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Koreans in Japan
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Koreans in Japan
Koreans in Japan (在日韓国人・在日本朝鮮人・朝鮮人, Zainichi Kankokujin/Zainihon Chōsenjin/Chōsenjin) (Korean: 재일 한국/조선인) are ethnic Koreans who immigrated to Japan before 1945 and are citizens or permanent residents of Japan, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South Korean nationals who have immigrated to Japan since the end of World War II and the division of Korea.
They currently constitute the third largest ethnic minority group in Japan after Chinese immigrants. Their population declined significantly due to death, returning to Korea, and assimilating into the general Japanese population. The majority of Koreans in Japan are Zainichi Koreans (在日韓国・朝鮮人, Zainichi Kankoku/Chōsenjin), often known simply as Zainichi (在日; lit. 'in Japan'), who are ethnic Korean permanent residents of Japan. The term Zainichi Korean refers only to long-term Korean residents of Japan who trace their roots to Korea under Japanese rule, distinguishing them from the later wave of Korean migrants who came mostly in the 1980s, and from pre-modern immigrants dating back to antiquity who constituted the biggest ancestral group of the Japanese people.
The Japanese word "Zainichi" itself means a foreign citizen "staying in Japan", and implies temporary residence. Nevertheless, the term "Zainichi Korean" is used to describe settled permanent residents of Japan, both those who have retained their Joseon or North Korean/South Korean nationalities, and even sometimes includes Japanese citizens of Korean descent who acquired Japanese nationality by naturalization or by birth from one or both parents who have Japanese citizenship.
According to the Ministry of Justice, 409,238 South Koreans and 23,206 North Koreans (朝鮮人, Chōsen-jin; meaning Koreans in Japanese) were registered as permanent or non-permanent residents of Japan in 2024. Below, two statistics on the numbers of foreign residents living in Japan are displayed, one map and one chart:
The modern flow of Koreans to Japan started with the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1876 and increased dramatically after 1920. During World War II, a large number of Koreans were also conscripted by Japan. Another wave of migration started after South Korea was devastated by the Korean War in the 1950s. Also noteworthy was the large number of refugees from the massacres on Jeju Island by the South Korean government.
Statistics regarding Zainichi immigration are scarce. However, in 1988, a Mindan youth group called Zainihon Daikan Minkoku Seinendan (Korean: 재일본대한민국청년회, Japanese: 在日本大韓民国青年会) published a report titled, "Father, tell us about that day. Report to reclaim our history" (Japanese: アボジ聞かせて あの日のことを—我々の歴史を取り戻す運動報告書). The report included a survey of first-generation Koreans' reasons for immigration. The result was 13.3% for conscription, 39.6% for economics, 17.3% for marriage and family, 9.5% for study/academic, 20.2% for other reasons and 0.2% unknown. The survey excluded those who were under 12 when they arrived in Japan.
While some families can currently trace their ancestry back to pre-modern Korean immigrants, many families were absorbed into Japanese society and as a result, they are not considered a distinct group. The same is applicable to those families which are descended from Koreans who entered Japan in subsequent periods of pre-modern Japanese history. Trade with Korea continued to modern times, with Japan also periodically receiving missions from Korea, though this activity was often limited to specific ports.
In late prehistory, in the Iron Age Yayoi period (300 BCE to 300 CE), Japanese culture showed[clarify] some Korean influence, though whether this was accompanied by immigration from Korea is debated (see Origin of the Yayoi people).
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Koreans in Japan
Koreans in Japan (在日韓国人・在日本朝鮮人・朝鮮人, Zainichi Kankokujin/Zainihon Chōsenjin/Chōsenjin) (Korean: 재일 한국/조선인) are ethnic Koreans who immigrated to Japan before 1945 and are citizens or permanent residents of Japan, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South Korean nationals who have immigrated to Japan since the end of World War II and the division of Korea.
They currently constitute the third largest ethnic minority group in Japan after Chinese immigrants. Their population declined significantly due to death, returning to Korea, and assimilating into the general Japanese population. The majority of Koreans in Japan are Zainichi Koreans (在日韓国・朝鮮人, Zainichi Kankoku/Chōsenjin), often known simply as Zainichi (在日; lit. 'in Japan'), who are ethnic Korean permanent residents of Japan. The term Zainichi Korean refers only to long-term Korean residents of Japan who trace their roots to Korea under Japanese rule, distinguishing them from the later wave of Korean migrants who came mostly in the 1980s, and from pre-modern immigrants dating back to antiquity who constituted the biggest ancestral group of the Japanese people.
The Japanese word "Zainichi" itself means a foreign citizen "staying in Japan", and implies temporary residence. Nevertheless, the term "Zainichi Korean" is used to describe settled permanent residents of Japan, both those who have retained their Joseon or North Korean/South Korean nationalities, and even sometimes includes Japanese citizens of Korean descent who acquired Japanese nationality by naturalization or by birth from one or both parents who have Japanese citizenship.
According to the Ministry of Justice, 409,238 South Koreans and 23,206 North Koreans (朝鮮人, Chōsen-jin; meaning Koreans in Japanese) were registered as permanent or non-permanent residents of Japan in 2024. Below, two statistics on the numbers of foreign residents living in Japan are displayed, one map and one chart:
The modern flow of Koreans to Japan started with the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1876 and increased dramatically after 1920. During World War II, a large number of Koreans were also conscripted by Japan. Another wave of migration started after South Korea was devastated by the Korean War in the 1950s. Also noteworthy was the large number of refugees from the massacres on Jeju Island by the South Korean government.
Statistics regarding Zainichi immigration are scarce. However, in 1988, a Mindan youth group called Zainihon Daikan Minkoku Seinendan (Korean: 재일본대한민국청년회, Japanese: 在日本大韓民国青年会) published a report titled, "Father, tell us about that day. Report to reclaim our history" (Japanese: アボジ聞かせて あの日のことを—我々の歴史を取り戻す運動報告書). The report included a survey of first-generation Koreans' reasons for immigration. The result was 13.3% for conscription, 39.6% for economics, 17.3% for marriage and family, 9.5% for study/academic, 20.2% for other reasons and 0.2% unknown. The survey excluded those who were under 12 when they arrived in Japan.
While some families can currently trace their ancestry back to pre-modern Korean immigrants, many families were absorbed into Japanese society and as a result, they are not considered a distinct group. The same is applicable to those families which are descended from Koreans who entered Japan in subsequent periods of pre-modern Japanese history. Trade with Korea continued to modern times, with Japan also periodically receiving missions from Korea, though this activity was often limited to specific ports.
In late prehistory, in the Iron Age Yayoi period (300 BCE to 300 CE), Japanese culture showed[clarify] some Korean influence, though whether this was accompanied by immigration from Korea is debated (see Origin of the Yayoi people).
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