National Foundation Day

 National Foundation Day

  The Korean history started with the foundation of the first state--Ancient Joson.

  With the establishment of Ancient Joson, the Korean nation put an end to its long primitive ages and entered the era of statehood, the era of civilization, for the first time in the East.

  Professor and Doctor Ju Song Chol, Section Chief of the History Institute of the Academy of Social Sciences, says:

  "Ancient Joson was founded in the early 30th century B.C. and existed for nearly 3,000 years.

  Its founder is Tangun, ancestral father of the nation.

  From olden times, the Korean nation declared October 3, the birthday of Tangun, as the National Foundation Day and has been commemorating it."

  Tangun was born in today's Pyongyang. His remains were discovered at the Mausoleum of King Tangun in Kangdong County of Pyongyang City in Juche 82(1993).

  Tangun was born and grew up when there were frequent intertribal wars for more wealth.

  Just at the time he was born as son of a Chief. In his childhood and youth he trained hard martial arts including archery, spearsmanship and fencing and studied hard to understand nature and society.

  He distinguished himself in martial arts and gradually had a great ambition to transform and change the society. Afterwards, he became the chief of the tribe, following in the footsteps of his father. He gradually reformed and developed the primitive political mechanisms into violent ones to control antagonism between classes and between tribes. On the basis of such social change, he founded a state for the first time with Pyongyang as its capital.

  The name of the state built at that time was called Joson. It is now called Ancient Joson in order to distinguish it from the feudal Joson dynasty built afterwards. 

  Since Ancient Joson was established, the Korean nation with Tangun as ancestral father has lived on the same territory with the same blood and language.

  That's why the Korean ancestors worshipped Tangun and held a memorial service for him on the National Foundation Day annually.

  According to the custom, a memorial service for Tangun is held at the Mausoleum of King Tangun every year.

  The memorial service for Tangun serves as an occasion of increasing the pride of the Korean nation with a long history and culture.