About the Journal

The Journal of Korean Studies (JKS) is the preeminent journal in its field, publishing articles in all disciplines on a broad range of topics concerning Korea, both historical and contemporary. JKS plays a defining role in the field of Korean studies by encouraging high-quality scholarly discussions that contribute to the field.

Korean studies is a dynamic field, and Korea’s increasing importance in the world has sparked interest well beyond those whose academic work focuses on the region. Korean studies is more than the study of a place; it is an evolving concept shaped out of Korea’s complex postcolonial history and positionality as a divided nation. To that end, JKS encourages essays that engage in broader theoretical and methodological questions that have ramifications in the field of Korean studies and beyond. The journal especially welcomes essays that consider novel transnational and interdisciplinary approaches to scholarship that demonstrate the value of this region in East Asia and the world.

Recent topics of general and special issues in the journal include the lived experience of Protestant Christianity in contemporary Korea; the practice of writing and archiving history in Premodern Korea; science and literature in North and South Korea; the Chinese diaspora in North Korea; and LGBTI life in contemporary South Korea. Contributors include scholars conducting transnational work on the Asia-Pacific region as well as on relevant topics throughout the global Korean diaspora.

JKS publishes two issues a year. The journal features general essays, special issues, forums, and book reviews.

The Journal of Korean Studies is based at the George Washington University.