Professor Chung ByungJun Receives the 22nd Independence Hall of Korea Academic Award N
- 작성처
- Date2026.08.25
- 165
Professor Chung ByungJun of the Department of History received the 22nd Independence Hall of Korea Academic Award at the ceremony commemorating the 81st anniversary of Korea’s Liberation Day, held at the Independence Hall of Korea on Saturday, August 15.
The Independence Hall of Korea Academic Award was established in 2005 to encourage and promote research on the history of Korea’s independence movement and to inspire researchers in the field. Each year, in conjunction with Liberation Day, the award recognizes one outstanding publication in the field of independence movement history. This year, Professor Chung ByungJun’s three-volume work, Kim KyuSik and His Times, was selected as the award-winning publication in recognition of its outstanding academic value and contribution to the field of independence movement studies.
<Kim KyuSik and His Times> is a monumental work that vividly reconstructs the development of Korea’s independence movement and the broader trajectory of modern and contemporary Korean history through the life of Kim KyuSik, an independence activist and diplomat. Based on extensive historical sources and meticulous research, the work revisits Kim KyuSik’s activities, from his diplomatic efforts at the Paris Peace Conference to his involvement with the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, his anti-Japanese struggle in China, the development of international diplomacy, and the liberation of Korea. The work has been recognized for broadening the horizons of research on the history of Korea’s independence movement and deepening the study of the period. Going beyond a biography of a single individual, it offers a new interpretation of the history of the independence movement and modern Korean history, while presenting historical significance to be remembered on the 80th anniversary of Korea’s liberation and reflections for the future. The work was also selected as one of the Outstanding Academic Books of 2026 by the National Academy of Sciences, Republic of Korea.
Professor Chung is a leading historian who has examined key issues in modern Korean history from structural and international perspectives based on extensive analyses of primary historical sources. He has continuously published acclaimed works, including A Biography of Mongyang Yeo WoonHyung, A Study of Unam Rhee Syngman, The Korean War, Dokdo 1947, Hyun Alice and Her Times, and A History of Korea Immediately after Liberation in 1945. He has received prestigious academic awards, including the Ewha Academic Award (2026), the Korean Publishing Culture Award (2007, 2015), and the Wolbong Book Award (2011). Through the discovery of rare historical sources overseas, he has expanded the horizons of research on modern Korean history and played a pivotal role in the Korean historical studies community. He has also contributed to the dissemination of academic achievements and the development of the research community through the popularization of the humanities via mass media and his editorial work for academic journals.