Former Yonsei University Professor Sonbogi and Kim Minsu, CEO of Bumin Yanghaeng, Receive 'Widang Jeong Inbo Award'

Kim Min-su (left), CEO of Bumin Yanghaeng, Son Bo-gi, former Yonsei University professor (Provided by Yonsei University)

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] The Department of History at Yonsei University announced on the 1st that the recipients of the 2nd annual 'Widang Jeong Inbo Award' are the late Professor Son Bogie, former Yonsei University professor, for the academic and research category, and Kim Minsu, CEO of Bumin Yanghaeng, for the social contribution category.

Former Yonsei University professor Son Bogie studied at Yeonhui College of Liberal Arts and Seoul National University’s Department of History, earned his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, and served as a professor in Yonsei University's Department of History from 1964 to 1987. He is regarded as a 'pioneer of Korean archaeology' for excavating Paleolithic sites at Seokjang-ri, Gongju, Chungnam in 1964, overturning the Japanese claim that there was no Paleolithic culture on the Korean Peninsula and broadening the horizons of Korean archaeology. Additionally, he advocated the claim that the Jikji Simche Yojeol was printed with the world's oldest metal movable type, which was later confirmed to predate the German Gutenberg Bible by 78 years, significantly contributing to its registration as a UNESCO Memory of the World. Furthermore, he worked to eliminate colonial remnants by leading the demolition of the Japanese Governor-General’s building.

Kim Minsu, CEO of Bumin Yanghaeng, who entered Yonsei University in 1966, established the trading company Bumin Yanghaeng in 1981. He was awarded the Minister of Commerce and Industry Commendation in 1989 and the Bronze Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit in 2003. In 2006, he donated 100 million won in scholarships to his alma mater’s Department of History. For his contributions to the Korean economy and the development of the university, he was selected as the recipient in the social contribution category.

The Widang Jeong Inbo Award was established last year to honor the spirit of Jeong Inbo, who inspired the independence spirit during Japanese colonial rule and established a nationalist historiography. The award ceremony, originally scheduled for early December, was postponed due to the resurgence of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

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