Friend of Korea: Homer B. Hulbert and Korean Education

The Father of Modern Korean Education
Homer B. Hulbert (1863-1949) was an American born missionary who worked as a teacher in Korea for twenty years. Through education, he discovered his love for Korea, and during his tenure, Hulbert published numerous books about the rest of the world for Koreans, as well as books that were aimed at foreigners to teach them about Korea. He transcribed music, advocated for Hangeul, and modernized the Korean education system. Suffice to say, without Hulbert, the Korea current education system would not be possible nor as exemplary as it is today.

SaMinPilJi (사민필지): A Korean Textbook in Hangeul
Upon his arrival in Korea in 1886, Hulbert began his career as an English professor. He was a skilled linguist, and mastered the Korean language in only two years. However, Hulbert noted that it only took him four days to learn Hangeul, a rarely used writing system at the time. According to Hulbert, he thought Hangeul was the superior writing system, saying, “The Korean alphabet scarcely has its equal in the world for the simplicity and phonetic power.” Hangeul was a writing system that was initially created in 1446 to replace Chinese characters in order to promote literacy. Unfortunately, it was largely opposed and hardly used until Hulbert helped with its revival with the publishing of the textbook SaMinPilJi, which was written entirely in Hangeul. At the time, Korea was still relatively isolated in regards to global affairs, so SaMinPilJi introduced other countries throughout the world, describing their education, religion, military and other such concepts. It would be the first step to Korea’s globalization.

The History and Passing of Korea

While Hulbert taught Korea about the world, he also taught the world about Korea. Hulbert published numerous works, but two of his most major books were <The History of Korea> and <The Passing of Korea>. Hulbert spent fifteen years researching for <The History of Korea>, and the book covers the entire history of the Korean Peninsula, from its establishment in 2333 BCE to 1904 CE. He worked to accurately describe the history as much as possible, including the records that were only passed down through folk stories or word of mouth. He also strove to address common misconceptions foreigners held against Korea, with one such example being the misconception that all the Korean dynasties were founded with foreign intervention. Hulbert refuted by saying that Koreans had managed to maintain their unique culture and history on their own without outside intervention.

Shortly after the publication of <The History of Korea>, Hulbert published <The Passing of Korea>. Where <The History of Korea> covered historical events and dynasties, <The Passing of Korea> recorded Korean culture, literature, and art. In the final chapter of the book, Hulbert addressed the title, <The Passing of Korea>. This book was published amid the illegal Japanese takeover of Korea, around the time when Japan took control of all Korea’s foreign affairs and granted Japanese citizens in Korea extraterritorial rights. Hulbert criticized the illegal signing of the Japan-Korea Eulsa Treaty, forced by gunboat diplomacy, and he also criticized the American Government for its complacency towards the takeover and its breaking of the Joseon-United States Treaty of 1882, which was supposed to protect Korea from exactly this type of foreign intervention. <The Passing of Korea> and <The History of Korea> were works that roused the spirits of Koreans and called them to action to resist the Japanese government, and sparked patriotism and national pride within Korean youth.

Arirang
<Arirang> (아리랑) is a traditional Korean folk song that demonstrates love and caring within Korea, and also evokes Koreans’ personal feelings of patriotism and resistance. While the most well-known version of <Arirang> comes from an anti-Japanese silent film of the same name released in 1926, Arirang as it is today would not be the same without Homer B. Hulbert’s contribution. <Arirang> was an oral song passed down from generation to generation, with an origin likely dating back hundreds of years. Due to its oral nature, it would change over time, evolving into a new form with every passing year. Hulbert wrote the first transcription of the song. In an article called <Korean Vocal Music>, Hulbert described <Arirang> as a song that is meant to be felt by the listeners, to evoke emotions in the audience, despite the song having no rhyme or timing. He likened <Arirang>’s importance to that of rice, stating, “To the average Korean this one song holds the same place in music that rice does in his food– all else is mere appendage.” Hulbert believed that Arirang would still be popular for years to come, and for the past 150 years, this claim has remained true.

Father of Modern Korean Education
Korea has changed so much in such a short period of time, so it’s easy to overlook the contributions of a man from over 130 years ago. However, Homer B. Hulbert is someone who shouldn’t be forgotten nor ignored, as he was someone who loved Korea more than Koreans did themselves. He laid the groundwork for Korea’s educational success. Something as simple as writing the first textbook in Hangeul echoes through time to today, with all Koreans now using this writing system. A song that became a key component of resistance could have been forgotten had it not been for Hulbert. He was a stranger who did so much for Korea. I believe that had Hulbert not contributed to the educational system, Korea would not be able to achieve the high educational achievements that it does today. He is someone who should never be forgotten.

Written by: Mackenzie Migdal
Originally from New Mexico in the United States. Current fifth-year undergraduate at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa as a B.A. Candidate for Korean for Professionals and a B.A. Candidate for Political Science. Exchange student at Korea University, Intern at VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea)