Presented by Johann Noh Research Professor at the Institute for Sinographic Literatures and Philology, Korea University and Research Associate and Program Coordinator of the Global Humanities Initiative, MIT Abstract: In premodern East Asia, the countries of the Sinographic cultural sphere sustained a long-standing community of knowledge and culture by constructing and engaging with a shared corpus of texts. However, this community was never a monolithic entity. Each country within the Sinographic sphere selectively imported, published, and disseminated Sinitic texts according to its unique historical and cultural context, as well as its contemporary needs. Through these texts, literati across East Asia participated in a common intellectual tradition, while also reinterpreting and localizing its meanings—thus cultivating a dynamic interplay between cultural unity and diversity. Furthermore, the practical functions of the Sinographic script in everyday language and writing practices varied considerably across regions. In Korea, for instance, Korean-style and idu-style Sinitic coexisted; in China, classical vernacular and early modern vernacular Sinitic coexisted; and in Japan, Japanese-style Sinitic developed. While the elite may have shared a common literary medium, the broader linguistic landscape was marked by rich regional variation. This presentation focuses on the Korean case, examining the role of textual circulation—arguably the most significant mechanism for cultural transmission […]