View source for Kija Chosŏn

{{Short description|Ancient kingdom in Korea (1120–194 BC)}}
{{see also|Gojoseon|Wiman Joseon}}
{{Disputed|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox Chinese
| image = Ping Sien Si - 072 Ji Zi (16137921534).jpg
| caption = Depiction of Kija
| title = Kija Chosŏn
| t = 箕氏朝鮮
| s = 箕氏朝鲜
| p = Jīshì Cháoxiǎn
| w = Chi-shih Ch'ao-hsien
| hangul = 기자조선 
| hanja = 箕子朝鮮 
| rr = Gija Joseon
| mr = Kija Chosŏn
| ibox-order = ko1, zh
}}

'''Kija Chosŏn''' (1120–194 BC) was a dynasty of [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] allegedly founded by the sage [[Jizi]] (Kija), a member of the [[Shang dynasty|Shang (Yin) dynasty]] royal house.

==Understanding before 20th century==
===Chinese records===
Chinese records before the [[Qin dynasty]]{{efn|It is true that the [[Burning of books and burying of scholars]] made a lot of the original pre-Qin dynasty books missing,but the ones which are later compiled from old sources are still treated as pre-Qin.}} describe [[Jizi|Kija]] (箕子) as the paternal uncle (or brother in other records) of the last king of the [[Shang dynasty]], the tyrannical [[King Zhou of Shang|King Zhou]], but contain no mention of king Zhou's relationship with Gojoseon. Kija was imprisoned by the tyrant until the downfall of Shang Kingdom, when [[King Wu of Zhou]] released him.<ref>[[Bamboo Annals]], "current text" (今本 jīnběn), Records of Shang (殷紀), "五十一年，冬十一月戊子，周師渡盟津而還。王囚箕子，殺王子比干，微子出奔。"</ref><ref>In the [[Book of Documents]],jizi appears in the chapters of Successful Completion of the War [on Shang](武成),Great Plan [of Jizi](洪範)</ref>

Records written after the [[Qin dynasty]], when the [[Han dynasty]] and Gojoseon were at war, add that Kija led 5,000 to the east of present-day [[Beijing]], as written in the "Geography" section of the ''[[Book of Han]]'' (although some, especially in China, believe him to have moved to present-day Korea), and became the founding king of Kija Chosŏn. In [[Sima Qian]]'s ''[[Records of the Grand Historian|Shi Ji]]'', Kija is mentioned in the following sentence:

{{Translated blockquote
|language=zh
|於是武王乃封箕子於朝鮮而不臣也
|King Wu enfeoffed Kija to Chosŏn, though he was not a vassal (of Zhou)
}}

===Korean historiography===
{{History of Korea}}
{{History of Manchuria}}
No contemporary Korean sources existed for Kija Chosŏn, and the oldest sources produced in Korea were from the Goryeo dynasty. The earliest Korean record about Kija Chosŏn can be seen from ''[[Samguk Yusa]]'',{{efn|No contemporary Korean sources exist for Kija Chosŏn, and the oldest sources produced in Korea about Korean history were from the Goryeo dynasty, as history books made before their times were usually lost, either through war or book burnings. However, [[Samguk Sagi]] and [[Samguk Yusa]] have some authority as they are said to be compilations of records that were much older than the date those books were published, which were accessible at the time of the project.}}<ref>[[Ilyon]], ''Samguk Yusa'', translated by T. Ha & G. Mintz (1997), Yonsei University Press, p. 33</ref>

{{Translated blockquote
|language=zh
|御國一千五百年. 周虎{武}王卽位己卯, 封箕子於朝鮮, 壇君乃移於藏唐京, 後還隱於阿斯達爲山神, 壽一千九百八歲
|Later Dangun moved his capital to Asadal on T'aebaek-san and ruled 1500 years, until king Wu of Chou (ancient Chinese dynasty) placed Kija on the throne (traditional date 1122 BC). When Kija arrived, Dangun moved to Changtang-kyong and then returned to Asadal, where he became a mountain god at the age of 1908.
}}

It was widely believed that Kija Chosŏn was located on the Korean Peninsula, replacing [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] of [[Dangun]]. But some Korean scholars believed that Kija settled west of Gojoseon, based on records from "Geography" section of the ''Book of Han'', and the Korean ''[[Samguk Yusa]]'' that suggests that Gojoseon continued to coexist with Kija Chosŏn after the migration of Kija. These scholars believed that Kija's influence was limited to western part of Gojoseon.

