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네이버 공유 카카오 공유 트위터 공유 페이스북 공유

Bolstering Korea-Ukraine Academic and Cultural Exchange

To commemorate the 16th anniversary of Korea-Ukraine diplomatic relations, and the 11th anniversary of the establishment of the Department of Korean Language and Literature at the National Taras Shevchenko University of Kiev, this year, the University organized a Korea-Ukraine international academic conference, with support from the Korea Foundation and the Korean Embassy in Ukraine.



Since many Koreans are not well acquainted with Ukraine, it can be confused with Uzbekistan, in Central Asia, or even Uruguay, in South America. However, Ukraine is a developed country in Eastern Europe, with a vast territory. In Europe, it is the second-largest country (land area of 603,700 square kilometers), next to only Russia, and ranks fifth in terms of population, following Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy.
Kieven Rus'(9th-11th century), a predecessor of Russia; the site of the Yalta Conference, where the fate of the Korean Peninsula was determined; Dnieper River, a primary waterway of Eastern Europe; the land of the Chernobyl disaster in April 1986, when a nuclear reactor accident resulted in a considerable number of casualties.
Founded in 1834, the National Taras Shevchenko University of Kiev is an institution of higher learning with a long history and tradition in Ukraine. It is the most prestigious university in the country, which includes some 3,000 faculty members, along with 25,000 undergraduate and 10,000 graduate students. Its Department of Korean Language and Literature, established in 1997, admits about ten freshmen each year, who strive to become Korean language and literature specialists or seek employment with Korea-related enterprises, thus contributing to economic development as well as academic and cultural exchange between the two countries. Currently, 46 undergraduates and three graduate students are pursuing Korea-related studies, under the guidance of professors, despite a challenging situation.

Enthusiastic Presentations
The conference, under the theme of "Current Status and Prospects for Academic and Cultural Exchange between Korea and Ukraine," was held at the auditorium of the School of Humanities, on July 2, 2008. Prior to the academic sessions, congratulatory remarks were delivered by Dean of the School of Humanities, Semenyuk G. F., and Korean Ambassador to Ukraine, Park Ro-byug. Papers were presented in Ukrainian, Korean, Russian, or English, depending on the presenter's preference. Keynote speaker Professor Kontsevich, of the Russian Academy of Sciences, a distinguished authority of Korean Studies, is well-known for exceeding his allotted time.
The keynote speaker from the Korean side was Professor Cho Kwang, of the Department of Korean History, Korea University, whose enthusiasm and preparation were comparable to that of Professor Kontsevich. Along with a beam projector, a somewhat unfamiliar device to the Ukrainian audience, Professor Cho outlined factors that should be considered in the teaching of Korean history to foreign students, with an emphasis on the distortions of Korean history found in Japanese textbooks. A Japanese professor, who attended the conference as an observer, expressed his concurrence with Professor Cho's viewpoint. Other speakers included Professor Bondarenko, of the National Taras Shevchencko University Kiev, who presented a paper on the poetry of Kim So-wol, and Professor Kim Hung-gyu, of the Department of Korean Language and Literature, Korea University, who discussed the prominent role of the father in Korean literature.

Receptive Audience
Presentations right after lunch can be a challenge, due to a tendency of the audience to doze off. Fortunately, this was not the case with the presentation of Professor Yim Young-sang, of the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (HUFS), whose keen insight kept the audience attentive. To highlight Korea-Ukraine people-to-people relations, and the cultural industry, in regard to the films and TV dramas of the two countries, he cited examples related to Central Asia and Russia, along with emphasizing the importance of cultural exchange programs.
Of note, all the presenters and their papers were highly impressive and noteworthy. The conference concluded about 50 minutes after the scheduled time with a final presentation by Professor Mosenkis and a brief discussion period. Professor Mosenkis, of the National Taras Shevchenko University of Kiev, who regularly presents papers at this kind of academic conference, offered a new concept on the origin of the Korean language, which elicited several questions from the audience.
Although a conference like this requires considerable attention and preparation, its successful outcome makes all the efforts worthwhile. Hopefully, this gathering can contribute to more active bilateral exchanges between Korea and Ukraine in various sectors, including academia and culture. Taking this opportunity, I would like to express my sincerest appreciation to all the participants, as well as the Korea Foundation, and Ambassador Park Ro-byug and Secretary Mun Gyeong-nam of the Korean Embassy in Ukraine.

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