East Asia · Confederacies, Han and the steppe
Tamna
drawn on the map AD 263–681, 936–1278
Tamna (耽羅; also Tangna, Seomna, Tammora—meaning "island country") was the kingdom on Jeju Island from ancient times until 1404. Its founding myth (Samseong) tells of three demigods—Go, Yang, and Bu—emerging from the Samseonghyeol caves, who took brides (with livestock and grain seeds) from a box washed ashore from an eastern land (Japan).
- Shown on the map
- AD 263–681, 936–1278 (2 periods)
- Peak area
- 2k km²
- Region
- East Asia
Overview
Tamna (耽羅; also Tangna, Seomna, Tammora—meaning "island country") was the kingdom on Jeju Island from ancient times until 1404. Its founding myth (Samseong) tells of three demigods—Go, Yang, and Bu—emerging from the Samseonghyeol caves, who took brides (with livestock and grain seeds) from a box washed ashore from an eastern land (Japan). Rule was divided between the Go clan (the "Lord," Seongju, ruling West Tamna) and the Moon clan (the "Prince," Wangja, ruling East Tamna) for some 400 years each. Capitals were Mugeunseong (early) and Jejuseong (later). The Chinese Sanguozhi mentions an island "Zhouhu" south of Mahan; Han coins found at Sanjicheon confirm early trade. Tamna sent envoys to the Japanese Asuka (645) and Tang (662) courts, allied with Baekje (476), became a Silla protectorate (662), then a Goryeo protectorate (938), was formally incorporated by Goryeo in 1105 and renamed Jeju in 1271, and was finally absorbed by Joseon in 1404. It was a distinctive maritime, trading culture.
Common questions
- What was Tamna?
- Tamna (耽羅; also Tangna, Seomna, Tammora—meaning "island country") was the kingdom on Jeju Island from ancient times until 1404. Its founding myth (Samseong) tells of three demigods—Go, Yang, and Bu—emerging from the Samseonghyeol caves, who took brides (with livestock and grain seeds) from a box washed ashore from an eastern land (Japan).
- When is Tamna shown on the map?
- The border data draws Tamna AD 263–681, 936–1278, in 2 separate periods. The source samples borders at fixed dates, so a span can begin late or run on past the end.
- How large was Tamna?
- At its greatest extent drawn on this map, Tamna covered about 2,000 km². That is the largest area the border data gives it across the years it is drawn, not necessarily its greatest extent in history.
Sources
This compendium cites its sources once for the whole document rather than per territory. Its bibliography names the English Wikipedia article for each polity as the basis of these profiles, supplemented by Encyclopaedia Britannica, chinaknowledge.de, the World History Encyclopedia, museum and university sources, and the academic works it lists. The article this entry is anchored on:
- Wikipedia — Tamna en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamna
This entry was last updated .
This entry was researched and drafted with AI from the sources above, and has not been reviewed by a historian. How entries are made
Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0: reuse it with a credit to The World Through Time and a link to this page. Passages drawing on the Wikipedia articles listed above are also licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 by their contributors.
Border geometry for the map itself comes from Cliopatria v0.12 (Seshat Global History Databank, CC-BY-4.0).
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