Father Kim Dae-geon, Creator of the First Korean Map in Romanization... Dokdo Referred to as 'Usan'

'Dokdo' Indicated on 'Joseon Jeondo' Map Delivered to French Navy
Korean Place Names Used at the Time Transcribed in Romanization

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] As Japan repeatedly claims that 'Dokdo is our land,' the fact that Father Kim Dae-geon (1821?1846) created a Romanized Korean map including Dokdo and spread it to the West in the mid-19th century is being reexamined. This map is known as the first to Romanize not only Dokdo but also the place names of the Eight Provinces of Joseon.

According to the Northeast Asian History Foundation on the 23rd, the foundation's recently published monograph, "A Study on Father Kim Dae-geon's Joseon Map," details that Father Kim made the Joseon map during about three months between January 1845, when he returned to Joseon after staying in China, and April of the same year when he departed for Shanghai, China.

According to the foundation, Father Kim produced the Joseon map by copying a map owned by the Joseon government and Romanizing the place names. On the Joseon map, Seoul is marked as 'Seoul,' Usando (the old name for Dokdo) as 'Ousan,' and Ulleungdo as 'Oulnengtou.' The study emphasizes the significant meaning that the map Romanized the Korean Sino-Korean pronunciations of place names used by Joseon people in their daily communication at the time.

Portrait oil painting of Father Kim Dae-geon. Work by Moon Hak-jin, Professor Emeritus at Seoul National University. Photo by Yonhap News.

The Joseon map created by Father Kim was delivered to Captain Gravier of the French Navy through Father Ribault, and is currently held by the National Library of France. It is said that the late Monsignor Choi Seok-woo first confirmed its existence at the National Library of France in 1978. The National Library of France also holds a Joseon map in Latin. It was handed over by the French Navy Hydrographic Office and includes some Hangul notations besides Latin. The production year is recorded as 1860, but the creator is unknown. Ulleungdo and Dokdo are clearly depicted.

Father Kim Dae-geon was the first Korean Catholic priest. He was a figure who practiced egalitarianism and philanthropy in the Joseon society, which was based on a caste system, and was selected by UNESCO as a World Commemorative Figure in 2021. Born in 1821 into a Catholic family in Solmoe, Dangjin, Chungnam, Father Kim was chosen as a seminarian by Father Ma Peter (Mopang) in 1836 and went to study theology in Macau for six years.

In August 1845, he was ordained by Bishop Ferr?ol, becoming the first Korean priest, and began pastoral work in Seoul and Yongin. However, while attempting to open a missionary route, he went to Hwanghae Province and was arrested by officials on his way back, sentenced to death, and executed by beheading at Saenamteo in September 1846. He was canonized as a saint in 1984, becoming one of the 103 Korean Catholic saints. Pope Francis also visited the Solmoe Holy Site in Dangjin, Chungnam, where Father Kim’s birthplace is located, and prayed there on August 15, 2014.