A Study on the Identity of the Ancient Wa in Northeast Asia

Abstract

This study reexamines the nature of the “Wa,” regarded as the ancestors of the Japanese, through a comparative analysis of historical records from Korea, China, and Japan; an investigation into the migrations of the Dongyi Wa clans and the geographical distribution of place names; the Posang Eight States War that unfolded along the maritime routes of the Gaya region in the 3rd century CE; and the Gwanggaeto Stele inscription. The findings reveal that, contrary to the assumption by both scholars and the general public that the Wa were identical with the Japanese, the Wa of ancient Northeast Asia originated in the Zhejiang region of southern China and established a strong presence in southern Korea. In the early 3rd century, they fought two wars—the Posang Eight States War—in the Gaya region. As a result, the Mahan Yuezhi-guk grew into a political entity that dominated Silla, Gaya, and the Shipje in the Hanseong area (Seoul). Following King Gwanggaeto’s conquest campaigns in the late 4th to early 5th centuries, the Mahan–Baekje forces in the Geum River basin were defeated, prompting their migration to the Japanese archipelago, where they founded Wa–Baekje and transformed into what is known as the Japanese Wa. In conclusion, rather than the Japanese Wa crossing over to the Korean Peninsula to establish the so-called Mimana Japan Headquarters, it was in fact the Wa of the Korean Peninsula who migrated in large numbers to the archipelago to found a state, and the archipelago remained subordinate to Mahan–Baekje until the 7th century.