Jin state

Infobox Korean name
hangul=진국
hanja=辰國
rr=Jin-guk
mr=Chin'guk

Jin state was an early Iron Age state which occupied some portion of the southern Korean peninsula during the 2nd and 3rd centuries BCE, bordering the Korean kingdom Gojoseon to the north. Its capital was somewhere south of the Han River. It preceded the Samhan confederacies, which each claimed to be successors of the Jin state.

However, Sin Chae-ho insisted in his book "Joseon Sanggosa" that Jin was the same exact nation as Jinjoseon; which historically was one of the three confederacies of Gojoseon. The Chinese usually say Jin when they refer to Jinjoseon, but say Joseon when they are referring to Byeonjoseon or Wiman Joseon. More research may be required for the exact identification of the Jin state because of the many historical records that inconsistently reference to the Jin state. By modern times, Jin in historical records may refer to any one of the three governing bodies: Jinhan, Jinjoseon or Gaemaguk.

History

It is not completely clear as to how well defined of an organized state Jin was. It seems likely that it was a federation of small states much like the subsequent Samhan. For the state to be able to contend with Wiman Joseon and send embassies to the court of Han, there was probably some level of stable central authority. Lee (1984, p. 24) also suggests that the kingdom's attempt to open direct contacts "suggests a strong desire on the part of Chin [Jin] to enjoy the benefits of Chinese metal culture." However, for the most part Wiman Joseon prevented direct contact between Jin and China.

King Jun of Gojoseon is reported to have fled to Jin after Wiman seized his throne and established Wiman JoseonFact|date=February 2007. Some believe that Chinese mentions of Gaeguk or Gaemaguk (蓋馬國, Kingdom of armored horses) refers to Jin. Goguryeo is said to have conquered "Gaemaguk" in 26 AD, but this may refer to a different tribe in northern Korea.

Records are somewhat contradictory on Jin's demise: it either became the later Jinhan, or diverged into the Samhan as a whole. Archeological records of Jin have been found centered in territory that later became Mahan.Fact|date=February 2007

Archeology

Archaeologically, Jin is commonly identified with the Korean bronze dagger culture, which succeeded the Liaoning bronze dagger culture in the late first millennium BCEFact|date=February 2007. The most abundant finds from this culture have been in southwestern Korea’s Chungcheong and Jeolla regions. This suggests that Jin was based in the same area, which roughly coincides with the fragmentary historical evidenceFact|date=February 2007. Artifacts of the culture are found throughout southern Korea and were also exported to the Yayoi people of Kyūshū, Japan (Lee, 1996).

Legacy

Jin was succeeded by the Samhan or "Three Hans."Fact|date=February 2007 The Jin name continued to be used in the name of the Jinhan confederacy and in the name "Byeonjin," an alternate term for Byeonhan. In addition, for some time the leader of Mahan continued to call himself the "Jin king," asserting nominal overlordship over all of the Samhan tribes.

See also

* History of Korea
* List of Korea-related topics
* Samhan

References

*Lee, C.-k. (1996). The bronze dagger culture of Liaoning province and the Korean peninsula. "Korea Journal" 36(4), 17-27. [http://www.ekoreajournal.net/archive/detail.jsp?VOLUMENO=36&BOOKNUM=4&PAPERNUM=2]
*Lee, K.-b. (1984). "A new history of Korea." Tr. by E.W. Wagner & E.J. Schulz, based on the 1979 rev. ed. Seoul: Ilchogak. ISBN 89-337-0204-0.