Kim Seong-su
Overview
Kim Seong-su (金性洙, 1891–1955), whose pen name was Inchon (仁村), was a representative national capitalist, educator, and journalist of Korea during the Japanese colonial period. Born in Gochang, North Jeolla Province, he graduated from Waseda University in Japan and later established textile industries such as Gyeongseong Bangjik and Gyeongseong Jikryu, laying the foundation for national capital. He founded Dong-A Ilbo and led the national press, and took over and developed Bosung Professional School, the predecessor of Korea University, establishing the basis for national education. After liberation, he formed the Korean Democratic Party and was elected vice president, but after conflict with the Syngman Rhee government, he resigned and withdrew from the front lines of politics.
Main content
Birth and growth
Born in 1891 in Gochang, Jeolla Province, as the son of a wealthy family. After learning Chinese classics in childhood, he moved to Seoul and encountered modern learning; in 1910 he went to Japan to study and graduated from Waseda University's School of Political Science and Economics. After returning home, he started businesses based on his family's land and capital.
Activities as a national capitalist
In the 1920s he founded Gyeongseong Bangjik, and in the 1930s he also established Gyeongseong Jikryu, leading the cotton textile industry. This is evaluated as a representative case of accumulating national capital against Japanese capital. He showed the archetype of an entrepreneurial national movement that returned business profits to the press and education.
Press and education work
In 1920 he founded Dong-A Ilbo and served as its first president, striving for national enlightenment and the formation of public opinion against Japanese censorship. In 1932 he took over Bosung Professional School and laid the foundation for its development into Korea University; after liberation, in 1946 he formally established Korea University and served as its first president. The Inchon Memorial Hall and Inchon Award are representative legacies honoring his contributions to education and culture.
Political activities
After liberation in 1945, he founded the Korean Democratic Party and served as senior secretary-general, and in 1948 he was elected to the Constituent National Assembly. In 1951 he was elected vice president as President Syngman Rhee's running mate, but he resigned from the vice presidency amid conflict with the Rhee government's authoritarian rule. After retiring from politics, he devoted himself to education and the press and died in 1955.
Assessment
Along with the controversy over pro-Japanese activities, positive assessments coexist that he laid the cornerstone of national capital and education. His attempts at economic self-reliance through the textile industry, his defense of press freedom through Dong-A Ilbo, and his cultivation of talent through the founding of Korea University are regarded as leaving important marks in modern and contemporary Korean history.
Recent developments
As of 2024–2025, the Inchon Award continues to be granted each year to distinguished scholars and social contributors in various fields, maintaining its stature. Korea University, marking the 120th anniversary of its founding, is holding academic and cultural events that re-examine Inchon's educational philosophy. Dong-A Ilbo has also continued special reports and exhibitions dealing with Inchon's journalistic spirit around the 100th anniversary of its founding. Meanwhile, in academia, research actively examines both sides of national capitalists during the Japanese colonial period—economic self-reliance and the controversy over pro-Japanese collaboration—and attempts to reinterpret Inchon's thought and management philosophy from a modern perspective are increasing. The disclosure of historical materials related to Inchon through digital archives is also expanding.
Related topics
- [[동아일보]] (Dong-A Ilbo)
- [[고려대학교]] (Korea University)
- [[한국민주당]] (Korean Democratic Party)
- [[민족자본가]] (national capitalist)
- [[인촌상]] (Inchon Award)