Cheonan spreads ‘Korean spirit’ worldwide through K-culture Expo
CHEONAN, South Chungcheong Province — The ongoing global phenomenon of Korean culture and its unique essence is attributed to the nation’s historical background of fighting for freedom during the Japanese colonial rule of Korea from 1910 to 1945, according to Cheonan Mayor Park Sang-don.Calling this the “Korean spirit,” the mayor said the southern city aims to spread it across the globe by hosting the K-culture Expo next week. The city’s annual event made its debut last year.“The genesis of K-culture began with King Sejong’s creation of Hangeul. Without Hangeul, K-culture as we know it today would not have existed,” Park said during an interview with The Korea Times at his office in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, May 10.King Sejong the Great, the fourth monarch of the 1392-1910 Joseon Dynasty, invented the Korean writing system to revolutionize education in his kingdom.Based on this invention, Park said, “The country could truly develop its own cultural, financial and national defense power after achieving independence (from the Japanese colonial occupation).”
Cheonan is the home and battleground of several independence fighters, including student independence activist Yu Gwan-sun, who led the popular March 1 uprising in 1919. Notably, the city’s Independence Hall of Korea, a 3.97 square-kilometer facility that exhibits the country’s history of fighting for freedom and achieving national sovereignty, is the largest of its kind among some 150 nations that achieved independence after World War II, Park explained.Thus, he said, the city and its Independence Hall of Korea are the appropriate venues to stage the K-culture Expo and celebrate its ongoing global popularity.The city’s inaugural edition of the expo held there last year was an immediate success.“In August last year, we held the first K-culture Expo and showed potential as a new leading city for the global wave of Korean culture,” he said.The five-day event allured over 130,000 domestic and overseas visitors and featured a wide spectrum of live performances and Korean content ranging from the history and future of the country’s culture and cultural industry.It was the first event that comprehensively included several genres of K-culture, which 카지노사이트킹 other municipalities or organizations have never tried, despite K-culture’s soaring popularity, the mayor noted.