'Suun Japbang and Eumsikdimibang' Inscribed on Asia-Pacific Regional Register... "Living Cookbooks Still Used Today"

Dr. Hong Hyunseong of the Korean Studies Institute
"The nomination dossier reflects the views of researchers across the institute"
"Highlighting women's role in transmission... Present-day use matters, too"

"Suun Japbang is a living cookbook that is still used today."

Interior pages of "Suunjapbang"/National Heritage Administration.

This was a key argument that Hong Hyunseong, a Ph.D. at the Korean Studies Advancement Center, said the application for "Suun Japbang and Eumsikdimibang" placed great emphasis on. At its 11th General Meeting, held on November 5 (local time) at the National Archives of Indonesia in Jakarta, the UNESCO Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP) decided to inscribe two Joseon-era cookbooks on its Asia-Pacific Regional Register. The books record men's writings alongside women's culinary techniques.

Hong, who wrote the application, said, "I am proud that this has given us an opportunity to have the global value of our documentary heritage recognized. I am also pleased that we have confirmed our institution's capabilities are now firmly established, allowing us to build on the progress toward inscription regardless of staff transfers."

The application was not the work of one person. Hong took charge of efforts to secure the inscription in 2024 and prioritized gathering opinions. "The nomination is not the opinion of a single researcher; it is the result of incorporating the views of researchers across our institute," he emphasized.

'Eumsikdimibang' interior pages/Korea Heritage Service.

The application reflected an earlier unsuccessful attempt. After a previous application to a domestic call for nominations to an international register was rejected, the existing argument had to be revised and verified. The circumstances surrounding the international register also played a role in the decision to pursue the Asia-Pacific Regional Register first. Hong explained, "We took into account the intense competition among countries for the international register and the difficulty of securing an inscription with just one nomination."

The decision to add Eumsikdimibang to Suun Japbang emerged from discussions within the institute. The two old cookbooks had previously been referred to together as regional documentary heritage. Many researchers felt that Eumsikdimibang was needed to show the succession and transformation of regional culture and highlight the distinctive features of Korean cookbooks, including the prominent role of women. The institute accepted their recommendation. The two books are held at different institutions: Suun Japbang has been entrusted to the Korean Studies Advancement Center, while Eumsikdimibang is held by the Kyungpook National University Library. Before submitting the application, the center obtained consent from both holding institutions.

Because the books were nominated together, the application had to demonstrate that they met the requirements. It supported the authenticity of Suun Japbang through its structure. The first part is titled "Takcheonggong Yumuk," and the second, "Gyeam Seonjo Yumuk." Takcheonggong was the pen name of Kim Yu, and Gyeam was the pen name of Kim Ryeong. Based on Kim Yu's life, the section he wrote is dated to the 1540s, while the part added by Kim Ryeong is dated to the 1610s. Some news reports refer to the "early 1500s," apparently using a broad description for the first half of the 16th century. It is not necessarily incorrect, but the application gives the official date as the 1540s.

Hong Hyeonseong, Ph.D., Korean Studies Institute / provided by the subject.

The case for completeness is also clear. Hong explained, "Completeness concerns whether a document has been damaged." Suun Japbang identifies its author, the time and place of writing in specific terms, is an author's manuscript, and has been preserved without damage. The number of entries is given as either 121 or 122, depending on whether the "another method" for brewing alcohol is counted separately. The National Heritage Administration counted 122 entries.

The link between Suun Japbang and Eumsikdimibang is a marriage connection. The first wife of Lee Si-myeong of the Jaeryeong Lee clan was a member of the Gwangsan Kim clan and a niece six degrees removed from Kim Ryeong. After her death, Lee Si-myeong remarried Jang Gyehyang of the Andong Jang clan. This lineage is confirmed in genealogies and in Gyeam Ilrok, written by Kim Ryeong.

The two books also share recipes. They have seven items in common: six alcoholic beverages and one dish. The one distilled liquor is Jinmaek Soju, called Mil Soju in Eumsikdimibang. The five fermented liquors are Namgyeongju (called Namseongju in Eumsikdimibang), Dongyangju, Gamhyangju, Baekhwaju, and Sam-oju. The dish is Chijeo (pheasant kimchi). A closer comparison shows that the distilled liquor is the same, while the fermented liquors differ. Jinmaek Soju and Mil Soju differ only in spelling, with their key production processes matching. The fermented liquors use different quantities of rice, with Eumsikdimibang calling for more.

Maika Vandendriessche, who oversees MOWCAP at the Office of Korean Studies Resources at the Korea Studies Advancement Center, speaks at the 11th General Meeting of the UNESCO Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP), held at the National Archives of Indonesia in Jakarta on the 4th (local time)/Gyeongsangbuk-do.

The shared distilled liquor is also connected to the books' regional significance. Distilling techniques and women are at the center of this connection. The two books show how an introduced technique was adapted locally, and how, by the time of Eumsikdimibang, women had further refined and expanded it. Hong believes women likely played a leading role in the spread of the techniques. Their contribution is also evident in the texts: Eumsikdimibang explicitly identifies female descendants as transmitters of culinary knowledge. The application assessed the books' rarity on this basis.

The assessment involved comparisons on two levels. Within Joseon, the application compared the books with Sanga Yorok to highlight their distinctive features: the localization of techniques and their transmission by women. For an international comparison, it examined Chinese cookbooks more broadly, as well as Zeng Yi's Zhonggui Lu from the early 20th century and Japanese author Senba Gengo's Nenchu Bansairoku (1849), comparing when they appeared.

Another argument given nearly as much weight as the comparisons was cooperation between men and women. The application states that men and women had worked together from an early date to document women's knowledge and practical skills and transmit and disseminate them. It argues that Suun Japbang combines men's written records with women's localized practical techniques, while Eumsikdimibang brings together the men's written record in Suun Japbang and Jang Gyehyang's recipes, representing women's practical knowledge. Hong explained, "This was a point that could be readily compared with cookbooks from other countries, so we presented it as evidence of the books' rarity and gave it considerable emphasis."

Officials from the Korea Heritage Service, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Andong City, and the Korean Studies Advancement Center, who led the inscription of “Suunjapbang and Eumsikdimibang” on the Memory of the World Asia-Pacific Regional Register, pose for a commemorative photo. Photo by Lee Jonggil.

The argument went beyond the books' contents to emphasize their use today. The National Heritage Administration says that Jinmaek Soju, restored based on Suun Japbang, is distributed in Korea and abroad, but Hong focused on something else. "More important than a single type of soju is the fact that dishes from Suun Japbang, including this one, are still being sold," he said. At events hosted by Andong City, visitors can sample Suun Japbang's food and alcoholic beverages. Domestic and international tourists interested in Korean cuisine visit, and the offerings are said to receive favorable reviews. These examples of use demonstrate the repeated efforts of the local community to pass the tradition down.

Plans for putting the books to use will continue after their inscription. The first project will be a special commemorative exhibition. Hong said it is planned as a small-scale exhibition at the UNESCO Korean National Commission building. He said he expects Gyeongsangbuk-do and Andong City to lead longer-term plans for use, such as food-industry development. He added, "This could enhance the standing of the documentary heritage, its custodians, the institutions, and the region, while also generating publicity in Korea and abroad."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.