A Study on the Assumption of Position of the 24 countries of Jinhan and Byeonhan

Some records, including the record of the Han(韓傳) in the Samkukji(三國志), lists the national names of the 24 countries of Jinhan(辰韓) and Byeonhan(弁韓). The records show the reality of the countries that first occurred in Gyeongsang-Do today. In this respect, it is very basic and important historically to determine where the countries were located. This work h as b een attempted by several s cholars, but opinions a re o ften d ifferent f or e ach scholar, and not much research has been conducted recently. This article reviewed the locations of all the 24 countries of Jinhan and Byeonhan. First, the author grasped the meaning of the order in which the names of the countries were recorded and the scope of the country's location, and reviewed the relics of the Samhan (三韓) period in Gyeongsang-Do, which can be said to be traces of these countries. After that, identified the pronunciation of the national name at that time through research on Chinese character phonology and compared it with the place names recorded in the Samguksagi (三國史記). If further research on the pronunciation of ancient Chinese characters is conducted and more relics from the Samhan Period are found, the opinion could be revised. In this respect, it is only a result made at today's academic stage. However, this study is meaningful in that it attempted to determine the location of the 24 countries of Jinhan and Byeonhan based on archaeological excavations conducted until recently and the achievements of Chinese character phonology in Chinese academia.