FACTS AND MYTHS ABOUT KOREA'S ECONOMIC PAST

The orthodoxy in South and North Korean historiography states that Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910 wrought havoc on indigenous economic development and started an era of exploitation lasting until 1945. Recent studies show the claim to be based less upon facts than upon Marxist dogma and nationalist sentiment. During the nineteenth century, Korea was not on the verge of modern economic growth, but in demographic and economic decline. Living standards improved and industrialisation occurred in the context of rapid population growth during the colonial period due to transfer of capital and advanced technology from Japan.