백낙준 白樂濬
Educator and scholar of Korean studies; first president of Yonsei University (art name Yongjae)
| Life | 1895 ~ 1985 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 수원 백씨 |
Life & career
Baek Nak-jun (白樂濬, 1895-1985) was an educator and scholar of Korean studies from Jeongju, North Pyongan Province, known by the pen name Yongjae and the American name George Paik. He went to the United States in 1916, studied at Park College and Princeton, and earned a PhD at Yale in 1927 with a dissertation on the history of Protestant missions in Korea, becoming Yale's first Korean PhD.
Returning that year, he joined the faculty of Yonhui College, and after liberation became the first president of Yonhui University in 1946. When it merged with Severance Union Medical College in 1957 to form Yonsei University he became its first president, retiring in May 1960. He was the second Minister of Education (May 1950 to October 1952) and Speaker of the House of Councillors from August 1960 to May 1961.
His works include The Thought and Reality of Korea, The History of Protestant Missions in Korea (Korean edition 1973), My Philosophy of Life (1971) and the essay collection Trees Planted by the Stream. He received New York City's Grand Award Medal in 1962 and Korea's Order of Civil Merit (Mugunghwa) in 1970.
The Founding of Yonsei
After teaching at Yonhui College he became president of Yonhui University after liberation, and in 1957 launched Yonsei University through its merger with Severance Union Medical College. A statue of him stands at Yonsei.
Scholarship and Public Service
His Yale dissertation traced the introduction of Protestantism to Korea and led to his later book on the subject. As Minister of Education and Speaker of the House of Councillors he served both education and government.
Related Figures
Fellow clan members in government include Baek Du-jin and, as a scholar of his own generation, Baek Nam-un. He is best known as president when Yonsei University was launched in 1957.
Grave
After a social funeral on January 17, 1985, he was interred at Dongjak National Cemetery.
Descendants
Details of his descendants could not be confirmed.