Admiral Yi Sun-sin’s wartime diary, Nanjung Ilgi, and records from the New Community Movement, Korea’s nationwide economic campaign that effectively propelled Korea from deep poverty to industrial growth spurt, were added to the list of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register at the 11th meeting of the International Advisory Committee to the UNESCO Memory of the World Program held in Gwangju on June 19th. With the latest addition of the two records, Korea now has eleven world heritage records in all. Nine previous entries were: the Hunminjeongeum transcript, which contains the promulgation of the Korean alphabet Hangeul by Sejong the Great; the annals of the Joseon Dynasty; Jikji simche yojeol, the world’s oldest movable metal type printing evidence available today; Donguibogam, Korea’s first comprehensive medical encyclopedia; archives for the May 18th democratic uprising against military dictatorship in Gwangju in 1980; Ilseongnok, a collection of King Jeongjo’s daily reflections; over 81 thousand printing woodblocks of the Tripitaka Koreana; Seungjeongwon Ilgi, a compilation of official court records of the Joseon Dynasty; and Uigwe, the royal protocols of the Joseon Dynasty.

Nanjung Ilgi, one of the two latest additions, was designated National Treasure No. 76 in 1976. Historians have long lauded its historical and academic significance. Here’s historian and classical scholar Roh Seung-seok to tell us more about it.

Nanjung Ilgi was written by Admiral Yi Sun-sin during the seven-year Japanese invasion, starting in 1592. Admiral Yi never named his war diary as Nanjung Ilgi. The title was given later during King Jeongjo’s reign, when the admiral’s biography was published. The diary contains detailed wartime plans and military conditions as well as daily occurrences at the naval bases.

Written by the legendary Admiral Yi, who fought off hundreds of enemy ships with only a handful of his own, Nanjung Ilgi was written from 1592, at the start of the war, until November 17, 1598, just two days before he was killed in action. Kept for over roughly 2,300 days and containing 130 thousand characters, Nanjung Ilgi is the only war record in the world compiled during a war by the then-highest naval commanding officer.

During war it’s hard enough fighting against enemy forces, but to keep a diary while arrows and bullets whizzed overhead is incredibly difficult. And just imagine the highest commanding officer writing it personally while leading his ships and troops in battle. Such a case is found nowhere in the world and UNESCO recognizes its value, which is why it’s been named a memory of the world.

The existence of Nanjung Ilgi was first known in 1792, the sixth year of King Jeongjo’s reign, 200 years after the end of the 1592 Japanese invasion. King Jeongjo gave Admiral Yi Sun-sin the posthumous title of prime minister and compiled the admiral’s writing into Nanjung Ilgi.



Originally there were eight volumes written over seven years. But in one year he wrote two volumes and the original diary written in another year got lost. So there are only seven volumes, but the amount of those volumes is staggering. Of course Admiral Yi could not write an entry every day, because he was sometimes engaged in a fierce battle or kept from writing when he was jailed for the false charge of treason.

The seven-volume Nanjung Ilgi is now stored in Hyeonchung Temple in Asan, South Chungcheong Province. Thanks to Admiral Yi’s descendents, the 400-year-old records are well preserved for everyone to see. It is said that during Japanese occupation of Korea a member of the Japanese imperial family demanded the Yi family to turn over the diary, but the admiral’s 13th direct descendent vehemently refused, keeping the record within the family. Also, the records reportedly remain vivid and undamaged, because the admiral ground an ink stick himself and wrote on the Korean traditional paper hanji, which prevented their discoloration.

Writings on hanji tend to last a long time, for hundreds of years. If well maintained, they may well last for over thousand years. The diary is in great condition, very well preserved. The volumes may be more than 400 years old, but they have been preserved well. Although there are some damages, they are remarkably well maintained overall.

Hanji is called “the millennial paper” for its natural humidity control feature and high resilience. Although Nanjung Ilgi is known as a war diary, Admiral Yi began writing it three months before the war erupted, from January 1592. Nobody had foreseen a war at the time, but the admiral had the insight to prepare for a possible conflict. Here’s historian and classical scholar Roh Seung-seok to tell us more.

Admiral Yi Sun-sin was a stickler for readiness. The war actually erupted on April 13, 1592, but the diary actually begins on January 1 of that year. This suggests that he was getting ready for a massive invasion.

Nanjung Ilgi’s entries vividly describe how fierce the naval combats were. There are detailed and realistic descriptions of war, such as “the arrows were pouring down like rain,” “there were countless casualties,” “the gunshots sounded like thunder,” and “a plague killed off civilians and soldiers.” There is also a famous passage in which Admiral Yi urged his troops not to fear death ahead of a major battle at the Myeongnyang Strait.

