An ChangRim Official Instagram / Edward Lee Official Instagram
Korean-American chef Edward Lee has gained immense popularity both inside and outside of Korea after clinching second place in “Culinary Class Wars”, and his new variety show “Edward Lee’s Country Cook” is also garnering global attention. Besides his incredible cooking skills and creativity, what sets him apart from the other contestants is that he presented his story as a Korean American by skillfully incorporating Korean elements and ingredients into his dishes. His genuine confession of his journey in search of his Korean roots touched the hearts of many audiences globally.
In fact, Edward is one of the 7 million Korean diasporas living in different parts of the world. With Korean diasporas from different countries gaining international recognition in various aspects, more people started to become curious about their backgrounds and experiences. Throughout the past two centuries, the Korean diaspora has grown from a small community into a huge and diverse one through hard work and perseverance. Some of them even returned to Korea and made significant contributions to the development of their motherland. Read on to explore the interesting story of the Korean diaspora!
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History Of Korean Diaspora
The first group of Korean diaspora can be dated back to the 16th century, when Korean slaves were taken from Korea to Japan and various Portuguese colonies including Macau and Goa. However, large-scale emigration of Koreans in the modern era only began in the early 20th century. The first significant wave of Korean emigration happened in 1903, when 102 aboard the S.S. Gaelic at Incheon Harbor and set off to Hawaii to work on sugar cane plantations so as to fill labor shortages in the growing sugar industry in the island. These Koreans were known as the “Hawaii Pioneers” and became the first group of Korean-Americans.
A few years later in 1910, Korea was colonized by Japan. During the Japanese colonial period until 1945, approximately 2 million and 55,000 Koreans migrated to mainland Japan and Sakhalin to engage in forced labor and prostitution. A significant number of Koreans, especially independence fighters, also moved to Manchuria (northeastern China) to escape Japanese rule and continue their independence movements against Japanese rule. In 1937, Stalin’s regime forcibly relocated approximately 172,000 Koreans from the Russian Far East to Central Asia, particularly Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, as part of his ethnic cleansing policy. Since then, the Korean community in Central Asia began to develop, and Korean became one of the notable ethnic minority groups in the region.
The Korean War broke out in 1950 shortly after Korea was liberated from Japanese occupation, which created a huge population of Korean orphans. After the Korean Armistice Agreement was signed in 1953, a significant number of Korean orphans were adopted mainly by families in the United States and European countries such as Germany, Sweden, and Norway. By the mid-1960s, approximately 6,293 Korean children had been adopted by families in the United States.
AP Photo
Starting from the 1960s, Koreans started to migrate to more countries in Europe and Latin America. In particular, then-president Park ChungHee signed an Agreement with West Germany in 1963 to send Korean labor to fill the labor shortage. This led to the emigration of a large number of Koreans to work as miners and nurses in West Germany. The 2014 movie “Ode To My Father” described this migration trend, that the two protagonists DeokSoo (played by Hwang JungMin) and YoungJa (played by Kim YunJin) met each other in West Germany while working as a miner and a nurse there. Some Koreans also moved to Latin American countries such as Chile and Paraguay to set up small businesses especially in the textile industry.
Korea.net
In the 1990s and 2000s, the economy of Southeast Asia began to experience rapid growth. This prompted Koreans to migrate to countries such as The Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia to set up businesses there. At the same time, many Korean conglomerates such as Samsung and LG began to expand their overseas business in Southeast Asia in this period. Therefore, many Koreans were also sent to Southeast Asian countries for work, which led to the growing Korean diaspora community in the region. Over the years, the number of Korean diasporas has grown, with communities now settling in an increasingly wide variety of locations around the globe.
Current Situation Of Korean Diaspora
In recent years, the Korean diaspora population has continued to grow as Koreans move abroad for various reasons such as education, job opportunities, and international marriage. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as of 2021, the number of overseas Koreans worldwide reached 7.32 million, consisting of 4.8 million foreign nationals and 2.5 million Korean nationals. Korean diasporas are currently residing in over 50 countries around the world, and approximately 84.5% of overseas Koreans live in the United States, China, Japan, Canada, and Uzbekistan.
As the Korean diaspora has grown into a large global community, many of them have made significant contributions to their host countries in various fields in recent years. Korean-Chinese Jin Xing is regarded as one of the most prominent transgender dancers and choreographers in China; Korean-American actor Steven Yeun has been a trailblazer for Asian representation in Hollywood by starring in various American television series and films, including “Minari” (2020) which depicts the story of a Korean immigrant family in the 1980s.
During the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the current Governor of Mykolaiv Oblast Korean-Ukrainian Vitalii Kim boosted the morale of Ukrainians by constantly updating the latest situation of the invasion on Telegram and uploading a hilarious video to comfort the citizens. His effort in supporting Ukrainians in fighting against the Russian army was greatly appreciated by the Ukrainians and the international community.
Encountering And Overcoming Discrimination
While Korean diasporas have made impressive achievements and contributed to the development of their host countries, they have faced discrimination throughout the years. One of the most notable examples is the 1992 Los Angeles Riots. The unrest began after a jury acquitted four police officers charged with using excessive force in the arrest and beating of Rodney King, an African American motorist. Since many Korean immigrants owned small businesses in predominantly African American neighborhoods, many Korean-owned businesses in Koreatown were targeted, looted, and destroyed during the unrest. The riots caused immense economic and emotional hardship for the Korean community, and has been one of the most destructive periods of civil unrest in the United States history.
Korean diasporas also sometimes encounter verbal attacks in their host countries. 2020 Tokyo Olympics Korean-Japanese Bronze Medalist Judoka An ChangRim revealed on “Yoo Quiz On The Block” that he got called “Chosenjin” (a derogatory expression used by Japanese to refer to Koreans during the Japanese colonial period) by some of the Japanese around him when he was living in Japan (at 7:18). This prompted him to reject his Japanese coach’s suggestion of naturalizing as a Japanese citizen and to return to Korea to represent his motherland in Judo competitions.
Returning To The Motherland
As the economic situation of Korea continues to improve, some Korean diasporas are returning to Korea. An increasing number of Koreans from China and CIS countries are moving back to Korea to work starting from the 1980s and 90s. This has led to the formation of Korean diaspora communities across Korea such as Yeonbyeon Street in Seoul where Korean-Chinese gather and Ttaetgol Village in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province where Koryo-saram (Koreans from CIS countries) reside. These neighborhoods preserve the unique culture of Korean diasporas from different countries such as having signboards in foreign languages and restaurants selling Korean diasporas cuisines.
In conclusion, throughout the past two decades, the Korean diaspora has developed from a group that mainly resides in the United States and a few neighboring countries around Korea such as China, Japan, and Russian Far East, to a large and diverse community that are found in various countries across the world. Many Korean diasporas are making significant contributions to different aspects of their host countries. While some of them face discrimination from the local communities, Korean diasporas are gradually more accepted as they grow into an increasingly influential community and become more vocal about their situation.
As the economic situation in Korea has improved in recent years, some Korean diasporas are relocating back to Korea in search of better livelihoods. The Korean government has also strengthened support for Korean diasporas to increase the sense of belonging of Korean diasporas towards Korea and encourage them to return to Korea and contribute to the development of their motherland by utilizing their multicultural background. It is anticipated that Korean diaspora will continue to serve as a bridge connecting Korea and the world and thrive in various industries globally.
