KOREA FOUNDATION

The Korean Heritage Library (KHL) of the University of Southern California (USC) is a treasure trove of Korean Studies materials from pre-modern and modern times. Located in the center of Los Angeles in the United States, the KHL has, among other things, maps produced between the 17th and 19th centuries with the sea between Korea and Japan marked as “Sea of Korea,” photographs of early Korean immigrants to America, and the second edition of Mujeong (The Heartless), a novel by Yi Gwangsu, printed in 1922.
  The KHL was established in 1986 by the USC, which is widely known among Koreans as Namgaju Daehak (南加州大學). Since its founding, the KHL grew steadily thanks to support from USC graduates in Korea and the LA area, Korean-American associations, the KF, and other foundations and institutions. Holding over 100,000 books, it is now considered the best Korean Studies library in the entire United States. The KHL’s books take up nearly half of all the materials at the USC East Asian Library, which is quite extraordinary as Korean materials usually account for 5 to 10 percent of Asian collections at other American libraries.
  In addition to the various books, the KHL also stores a wide spectrum of audio-visual materials, including periodicals, videos and DVDs, microfilms, maps (including 180 rare items), and photographs. Particularly noteworthy is its digital archive that helps promote research among scholar and students by offering easy access to rare information and materials on Korea via the Internet.
  Among many major digital archives, the Sea of Korea Map Digital Archive contains 133 original maps produced worldwide between the 17th and 19th centuries that marked the East Sea as the “Sea of Korea.” These maps are utilized as essential materials for conducting related research. The Korean American Digital Archive holds over 4,000 documents, 3,000 photographs, and 80 audio recordings, with its volume steadily expanding. The records pertaining to the Korean National Association (KNA) formed in the US in 1909 are particularly important to the study of the Korean independence movement as well as Korean immigrant history. The twenty boxes’ worth of rare historical materials, discovered at the nearby KNA Memorial Foundation in 2002, have also been transferred to the USC KHL and are currently in the process of being scanned. Once completed, critical documents such as letters, official papers, reports, and minutes left by independence activists can be digitally accessed through the USC Digital Library.
  Furthermore, Peace Corps Korea Digital Archive, a collection of records on more than 2,000 US Peace Corps members who served in Korea from 1966 to 1981, will be disclosed in late June, and several more major archive projects are underway, including the George Drake Collection, a collection of materials on the Korean War orphans.
  The USC’s Korean Heritage Library is not only home to extensive materials but also serves as great help to researchers and scholars in other parts of the world. As the global recognition of, and interest in, Korean culture increases thanks to Hallyu, the Korean wave, the KHL will further strengthen its raison d’etre as the center of Korean Studies outside Korea for the foreseeable future.

Written by Park Miso

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