# Precolumbian corn in Korea? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, food-cooking\ **Created:** [September 12, 2022, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468 "2022-09-12T20:14:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![rpinet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bbe5ce/32.png) [@rpinet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rpinet)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2022, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/1 "2022-09-12T20:14:02Z")
In episode 11 of korean series “The King’s Affection” --historical romance situated in the 15th c.-- several characters appear eating corn. Not mentioning it as such, but the images are unmistakeable. Is that accurate? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2022, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/2 "2022-09-12T20:38:16Z")
If the protagonist was born in 1461, then no, it’s not accurate, the arrival of maize in Korea (from China) is [later](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistory/comments/pmgodq/when_was_corn_introduced_to_korea_and_how_was_it/) than that - [middle-16th C](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-56645-y#:~:text=Maize%20has%20been%20cultivated%20throughout,of%20the%2016th%20century1.). ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2022, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/3 "2022-09-12T20:39:50Z")
By my understanding, they’re off by about 100 years because corn/maize wasn’t introduced to Korea until the mid-to-late 16th century. And even then, it was more of a backup crop than a staple. ETA: Or what MrDibble said. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2022, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/4 "2022-09-12T20:49:26Z")
> [@GreysonCarlisle](#): > > And even then, it was more of a backup crop than a staple. Yes. Subsistence peasants paid taxes in rice. They had no choice but to focus on rice. (Rice also had the advantage of being more sustainable even when grown intensively.) Other crops, traditionally barley, were eaten when the rice harvest was not abundant enough to both pay the taxes and feed the family. Maize was used as a back-up, just as barley. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2022, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/5 "2022-09-13T23:10:53Z")
Isn’t the word “corn” sometimes used as a catch-all for grains? A similar question came up about an episode of _I, Claudius_ that referenced “corn”. ETA - I missed that there is a visual depiction. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2022, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/6 "2022-09-13T23:30:18Z")
You are right that “corn” means (or meant) any grain in British English. “Corn” also could mean a kernel of any substance - “corned beef” is made by preserving beef with kernels (“corns”) of salt, and “corned gunpowder” is gunpowder made into kernels. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2022, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/7 "2022-09-15T00:09:18Z")
What we need is a precocious and unbearably cute PreColumbian kid speaking about corn: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/1VbZE6YhjKk/maxresdefault.jpg "The CEO of Corn | Recess Therapy #cornboy") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VbZE6YhjKk) ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2024, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/precolumbian-corn-in-korea/971468/8 "2024-05-26T19:35:14Z")
I just watched the series. There’s definitely anachronisms, and not just with corn. There’s also a mention of eating potatoes and sweet potatoes. Those mentions took me out of the show for a few minutes 😜 .