Goryeo (; ko.ɾjʌ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians as it not only unified the Later Three Kingdoms but also incorporated much of the ruling class of the northern kingdom of Balhae, who had origins in Goguryeo of the earlier Three Kingdoms of Korea. The name "Korea" is derived from the name of Goryeo, also romanized as Koryŏ, which was first used in the early 5th century by Goguryeo. According to Korean historians, it was during the Goryeo period that the individual identities of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla were successfully merged into a single entity that became the basis of the modern-day Korean identity. Goryeo was the successor state to Later Goguryeo and Goguryeo.
Throughout its existence, Goryeo, alongside Unified Silla, was known to be the "Golden Age of Buddhism" in Korea. As the state religion, Buddhism achieved its highest level of influence in Korean history, with 70 temples in the capital alone in the 11th century. Commerce flourished in Goryeo, with merchants coming from as far as the Middle East. The capital in modern-day Kaesong, North Korea was a center of trade and industry. Goryeo was a period of great achievements in Korean art and culture.
During its heyday, Goryeo constantly wrestled with northern empires such as the Liao (Khitans) and Jin (Jurchens). It also attacked the Mongol-Yuan dynasty and reclaimed territories as the Yuan declined. This is considered by modern Korean scholars to be Goryeo's Northern Expansion Doctrine (Korean: 북진 정책) to reclaim ancestral lands formerly owned by Goguryeo. As much as it valued education and culture, Goryeo was able to mobilize sizable military might during times of war. It fended off massive armies of the Red Turban Rebels from China and professional Japanese pirates in its twilight years of the 14th century.
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Balhae (Korean: 발해; pa̠ɽɦɛ̝, , Бохай, ), also rendered as Bohai, was a multi-ethnic kingdom established in 698 by Dae Joyeong (Da Zuorong) and originally known as the Kingdom of Jin (震, Zhen) until 713 when its name was changed to Balhae. At its greatest extent it corresponded to what is today Northeast China, the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and the southeastern Russian Far East. Balhae's early history involved a rocky relationship with the Tang dynasty that saw military and political conflict, but by the end of the 8th century the relationship had become cordial and friendly.
Joseon (; tɕo.sʌn), officially Great Joseon (; tɛ.tɕo.sʌn.ɡuk̚), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom was founded following the aftermath of the overthrow of Goryeo in what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul. The kingdom's northernmost borders were expanded to the natural boundaries at the rivers of Amrok and Tuman through the subjugation of the Jurchens.
Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) (; ko̞ɡuɾjʌ̹; : high castle; Old Korean: Guryeo) also later known as Goryeo (; ko.ɾjʌ; : high and beautiful; Middle Korean: 고ᇢ롕〮, Gowoyeliᴇ), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of modern day Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most of the Korean Peninsula, large parts of Manchuria and parts of eastern Mongolia and Inner Mongolia as well as Russia.