Nationalism, Identity and Ideology in Korean and Korean Diasporic Textbooks

This book examines how Korean and Korean-related textbooks have contributed to the construction of nationalism, ideology, identity, memory, and belonging across diverse historical and geopolitical contexts.

Rather than treating textbooks as neutral teaching materials, it approaches them as cultural artefacts through which states, institutions, and diasporic communities transmit values, legitimise authority, organise cultural memory, and define collective identity. The chapters cover Japanese colonial Korea, the divided Korean Peninsula, representations of the Korean War, North Korean elementary education, South Korea’s textbooks for overseas Koreans, Chongryon schools in Japan, Korean-language textbooks for Thai students, and ethnic Korean education in China. Across these settings, the book shows how textbooks have promoted colonial assimilation, Cold War division, anti-communism, leader-centred devotion, cultural diplomacy, diasporic nationalism, soft power, and ethnic assimilation. By combining critical discourse analysis, visual analysis, comparative textbook studies, and theories of nationalism, this volume demonstrates how textbooks shape children’s understanding of history, authority, culture, citizenship, and belonging.

Highlighting the ideological importance of omissions, silences, and marginalised perspectives this will be valuable resource to students and scholars interested in the fields of education, nationalism, diaspora, language education, and East Asian studies.