‘Come on Tiger’: An exploration into the political and ecological challenges for tigers in premodern and modern-day Korea

Throughout Korean history, the tiger has held importance, playing a variety of roles with diverse meanings depending on the period and context. I aim to showcase a range of images of the tiger in premodern culture that were foundational to establishing the tiger as the national symbol of Korea, a development that was catalysed in the colonial period when Japanese propagandists used the killing of tigers as a symbol of the invasion and colonization of Korea (1910–1945). I also argue that in response to Japanese colonization the tiger was increasingly promoted as a national symbol by modern intellectuals like Choe Namseon 崔南善 (1890–1957), a trend that has shaped contemporary understanding of the animal’s significance. In turn, this has prompted a reconsideration and consolidation of this eclectic collection of premodern tiger images into a more coherent conception, as one of the prime representations of Koreanness.