Opening remarks
A message of condolence

Introduction: The Gap in Research on Civilization Exchange

Chapter 1: East-West Geopolitical Concepts
medieval concept / modern concept

Chapter 2: Origins of Differences Between East and West
Natural environmental origins of East-West differences / Archaeological origins of East-West differences / Socioeconomic origins of East-West differences / Value origins of East-West differences

Chapter 3: The Concept of Civilization
Definition of Civilization / Attributes of Civilization / Civilization and Culture / Understanding Heterogeneous Civilizations

Chapter 4: Modern Civilization Discourse
The Rise of Civilization Discourse / Theory of Civilization Evolution / Theory of Civilization Migration / Theory of Civilization Cycle

Chapter 5: Modern Civilization Discourse
Orientalism / Clash of Civilizations / Coexistence of Civilizations

Chapter 6: The Concept and Development of Civilization Exchange
The Concept and Origin of Civilization Exchange / A Brief History of Civilization Exchange

Chapter 7: Historical Background of Inter-Civilization Exchange
Political and historical background of civilization exchange / Military and historical background of civilization exchange / Economic and historical background of civilization exchange / Ethnic and historical background of civilization exchange / Transportation and historical background of civilization exchange

Chapter 8: Intercultural Exchange and Civilization Spheres
The concept of civilization / 'quasi-civilization' of nomadic horse-riding peoples / Latin American civilization / African civilization / European civilization / Northern European (Victorian) civilization / Asian civilization / Islamic civilization / East Asian civilization

Chapter 9: The Justification for Civilization Exchange and Civilization Contact
The necessity of cultural exchange / The process of cultural exchange and contact

Chapter 10: The Silk Road, a Channel for Civilization Exchange
Understanding the Silk Road / The Grassland Road / The Oasis Road / Sea Routes / Exploring the Concept of the Belt and Road Initiative

Chapter 11: Opening up trans-Global sea routes
A Three-Way Approach to Columbus's Journey / Medieval Navigator and Pioneer Zheng He's "Lower Ocean" / Magellan and Elcano's "Around the World" / The Panama Canal Connecting the Lungs of the Earth / Heyerdahl's Three-Ocean Raft Tour

Chapter 12: The Silk Road and the Korean Peninsula
Restoring the Silk Road to the Korean Peninsula / The Road That Rooted the Korean People / The Road That Connected the World / The Road That Raised the Status of the Korean People

Chapter 13: The History of Civilization Exchange: The Sages Who Were Countless
Hyecho, the first world of the East Sea / Go Seonji, the 'master of the Pamirs, the roof of the world'

Chapter 14: Universal Civilization
Western universal civilization / global universal civilization

Chapter 15: Academic Establishment of Civilization Exchange Studies
The Urgency of Establishing Intercultural Studies / The Academic Genealogy of Intercultural Studies / The Contents of Intercultural Studies / Research Methods of Intercultural Studies / Academic Characteristics of Intercultural Studies

Concluding Remarks: "Alternative Civilization" and Predictions of the Future
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How Eastern and Western civilizations differed, and how similar they were.

In a broad sense, this book focuses on understanding the concept of civilization based on commonality (Chapters 1-5) and the concept of civilization exchange based on difference (Chapters 6-13), and provides an overview of the direction and content of civilization exchange studies (Chapters 14-15).
First, we examine the geopolitical concepts of 'East' and 'West' (Chapter 1), and then explore the origins of how the civilizations created by Easterners and Westerners, who are biologically the same species, began to diverge from each other, and why this inevitably occurred (Chapter 2).
The author seeks the answer to this question in various historical sources, including the original natural environment, archaeological origins, socioeconomic origins, and value-based origins. In particular, in the value-based origins, he reveals the origin of differences through comparison and contrast between Eastern and Western values ​​and philosophies.

