Samguk Sagi
From Freepedia
| Samguk Sagi | |
|---|---|
| Hangul: | 삼국 사기 |
| Hanja: | 三國史記 |
| Revised Romanization: | Samguk Sagi |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Samguk Sagi |
Samguk Sagi (Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms) is a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla. The Samguk Sagi was written in Classical Chinese (as used in writing by Korean scholars at the time) and compiled by the Korean historian Kim Busik (金富軾) in 1145. It is well known in Korea as the oldest record of Korean history.
The 50 volumes are:
- Records of Silla (Nagi; 나기; 羅紀) (16 volumes)
- Records of Goguryeo (Yeogi; 여기; 麗紀) (10 volumes)
- Records of Baekje (Jegi; 제기; 濟紀) (6 volumes)
- Chronological tables (3 volumes)
- Miscellanea (9 volumes): ceremonies, music, transport, housing, geography, official ranking
- Biography (10 volumes)
Some modern historians are critical of the records provided in Samguk Sagi, citing a bias towards China and the Silla-centered view of the Three Kingdoms period. Kim Busik was a patrician of Silla origin who supported Confucianism over Buddhism as the guiding principle in governance and favored presenting tributes to the Chinese emperor to prevent a conflict with China.
However, this record remains critical to the study of Korean history, and recent archeological evidence, verification of astronomical events, and comparison with Chinese and Japanese records have shown the Samguk Sagi to be comparatively surprisingly accurate.
This book is to be distinguished from the Chinese Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms by Chen Shou.
