From Past to Present: Korean Culture, History, and Politics

Authors

Marek Hańderek (ed)
Jagiellonian University in Kraków
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9882-3977

Keywords:

Korean culture, history, politics

Synopsis

This book consists of ten chapters written by scholars affiliated with research institutions in Poland, the Republic of Korea, Czechia, and Germany. The contributors are specialists in various academic disciplines, including cultural studies, history, political science, and linguistics. As a result, the volume offers an interdisciplinary approach to the Korean Peninsula and addresses a wide range of issues.
It provides readers with a valuable opportunity to explore lesser-known or overlooked aspects of Korean culture, history, and politics from the 20th and 21st centuries. Each chapter presents either an unexplored topic or a new perspective on subjects previously examined by other scholars.
This volume makes a meaningful contribution to the international development and dissemination of Korean Studies and represents one of the significant achievements of the Department of Korean Studies at the Institute of the Middle and Far East of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków in this field.

Chapters

Author Biographies

Ewa Rynarzewska, University of Warsaw

Assoc. Prof., graduated from the Department of Japanese and Korean Studies, the University of Warsaw where she received the doctoral and postdoctoral degree. Studied at University of Koryo (1993–1994, 1997–2001) and the University of Yonsei (1995–1996). She specializes in Korean literature and theater and is the author of many articles and books on Korean literature and theatre (e.g. Teatr uwikłany – koreańska sztuka teatralna i dramatyczna w latach 1900–1950 [Theater Entangled: Korean Theater and Drama 1900–1950], Warszawa 2013); translator of Korean dramas and novels (Lee Kang-baek, Choi In-hun, Yi Sang, Shin Kyung-sook). Her recent academic interests focus on the social function of Korean literature, as well as the traditional Korean theater.

Anna Diniejko-Wąs, Uniwersytet Warszawski

A graduate of Korean Studies and English Philology, University of Warsaw. Recipient of scholarships from Korea Foundation, Academy of Korean Studies, and Sejong Institute. Ph.D. in Humanities with a specialization in Literary Studies. Since 2017, lecturer at the University of Warsaw, specializing in Korean social and cultural issues. Her research focuses on Korean culture, Korea under Japanese rule, early Korean feminism, ethnography, folklore.

Joanna Hosaniak, Citizens' Alliance for North Korean Human Rights, Yonsei University GSIS

Deputy Director of Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights (NKHR) in Seoul and Adjunct Professor at Yonsei University Graduate School of International Studies. Hosaniak led international advocacy to establish the UN Commission of Inquiry for the Democratic People’s of Korea (DPRK) and the UN Panel of Experts on Accountability for the DPRK. Hosaniak received her MA in Korean Studies at Warsaw University and her PhD in International Studies from Sogang University.

Roman Husarski, Institute of the Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University

A religious studies scholar at the Institute of the Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University. He currently conducts a research grant from the National Science Centre (Poland) on the evolution of the myth of Kim Il Sung in North Korean cinema. Author can be contacted by email: roman.husarski@uj.edu.pl.

Seungik Lee, Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland

He earned his Ph.D. from Jagiellonian University in Poland. Since October 2019, he has been teaching at the Department of Korea at the Institute of the Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University. His research interests include comparing modern history and culture between Korea and Poland, analyzing business culture in these countries.

Marek Świstak, Institute of the Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University in Kraków

Professor at the Institute of the Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University. His interests include the analysis of public policies, regional policy, development policy, economic policies, selected Asian and European Union policies.

Andreas Schirmer, Palacký University Olomouc

He helms Korean studies at Palacký University Olomouc. Holding a PhD in Modern German Literature from the University of Vienna, he has also completed a PhD program in Korean Language and Literature at Seoul National University. The initiator and coordinator of a network among Korean studies programs in Central and Eastern Europe, he has facilitated and hosted numerous conferences and workshops, authored a textbook for German-speaking learners of Korean, and translated Korean literature into German. He is currently director of an Academy of Korean Studies funded Advanced Seed project titled “Digital Humanities for Korean Studies.” His recent research mostly relates to translation studies, to the literary representation of public discourses, debates, and social issues in contemporary South Korea, or to aspects of the historical interaction between Koreans and Central Europeans.

Sylwia Szyc, Historical Research Office, Institute of National Remembrance

Ph.D., is a historian and employee of the Historical Research Office of the Institute of National Remembrance. She specializes in social history in post-war Poland and the history of diplomacy, with a particular focus on Poland’s relations with East Asian countries. In 2024, she defended her doctoral thesis about North Korean War Orphans in Poland in 1951–1959.

Bernd Schaefer, Woodrow Wilson International Center, Washington D.C.

A Global Fellow with the History and Public Policy Project (HAPP) at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, D.C., He was a Professorial Lecturer at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and a Visiting Professor with Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Tongji University and East China Normal University in Shanghai, Pannasastra University in Phnom Penh, and the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul. He was also a Fellow at the Nobel Institute in Oslo, the National University of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, the German Historical Institute in Washington, D.C., and the Technical University of Dresden. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Halle-Wittenberg in Germany and a Master of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Maciej Pletnia, Institute of Middle and Far East, Jagiellonian University

A researcher specializing in contemporary Japanese international relations, internal politics, and collective identity. He holds a PhD in cultural studies from Jagiellonian University. He was a researcher at Tokyo University as part of the Monbukagakusho Scholarship and conducted research at Tokyo Gakugei. He is currently affiliated with Jagiellonian University. With a strong academic background and a prolific publication record, his most recent works include Game Theory as a Method of Analysis of Visits to Yasukuni Shrine by Japanese Prime Ministers: Case Study Based on Jun'ichirō Koizumi's Visits, Demographic Crisis in Japan Against the Background of Attempts to Build Family-Friendly Social Policy Tools, and Internal ressure: Japan War-Bereaved Families Association and Its Influence on Japanese Politics of Memory.

Hańderek-i-in-From-Past-to-Present-cover

Published

2 June 2025

How to Cite

Hosaniak, J. (2025) From Past to Present: Korean Culture, History, and Politics. Edited byM. Hańderek. Poland: Księgarnia Akademicka Publishing. doi:10.12797/9788383682198.