The modern countries of China, the two Koreas and Japan constitute East Asia. Korea and Japan share a protohistoric developmental trajectory that is dependent upon and considerably later than that of China. The Korean Peninsula has often been seen as a conduit for transferring the cultural advances and technological innovations of the Chinese mainland to the archipelagic rim of East Asia (Rhee et al. 2007), generating a communality of political philosophy, religion and administrative technology that characterised the early states in the region. In terms of the timing and sourcing of development, however, the peninsula and islands can be grouped together as a later-emerging Pen/Insular region against the earlier developing China Mainland.

The first section examines issues of technological development, political status and the implications of written documents for investigating complex society in the East Asia periphery. Second, we look at the archaeological evidence for complex social development, and finally the challenge of explaining state formation in Pen/Insular East Asia will be taken up.

Korea and Japan within Their East Asian Setting

Technological transfers from China and Northeast Asia

The Korean Peninsula and Japanese Islands were drawn into China’s sphere of influence from the late 2nd millennium bce (Fig 2.10.1). By this time, the first Bronze Age states had arisen in central China, though iron was not exploited until 800 bce. Between 2000 and 1000 bce the hunting-gathering-horticultural Chulmun and Jomon societies occupying the Pen/Insular region adopted millet farming and wet-rice agriculture emanating from China. Bronze technology, however, spread through the Korean Peninsula after 700 bce from the Scythian-influenced steppe region and melded with Chinese bronze traditions only after the introduction of iron from China c. 400 bce. Artifacts of these two metals were then introduced into the Japanese Islands together, following the adoption of rice agriculture also from the peninsula.