Little China (ideology)

Sojunghwa (소중화, 小中華) means "Small China" or "Little Sinocentrism" in Korean language. Like Sinocentrism, which is the belief that China is the center of the civilization of the world, Korea, which was a tributary state of China, thinks that Korea is Small China and a highly civilized state. Korea considers Japan and the Jurchen people to be barbarians (이적, 夷狄) or beasts (금수, 禽獸) under the Hua-Yi distinction. After the Qing Dynasty conquered the Ming Dynasty, Korea thought that barbarians ruined the center of the civilization of the world and that Korea became the successor of China, the center of the world.