Korean patriotism yesterday and today

Kang Miongsei

Research Fellow, 

The Sejong Institute

(miongsei@sejong.org)​ 

South Korea, which experienced the abyss of colonial rule in the early 20th century, has suffered severe trauma, including its forced occupation by Japan in the early 20th century. Liberation soon resulted in division, which led to the Civil War, or the Korean War, which caused the greatest suffering to Koreans. The colonial experience encouraged anti-Japanese sentiment through the March 1 Independence Movement every year. This is a textbook analysis of history. However, the eyes of the elite and the public are not necessarily directed in the same direction. According to empirical research, it is not easy for the general public to sympathize with the patriotism of the elite due to the busyness of everyday life. As history shows, the public and the elite have different interests. Democracy would not have developed if the will of the elites and the public were in agreement. Democracy develops when the general public can control the governance of the elite. As shown in |Figure 1|, one's pride of one's country is not consistent but changes over time, with a significant difference of more than 10 percentage points.

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As public patriotism plays an important role in a democratic system, a deep understanding of it is needed. If the idea of being proud of one's country varies depending on generation, class, and social identity, it is necessary to discuss how different it is and whether the change has occurred. In 2004, it was only 65 percent, the lowest among records, and the highest was over 75 percent in 2013. It rose sharply during the early days of the Park Geun Hye administration but soon fell. In 2018, during the Moon Jae In administration, it exceeded 72 percent but fell slightly in 2021. According to a Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES) survey conducted between 2018 and 2021, the proportion of citizens in China, Japan, and Hong Kong who were proud of their country was 85%, 62%, and 55%, respectively. Furthermore, as the fascism of Germany in the last century illustrates, excessive nationalism can lead to exclusivity, so this must be cautioned.

Citizens' patriotism is found not only in history, culture, tradition, and politics but also in sports as emotional solidarity. Patriotism is an attachment to the nation and its people that springs from nationalism. Without patriotism, trust among the members cannot be expected. This is because trust is based on future-oriented and cooperative expectations. In Europe, social scientists have been conducting surveys on patriotism since 1981 through the World Value Survey (WVS). The Korea Comprehensive Social Survey (KGSS) is the only survey that has continuously investigated the pride and patriotism of Koreans in Korea. The survey on self-esteem was conducted from the beginning of 2003 to 2021, and the 2021 survey was recently released.

There is a big difference in pride in each generation. |Figure 2| shows the pride of 2003 and 2021, which was most recently released, at a relatively level. Those in their 60s and older accounted for 88.8 percent to 90.9 percent between 2003 and 2021, making little difference. The biggest difference is seen in those under 40 years of age. The biggest change occurred in groups between the ages of 18 and 29. In 2003, 68.7 percent said they were "proud" or "very proud," but 86.0 percent said so in 2021. It increased by about 15.3 percentage points. Those in their 40s also increased by 14 percentage points from 70.5 percent to 84.8 percent. Thus, as |Figure 2| shows, the overall attitude of pride has increased.

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Despite the recent political polarization, fortunately, Koreans have a strong sense of pride in their country regardless of their political ideology. As the history of Western democracy shows, patriotism and nationalism have historically been the exclusive property of conservatism. This point is clearly expressed in the slogan "Workers of the world, unite" which was pushed by socialism. Material affluence is an important background that makes the nation proud. Economic growth has contributed to enhancing Korea's international status, which would have once again affected Koreans' pride. Due to economic growth, per capita income in 2003 was $25,634 in US dollars in 2015, but increased 61.2% to $41,369 in 2020. The attitude of progressive individuals to be proud of the country has increased significantly. Only 70.4% of them said they were proud of the country in 2003, but the 2021 survey increased by 25 percentage points to 95.0%. On the other hand, that of conservatives increased by about 10 percentage points from 79.7 percent to 89.0 percent, and the middle class also increased by 83.8 percent from 78.8 percent. The fact that Koreans share national pride regardless of their political tendencies shows that Koreans have a special sense of ethnicity. The proud attitude had nothing to do with the regionalism that formed the political identity of Koreans. Compared to the entire period from 2003 to 2021, Jeolla Province has 92 percent pride, but this is no different from 90 percent of Yeongnam. Considering the polarization of support for candidates in the Yeongnam and Honam regions as shown in the presidential election process, it is one consolation in the situation Koreans' unwavering love for their country is a strong potential to unite externally despite political conflicts. Compared to 2003, as seen in the comparison of the 2021 survey, the gap due to subjective ideology decreased and the gap between generations decreased significantly. Korean patriotism is a ray of hope from gloomy politics, but they should be wary of excessive development into an exclusive nationalism. In that the number of foreign workers is expected to increase continuously due to the labor shortage, a favorable impression of Koreans should not lead to hostility toward them. This is an unofficial translation of the original paper by Jisoo Kim jkim@sejong.org which was written in Korean. All references should be made to the original paper.

※ This article is written based on the author’s personal opinions and does not reflect the views of the Sejong Institute. ​

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