In 2025, the Institute for Sinographic Literatures and Philology at Korea University is launching a new journal, Journal of Sinographic Philologies and Legacies, with the aim of sharing research methodologies on the heritage of the Sinographic sphere with international scholars and disseminating the results of such research to global readers.

The Sinographic sphere, which employed Literary Sinitic as a shared linguistic medium, has left behind rich and diverse legacies shaped by local adaptations in each region. It is now crucial for researchers around the world to analyze the scale, mechanisms, and forms of these legacies with scholarly rigor and to collectively identify elements that bear significance for the development of future societies. This journal aspires to serve as a scholarly hub that enables such global discourse.

The Institute was founded in March 2005 as a specialized institution for the study of Sinographic literature, translation of East Asian classical texts, and education in Literary Sinitic. Since its inception, the Institute has contributed to the advancement of Korean studies by researching and translating Korea’s premodern Sinographic heritage. At the same time, it has collaborated with scholars worldwide to illuminate the broader linguistic and literary traditions of the Sinographic sphere. In particular, the Institute has regularly published the journal, East Asian Journal of Sinology (東亞漢學硏究), to introduce relevant research to both domestic and international academia, while also expanding its scholarly exchanges with related institutions around the globe.

In recent years, global academia has sought to reexamine area studies through the lens of Global Humanities. In response to this intellectual momentum, the Institute seeks to inaugurate this English-language journal to promote research that genuinely reflects the realities of the Sinographic sphere and to catalyze future scholarship in East Asian classical studies. To that end, we propose the following goals:

1. Sharing a Balanced Perspective on Sinographic Cultural Heritage 

2. Developing Interdisciplinary Approaches to Sinographic Cultural Heritage

3. Opening New Horizons in the Study of East Asian Classical Studies 

It is our sincere hope that Journal of Sinographic Philologies and Legacies will serve as a platform for widely sharing the latest achievements in Sinographic studies within the framework of Global Humanities, and that the discussions it fosters will contribute to the articulation of new visions for the future of Global Humanities.

JOSPL is an online publication. Please visit our website at jospl.org for submission guidelines, current and past issues, and more information. The Table of Contents for the inaugural issue is available at jospl.org/newsletter/TOCAlert.php. 

Looking forward to your contributions!

The JOSPL Team