한국의 지중해지역 연구동향과 쟁점

Abstract

The proper recognition of mainstream Mediterranean studies in Korea must be based on the analysis of articles dealing with Mediterranean studies. In this regard, 327 articles from 1999 to 2015 in the Journal of Mediterranean Area Studies, published quarterly by the Institute for Mediterranean Studies (IMS), have been analyzed along with the region/nation and the specific theme. The data are very appropriate for understanding the research tendencies of Mediterranean studies in Korea. Accordingly, it was found that studies of the Middle East and other Arabic regions, including North Africa, outnumber studies of the Western Mediterranean region, and literary and linguistic studies were significantly more common that the other specific themes in Mediterranean studies in Korea. Above all, Mediterranean studies in Korea are inquired and investigated from the standpoint of the Area Studies paradigm based on the concepts, etymology, scopes, and historical background of the Mediterranean area. In that regard, a study of the oceanographic features of the Mediterranean Sea in the Yellow Sea, a channel for political, cultural, and economic exchanges in ancient East Asia, would be a brilliant example of Mediterranean studies that could be extended to cultural exchanges theory in Korea.