The ''[[Cheongju Han clan|Genealogy of the Cheongju Han Clan]]'' (청주한씨세보) lists the names of 73 rulers of Kija Chosŏn and their periods of reign; however, it is not widely accepted by current Korean mainstream historians.

[[Wiman Joseon]] is said to begin with the usurpation of the throne from [[Jun of Gojoseon]] and the line of kings descended from Kija.

==Sin Chaeho's opinion==
[[Sin Chaeho]] said that Kija Chosŏn (323 BC-194 BC) refers to the putative period of [[Beonjoseon]], one of the [[Three Confederate States of Gojoseon]], after the Marquess of Joseon from the Gi clan was invaded by Yan as shown in the records of [[Weilüe]]. Chinese traditional accounts indicate that Gihu's ancestor, Kija, was the same person as Jizi (both written as 箕子 in [[Hanzi]]/[[Hanja]]).

According to [[Sin Chaeho]]'s [[Joseon Sangosa]], [[Beonjoseon]] began disintegrating after its king had been killed by a rebel from the Chinese state of [[Yan (state)|Yan]] at around 323 BC. With this, the five ministers of Beonjoseon began contending for the throne. Marquess of Chosŏn from the Gi clan joined in this struggle, and emerged victorious as the new king of Beonjoseon, defeating the competitors for the throne. He established Kija Chosŏn, named after his ancestor Kija.  During Kija Chosŏn, the king enjoyed strong sovereign powers. Eventually, in 94 BC, Kija Chosŏn fell after [[Jun of Gojoseon|King Jun]] was overthrown by [[Wiman of Gojoseon|Wiman]], who established [[Wiman Joseon]] in its place.

==Controversy on whether Kija and Jizi were the same person==
The Korean historian [[Kim Jung-bae]] claims that the association between Jizi and Joseon is wrong.<ref>{{Cite web |title=DBpia - 연구를 돕는 똑똑한 학술콘텐츠 플랫폼 |url=http://www.dbpia.co.kr/view/ar_view.asp?pid=694&isid=30674&arid=657709&topMenu=&topMenu1= |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201220113114/http://www.dbpia.co.kr/view/ar_view.asp?pid=694&isid=30674&arid=657709&topMenu=&topMenu1= |archive-date=20 December 2020 |access-date=23 August 2006}}</ref> He believed that the existence of Kija Chosŏn as a state established by Jizi was fabricated during Han dynasty. He further claims that the ''[[Bamboo Annals]]'', and [[Confucius]]'s ''[[Analects]]'', which was the earliest extant text that referred to Jizi, did not say anything about his going to Gojoseon.<ref>''[[Analects]]'', [[:zh:s:論語|vol. 18]].</ref> Similarly, the ''[[Records of the Grand Historian]]'', written soon after the [[Han conquest of Gojoseon|conquest of Wiman Joseon by the Han dynasty]], made no reference to Joseon in its discussions about Jizi<ref>''[[Records of the Grand Historian]]'', vols. [[:zh:s:史記/卷3|3]], [[:zh:s:史記/卷4|4]].</ref> and no reference to Jizi in its discussions about Joseon.<ref>''Records of the Grand Historian'', vol. [[:zh:s:史記/卷115|115]].</ref>

According to some sources, ancient Koreans claimed that Kija came from the [[Zhou dynasty]] but there is no archaeological evidence to support early involvement of the Chinese.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BZ8WAAAAQBAJ&q=gija+han+chinese&pg=PA100|title=Pre-Modern East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History, Volume I: To 1800|last1=Ebrey|first1=Patricia Buckley|last2=Walthall|first2=Anne|date=2013-01-01|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=9781285546230|language=en}}</ref>

==List of monarchs==
{{main article|List of Kija Chosŏn monarchs}}

==See also==
* [[History of Korea]]
* [[History of Manchuria]]
* [[Cheongju Han clan]]
* [[Haengju Ki clan]]
* [[Taewon Seonu clan]]
* [[Icheon Seo clan]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Gojoseon]]
[[Category:Kija Chosŏn]]
[[Category:Former countries in Korean history]]
[[Category:Former countries in Chinese history]]