September 15, 1592. Sunny. I called my officials and told them that “you will live if you only look to die, and you will die if you only look to live” and “one person defending a strategic point would frighten a thousand men.” I told them not to hope for life.

Perhaps Admiral Yi’s resoluteness ahead of the Myeongnyang battle helped rally his officials and troops and defeat 133 Japanese ships with only 13 vessels, recording one of the greatest victories in the world’s naval history. Nanjung Ilgi contains not only wartime records, but also Admiral Yi’s inner thoughts. Several passages in the diary showed his human side, like how he missed his mother.

It’s June 2, 1592, my mother’s birthday. But subduing the enemies prevents me from giving her a congratulatory toast. It’s going to haunt me for the rest of my life.



Admiral Yi’s affection and concern for his mother are quite noticeable throughout the diary. He was a steadfast patriot and a devoted son to his parents at the same time. Even during the war he would send a messenger to check up on his mother and if she became ill, he would cry all night long, tormented by worries for her well-being. I think his devotion to his parents drove him to be victorious.

Nanjung Ilgi is a priceless historical record, for it provides up close and personal accounts of war as well as a glimpse into the legendary admiral’s intimate thoughts.

Joining Nanjung Ilgi in the list of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register is the archives of the New Community Movement, also known as Saemaul Movement. Here’s President Lim Jong-hwan of the Korea Saemaul Undong Center.

The New Community Movement was a movement to have a good life, but it was for the entire community, not for just myself. The movement was launched in April 1970, but it was a year later when the campaign caught on in the rural areas. The movement was driven by the desire to escape poverty, especially in the rural communities.

Korea had finally gained independence from Japanese colonial rule in 1945, but the ensuing division of the country and the Korean War had left the entire nation in abject poverty. That’s when the nationwide movement was launched.

The movement began in earnest in 1971, with the government galvanizing the whole nation. The government supplied, free of charge, 335 bags of cement to each one of some 3,000 villages all over the nation. That was what sparked the nationwide campaign and the improvement of rural communities.

The movement motivated Koreans to improve their living conditions and quality of life. Empowered by the can-do spirit, Koreans were more than willing to work and boost their income. Here’s President Lim Jong-hwan of the Korea Saemaul Undong Center again.

Just improving the community environment can only do so much. There had to be a substantial increase in income. Most Koreans at the time were barley and rice farmers, but since the start of the movement, they started raising other specialty produce. One of the most revolutionary changes was that greenhouses allowed farmers to supply fresh produce even in the middle of winter. Other income sources like livestock farming and silkworm farming thrived and the income of rural communities started to overtake that of urban areas in 1974. That’s how much income boost the rural villages enjoyed back then.

New awareness programs were included in the New Community Movement to change rural Koreans’ mindset, which resignedly accepted poverty as their fate. Under the pitch of diligence, self-help, and cooperation, the New Community Movement gave hope to Koreans that they could escape poverty. Here’s President Lim Jong-hwan of the Korea Saemaul Undong Center.



It was a movement to change people’s way of thinking. The New Community Movement instilled the spirit of diligence, self-help, and cooperation into ordinary Koreans. Women played a vital role in the whole program. They saved rice and money, which was used to fund community projects. Women were the ones who eradicated excessive drinking and gambling from their communities. Other community projects included sewage facility constructions and waste collection and recycling.

The government and the people came together to wipe out poverty. The New Community Movement was the engine that powered Korea’s modernization and amazing economic growth.

The archive of the New Community Movement consists of the materials gathered from 1970 to 1979. Since the materials cover a whole decade, the archive is quite extensive.

Most of the documents were compiled by government agencies. There are six types of documents. The records from the office of president’s chief of staff include President Park Chung-hee’s hand-written notes, speeches, and reports, totaling 288 items. There are also materials from the central and local government agencies, including publicity films and photos. Civic groups and corporations had 160 pieces of letters and certificates, and community centers had village charters, meeting minutes, business plans and project records. Other documents included letters from the movement leaders, educational materials, lecture tapings, and certificates of program completion.

UNESCO approved of the New Community Movement archive’s inscription into the Memory of the World Register, because UNESCO recognized that the movement could provide hope to the poverty-stricken countries in Africa. For this reason, the leaders of underdeveloped countries visit Korea to learn more about the movement.

The developing nations’ response to the New Community Movement is amazing. So far roughly 55 thousand people from 132 nations have come to learn about the movement. More recently presidents and high-ranking officials from Myanmar and Uganda visited the Korea Saemaul Undong Center to discuss the ways to cooperate. As a result, the New Community Movement programs are well underway in eight countries – Mongolia, Nepal, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Uganda, and Tanzania.

With the latest additions, Korea now has the most inscriptions to the Memory of the World Register in Asia and fifth most in the world. This suggests that Korea values its ancient documentary heritage and strives to protect and preserve it for posterity.