The author, who views civilization as the sum total of results created through human physical and mental labor, added the attribute of sharedness to the prevailing academic view that only spontaneity and imitation are the attributes of civilization.
And he presents the view that civilization and culture are not hierarchical or step-by-step relationships, but rather comprehensive relationships between totality and individuality, complexity and unity, inwardness and outwardness, and products and materials.
In short, culture is the individual element that constitutes civilization, and civilization is its external appearance. (Chapter 3)

The Beginning and Development of Civilization Studies: Modern and Contemporary Discourse on Civilization and Its Limitations

In the mid-19th century, Herbert Spencer and L. Morgan
H. Morgan), Tyler (E.
It originated from the 'theory of civilization evolution' put forward by B. Tylor and others, and was developed by Smith (Grafton E.
The 'Civilization Migration Theory' proposed by Smith and William James Perry, and A. Toynbee in the first half of the 20th century.
Examining the modern civilization discourse that leads to the 'circle of civilization' advocated by J. Toynbee, the author affirms the creativity of those discourses while also pointing out their limitations (Chapter 4).
First, regarding the theory of civilization evolution, we point out the blind spots of the so-called theory of unilinear evolution of civilization, which states that inanimate civilizations evolve like living things or that civilizations evolve along the same line (stage).
He then criticizes the theory of migration of civilizations, arguing that although civilizations are constantly moving, this is never a one-way movement, but rather a mutual movement, that is, an exchange.

Toynbee, the British historian of civilization who received the most attention in the modern civilization discourse, presented a unique view of civilization history that examines world history from a comparative civilizational perspective.
The so-called 'challenge and response principle' states that civilization can only be born and grow if it successfully responds to challenges from an unfavorable environment.
According to this principle, the explanation that civilization goes through a four-stage cycle of birth, growth, collapse, and disintegration is the so-called civilization cycle theory.
Based on this cyclical theory, he classified the 30 civilizations created by mankind into 21 growth civilizations, 5 stagnant civilizations, and 4 legacy civilizations.
However, the author points out Toynbee's limitations, saying that his explanation of the flow of great world history with a simple dogmatic logic of a cycle of challenge and response is nothing more than a kind of speculative philosophy of history, and that he is criticized for his overestimation of the role of the creative minority (leaders or heroes) and his claim that a disintegrating civilization can be saved by the 'law of God', which is clearly an idealistic view of history.

The author then explains that the Cold War ended in the late 20th century, but contrary to human expectations, a new type of international conflict arose again, and that a discourse on modern civilization suddenly emerged with almost no traditional research base, and as a representative example, he points out Edward W. Said, who criticized the West's hegemonic way of thinking about the East.
Said's 'Orientalism', and Huntington's (Samuel P.
We examine the ‘clash of civilizations’ theory of Huntington and the ‘coexistence of civilizations’ theory of Harald Muller, which emerged as a direct criticism of it (Chapter 5).
However, since these discourses on civilization were primarily conducted by political scientists rather than civilization researchers, their main content focused on the study of political fields such as law, power, conflict, and justice, and not only did they have little to do with understanding civilization itself, but even when they mentioned coexistence or harmony among civilizations, they ignored exchange, which is the basic means and means of realizing it.
The author particularly criticizes Huntington for reducing the complex concept of civilization to a simple value system (mainly religion), for mistaking differences between civilizations for inherent "clashes" between civilizations, and for fatalizing global conflict.

How did the exchange of civilizations begin?

According to the author's definition, cultural exchange is an act of exchanging the different results obtained by humans through mental and physical labor based on the principles of mutual benefit and gratuitous communication. Regardless of the discourse on civilization that began late in the 18th century, it has continued since before the age of civilization (Chapter 6).
In academic circles, the prevailing view is that early primitive civilizations migrated and spread when long-distance migration of humans began in the Late Paleolithic Age (12,000-35,000 years ago).
The relics presented as proof are Venus statues excavated from 19 locations in 7 European regions. These late Paleolithic artifacts, made 12,000 to 25,000 years ago, are known as true relics of early civilization exchange, having left traces from Eastern Europe through Siberia to China's Hongshan culture.
The cultural exchange that began in this way has made great strides in four stages: the embryonic period (approximately 30,000 years ago, the Late Paleolithic Age) when long-distance migration of mankind began; the dawn period (10,000 years ago, the Holocene) when traces of the Silk Road as an early channel of cultural exchange were left; the development period (around the turn of the Common Era to the mid-18th century) when exchanges took place between China's Han and Tang dynasties and the Roman and Islamic empires; and the enlightenment period (18th century to the present) when active exchanges took place due to the use of machine power, the Industrial Revolution, and colonial development, leading to today's New Silk Road.

