getting to know the other nation, as well as to making oneself known to them.

Next, the nurturing of specialists in Korean studies and the development of education programs and infrastructure can be achieved through the use of the materials, acquired in the process of the restoration of the records of Macedonia and Korea. Through those records the researchers can get acquainted with each other’s country and are able to research and develop the most effective method of intercultural communication. This method will be applied in education programs in Korean language and Korean studies. It will also play the role of a measuring stuck in assessing the relative importance of different policies when building the infrastructure for the enlarging of the foundations of Korean studies.