Samhan, the Confederacy of the Southern Korean Peninsula

In the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, there were three groups of nations called Mahan, Byeonhan and Jinhan. They are collectively known as Samhan, or Three Han kingdoms.

The people of Samhan used a variety of bronze and iron tools. In particular, they employed iron implements for agricultural use. During May and October, the months of sowing and harvesting respectively, the people of Samhan held festivals of singing and dancing to pray to their gods for a successful harvest.

Among Samhan, Mahan had a unique custom. In each village the Mahan people established a sacred place called a sodo for worship and prayer, and hung bells and drums from the trees there. A sodo was also a place of refuge - a criminal could hide there and he or she would be safe due to the distinct separation of religion and state. The concept of sodo is similar to the asillie or asylum of Greece and Rome. The English word ‘asylum’ retains the same meaning, a sanctuary or place of refuge and protection.

During the third century, Samhan absorbed power from its neighbors and Mahan had developed into the Baekje Kingdom, Jinhan into the Silla Kingdom, and Byeonhan into the Gaya Confederacy. So to speak, it was the beginning era of the Three Kingdoms Period.