To Japanese people “The Hare of Inaba” is a well known tale, which was recorded in Kojiki, the eighth century records of Japan. Many early researchers had presumed that the tale had come from Korean peninsular but found no evidence whereof. However, since the same tale was found in Odongdo of Yeosu, the theory of introducing from Korea began to gain momentum. Owing to the discovery this article aims to find out the transmitter of the narrative, its transmittee group for investigating the transmission time, and the group's connection with ancient Korea. The results presumed that the group which brought the tale from Korea to Japan must be Haji family of old Japanese. That is because the background of hare tale was the family's seigneury, because Haji family members considered themselves as the transmittees of the hare tale, and because some descendents of the family has the name of Haji-Usagi ((土師兎); Haji-Hare). Moreover, Haji clan orginated from Izumo, which had a close relationship with cultures of Gaya and Shilla of ancient Korea, and ruled the Tottori area as a power group. Especially, the clan as a professional group was entitled to build keyhole-shaped tombs, which were distributed in the Japanese Islands and southern Korea, and create Haniwa (埴輪; terracotta clay figures). As shown in the distribution of keyhole-shaped tombs inside the Korean peninsula, Haji clan maintained a close relationship with southern Korea including Odongdo of Yeosu. It can be presumed that the hare tale was imported from southern Korea to Japan by the clan and inserted into the legend of Ohokuninushi. Thus the hare tale of Kojiki holds a great significance in the history of Korea-Japan relations as a valuable cultural asset.
동북아시아문화학회 [The Association of North-east Asian Cultures]
설립연도
2000
분야
복합학>학제간연구
소개
동북아시아 문화의 다양성과 정체성을 연구 토론하고, 지역내 문화 교류의 다양한 모습을 연구하고 문화변동의 큰 틀을 집적함으로써 우리 민족 문화 및 상대 민족의 문화적 터전을 이해하여 문화공동체적 특성을 계발하고 상호 관련성의 강화를 유도하는 학술활동을 통해 동북아시아의 문화발전에 이바지함.