Samhan
/sɐm.ɦan/noun
A historical Korean term for the three ancient confederacies of Mahan, Jinhan, and Byeonhan in southern Korea.
Did you know?Samhan was not a single kingdom but a historical classification of Mahan, Jinhan, and Byeonhan, whose political identities were later absorbed into Baekje, Silla, and Gaya.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
三 (*s.rum)
“Three; the numeral later represented in Korean as sam.”
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
韓 (*gˤar)
“Han; an ancient ethnonym or regional name whose ultimate origin remains uncertain.”
3rd Century CE
Classical Chinese
三韓
“The Three Han; a designation for Mahan, Jinhan, and Byeonhan in southern Korea.”
7th–10th Century
Middle Korean
삼한
“Samhan; the Korean rendering of the historical term “Three Han.””
Modern English
English
Samhan
“The collective historical name for the three ancient confederacies of southern Korea.”