Jeonnam Province Accelerates Efforts to Globalize Mahan Historical and Cultural Area

On the 16th, Jeonnam Province held an international academic conference titled "Major Achievements and Development Directions of the Mahan Historical and Cultural Zone" at the Ramada Hotel in Sinan. At this event, ways to globalize Mahan historical culture were explored.

According to Jeonnam Province, the conference, hosted by the province and organized by the Jeonnam Cultural Foundation, was attended by about 300 people including Myung Chang-hwan, Vice Governor of Jeonnam Province, Park Woo-ryang, Mayor of Sinan County, keynote speakers from four foreign countries, and domestic and international scholars.

They reviewed the achievements of the Mahan historical and cultural zone since the enforcement of the "Special Act on the Maintenance of Historical and Cultural Zones" and sought future development directions such as World Heritage registration.

Starting with a keynote presentation by Professor Kwon Oh-young of Seoul National University titled "Mahan's Cultural Heritage in the Context of World Cultural Heritage," the conference examined the achievements of the Mahan historical and cultural zone through "Understanding Historical and Cultural Zones and Historical Cultural Resource Development," and discussed implications for Mahan from the contemporary cultural zone of the Gaya Tumuli World Heritage registration through "Future Tasks of Mahan Cultural Resources Based on the Case of Gaya Tumuli."

International presentations were conducted by representatives from China, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Australia, sharing processes and case studies of UNESCO World Heritage registrations.

They proposed various directions including the need to expand consensus and participation for the advancement of Mahan cultural heritage and shared achievements.

This international academic conference was evaluated as an academic exchange platform that reviewed the latest research achievements on maritime trade, which confirmed the past Mahan's exchanges extending to Japan and Southeast Asia, including China.

Myung Chang-hwan, Vice Governor of Jeonnam Province, said, "I hope that active research on Mahan will continue through this international academic conference to enhance its historical value," and added, "Jeonnam Province will also spare no interest and support for the globalization of Mahan."

Since 2012, Jeonnam Province has continuously promoted excavation and investigation of Mahan relics, upgrading to national historic sites, and research projects to establish Mahan history to restore the historical value of Mahan. This year, notable achievements include attracting the National Mahan Historical and Cultural Center and being selected for two projects under the Mahan Historical and Cultural Zone Historical and Cultural Environment Maintenance and Promotion Project (Naju and Haenam).

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