Samguk sagi
Samguk sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms) is an official history compiled by Kim Busik and other scholars in 1145 on the order of King Injong of Goryeo. It records the histories of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. Its surviving text is central to the study of early Korean history, but it was compiled centuries after many of the events it describes. [1,2]
Compilation and structure
The work follows the biographical-annalistic format of Chinese official historiography. Its fifty volumes comprise twenty-eight volumes of annals, three of chronological tables, nine of treatises and ten of biographies. The annals are divided into twelve volumes for Silla and Unified Silla, ten for Goguryeo, and six for Baekje. [1]
The treatises cover subjects including rituals, music, dress, geography and official posts. The biographies concern historical individuals rather than providing another continuous chronological narrative. These divisions offer different kinds of evidence, so a reader should identify the relevant volume and section rather than citing the work as a single undifferentiated account. [1,2]
An essay hosted by the National Institute of Korean History describes its use of Chinese historical works and earlier materials available in Goryeo. Some underlying records no longer survive, and the compilers did not consistently identify the source of each passage. The work preserves evidence about earlier periods while also reflecting choices made by twelfth-century historians. [2]
Geography and historical linguistics
Volumes 34-37 contain geographical materials, including comparisons between older names and renamed places. Endo identifies the 1145 compilation date and discusses the renaming ordered by King Gyeongdeok in 757. His study compares selected elements in names from 783 locations identifiable with present places. [3]
These records are important to historical linguistics and the discussion of Peninsular Japonic. Researchers may compare phonographic Chinese-character spellings with the meanings of later names and with reconstructed vocabulary. This is an interpretation of recorded evidence, not a surviving complete grammar of the language spoken at each locality. Endo explicitly cautions that exact sound values for individual characters remain difficult to reconstruct. [3]
Reading the record critically
The compilation date, the date of an event or renaming, and the date of a surviving printed edition are different. A modern study's reconstruction is a further layer. The same essay discusses both the time gap and problems of source attribution; these are reasons to examine particular claims carefully, not to discard the entire work. [2]
The National Institute's public database provides a volume-by-volume entry point, including a dedicated listing for volume 37. It is useful for locating a citation before moving to a particular passage. [4]
Shiori's editorial position: a historical source is most useful when its compilation, transmission and modern interpretation remain distinguishable. Citing its title without identifying the passage can conceal the very uncertainty a reference should help resolve.
Sources
- [1] Literature Translation Institute of Korea, Samguk sagi, work description.
- [2] National Institute of Korean History, Samguk sagi, Our History Net, sections 1-4; the site's essay distinguishes its author's views from an official institutional position.
- [3] Mitsuaki Endo, Geographical distribution of certain toponyms in the Samguk Sagi, Anthropological Science 129(1) (2021), 35-44.
- [4] National Institute of Korean History, Samguk sagi database and volume 37.