Jesus speaks Korean: Christianity and Literacy in Colonial Korea

Sascha Becker and Cheongyeon Won

No 15640, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: In the mid 19th century, pre-colonial Korea under the Joseon dynasty was increasingly isolated and lagging behind in its economic development. Joseon Korea was forced to sign unequal treaties with foreign powers as a result of which Christian missionaries entered the country and contributed to the establishment of private schools. We show that areas with a larger presence of Christians have higher literacy rates in 1930, during the Japanese colonial period. We also show that a higher number of Protestants is associated with higher female literacy, consistent with a stronger emphasis on female education in Protestant denominations.

Keywords: Literacy; Religion; Missionaries; Gender gap; Korea (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I21 J16 N35 Z12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-his
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Jesus Speaks Korean: Christianity and Literacy in Colonial Korea (2021)
Working Paper: Jesus Speaks Korean: Christianity and Literacy in Colonial Korea (2021)
Working Paper: Jesus Speaks Korean: Christianity and Literacy in Colonial Korea (2021)
Working Paper: Jesus speaks Korean: Christianity and Literacy in Colonial Korea (2021)
Working Paper: Jesus speaks Korean: Christianity and literacy in colonial Korea (2021)
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