The author examines the historical background of the cultural exchanges that took place during the development and enlightenment periods, dividing them into several parts.
That is, the political historical background such as political strategy or colonization, the military historical background such as military conquest, the economic historical background centered on trade, the cultural historical background including the spread of science and technology, the national historical background such as ethnic migration or pan-national acceptance, the human and exchange historical background led by exchangers, and the transportation historical background due to changes in transportation means.
It shows that the rise and fall of civilizational exchanges depend on the three-dimensional historical background of these events (Chapter 7).

The author, who also emphasizes that the exchange of civilizations is essentially an act of sharing and communicating between different civilizations, believes that one of the most important problems in modern civilization discourse is the lack of commonality between the concept of civilization and the standards (conditions) for establishing civilizations.
Here, the author directly defines a civilization as “a historical and geographical category of civilization formed through the transmission or spread of civilization and encompassing several countries, ethnic groups, and regions that share common civilizational elements” (p. 274), and lists three criteria for establishing a civilizational sphere: 1) uniqueness (difference) of civilizational elements, 2) guaranteeing the civilization’s timeliness and regionality, and 3) maintaining the vitality of civilization.
And based on this standard, eight civilizations are set up as examples and described, including the 'quasi-civilization zone' of nomadic horse-riding peoples, Latin American civilization zone, African civilization zone, European civilization zone, Northern European (Victorian) civilization zone, Asian civilization zone, Islamic civilization zone, and East Asian civilization zone.
In particular, this book incorporates the historical relics, artifacts, and literature collected over the past decade from the Bik civilization, which has been completely ignored until now, into its academic context (Chapter 8).

From the Eurasian Silk Road to global civilization exchange

Civilization inevitably requires mutual exchange due to its transmissibility and receptivity, which arise from its fundamental property of imitation.
Moreover, the exchange of civilizations is guaranteed by the universality and individuality that arise from the spontaneity, another fundamental attribute of civilization.
Since humanity has always desired to share a civilization based on universality, the exchange of civilizations can be a shortcut to forming such universality. In addition, individuality conditions the heterogeneity between civilizations and thus becomes a crucial prerequisite for the exchange of civilizations.
The author argues for the legitimacy of this cultural exchange, which stems from the very nature of civilization. He argues that the crucial aspects of cultural exchange are the acculturation phenomena—fusion, deliquescence, and assimilation—that determine the nature and outcome of the exchange. He argues that these phenomena must be closely observed, linked to reality, and accurately understood for their implications (Chapter 9).

Civilization is a structured entity, yet at the same time, a living organism that is constantly changing and moving. The process of spatial change and movement is exchange, and we call this exchange route of human civilization the 'Silk Road'.
The author examines the expansion process of the Silk Road concept, which began as an oasis land route and expanded globally, and deals in detail with the three main routes of the Silk Road, namely the steppe route, the oasis route, and the sea route, which were the conduits for global civilization exchange (Chapter 10).
In this process, the author breaks the outdated conventional wisdom that limited the scope of the Silk Road to Eurasia (the Old Continent) and expands the concept of the Silk Road into a global corridor of civilization exchange encompassing five oceans and six continents. At the same time, through field research on kurgans, tombs scattered across the vast northern Eurasian steppe from Ukraine to eastern Siberia (including the Korean Peninsula), the author demonstrates the outstanding achievement of establishing the route of the steppe Silk Road, which had been drawn only through guesswork, as a corridor of exchange based on solid evidence.

The Silk Road expanded into a global sea route during the Age of Exploration, finally establishing itself as a true global channel for civilization exchange.
The author examines five individuals and events that played a significant role in the development and completion of the Continental Continent: Columbus's "discovery" of the American continent, Zheng He's "Lower West," Magellan and Elcano's "circumnavigation of the world," the opening of the Panama Canal, and Heyerdahl's "three ocean raft voyage" (Chapter 11).

The Korean people were part of the Silk Road.

The people of the Korean Peninsula have been using the Silk Road as a channel of communication and exchange since its inception, but one day this fact was forgotten.
For this reason, researchers, including the author, have been discussing the relationship between the Korean Peninsula and the Silk Road for some time, and whether the existing Silk Road could be 'extended' to the Korean Peninsula.
However, in this book, which concludes his study of the Silk Road, the author emphasizes that the perspective must be changed from 'extension' to 'restoration.'
Because the Silk Road of the Korean Peninsula is a historical fact.
From this perspective, the author cites vivid historical evidence, including the Myeongdojeonro (明刀錢路), dolmens (dolmens), the international marriage between King Suro of Garak and Princess Heo Hwang-ok of Ayuta, India, Roman glass products, inlaid bead necklaces with human designs, and comb-pattern pottery culture belts, to verify each and every one of them. He makes it clear that the Silk Road, which our people have cultivated and nurtured together with people around the world, is the path that has allowed our people to take root, communicate with the world, and elevate our people's status in the world. (Chapter 12)

The author also informs us that there are great ancestors in our history who deserve to be honored for their cultural exchanges along the Silk Road.
Hyecho, who left behind the world-renowned travelogue 『Wang Ocheonchukguk Jeon』, a travelogue of the Western Regions from 1,300 years ago, as an immortal world cultural heritage, was the first Asian traveler, including China, to continuously travel the Silk Road by sea and land, and left a vivid record of the process, making our people proud to the world.
Furthermore, Gao Xianzhi (高仙芝) is known as the master of the Pamir Plateau, the roof of the world. He not only undertook five expeditions to the West, leaving behind immortal achievements in the annals of world warfare, but also made an absolute contribution to the spread of papermaking, a technology that brought about a groundbreaking change in the history of human civilization. (Chapter 13)

Through the constant exchange of heterogeneous civilizations,
Until the day we create universal civilization

In concluding the book, the author asserts that at this turning point in the history of civilization, it is an urgent need of the times to realistically reflect on the history of universal civilization discourse, to discern its truth and falsehood, and to establish a correct and future-oriented theory of universal civilization.
The Western theory of universal civilization, which justifies the spread of Western political and economic structures by talking about the "responsibility and duty" for the modernization of non-Western societies that have not yet modernized, is in fact nothing more than something imposed as part of imperialist colonial policies.
Therefore, a global, universal civilization based on sharing, equality, and fairness, striving for the coexistence and prosperity of humanity, is necessary (Chapter 14). Furthermore, as research methods for the study of civilization exchange that explores this universal civilization, holistic, comparative, and diachronic approaches are proposed (Chapter 15).

The author, who advocates a 'theory of civilization exchange' that is distinct from other modern civilization discourses and seeks an 'alternative theory of civilization' that seeks to create a universal civilization through exchange and realize human coexistence and co-prosperity, predicts that if the inherent properties of civilization, such as imitativeness and sharing, are fully developed and function, a universal civilization will have infinite expandability and will be functionally created, exchanged, spread, and mature.
And if that happens, I assert that in today's era of 'infinite expansion of civilization exchange' and 'the era of modern civilization discourse,' the theory of alternative civilization will become a true alternative for building a future society.

In February 2025, the author passed away, leaving behind a tumultuous life after completing his final mission of writing and proofreading this book.
Members of the Institute for Korean Civilization Exchange, who carry on the author's academic legacy, added a short tribute as they completed the remaining editing work.
Finally, the author defined the study of civilization exchange as a new branch of international humanities that aims to build an equal, fair, and prosperous (new) society based on the exchange and communication of civilizations and the spread and expansion of universal civilization on a global scale. He earnestly urged future generations to make every effort to acquire it.