The detailed names and meanings of Korean stone pagodas have not yet been properly studied or clearly defined. Therefore, an aim of this report is to compare the detailed names of Korean, Chinese, and Japanese stone pagodas by focusing on content used previously by Ko and his students and content that is currently in use (i.e., since the Japanese colonial era). Additional objectives are to assess the significance of these names and propose an appropriate detailed draft regarding names of stone pagodas.
The discussion will proceed by dividing the stone pagoda into three parts: the podium, main structure, and finial. First, the content in Luo Zhewen(羅哲文)’s “Ancient pagodas in China(中國古塔)” (1985) is considered; then, “朝鮮の石塔” (1943)—published by during the Japanese colonial era—is explored. The thesis written by Yu-Seop Ko regarding Korea’s first stone pagoda and the content in “A Study of Korean Pagodas(朝鮮塔婆의 硏究)” (1948), which contains Yu-Seop Ko’s posthumous works published in book form by his student Su-Yeong Hwang, Heu-Kyoung Kim are examined. to pagodas that are used today, are compared and reviewed.
Since Korea, China, and Japan influence each other, pagoda-related terms are shared to some extent. In this study, these were applied to stone pagodas, and names used thus far that have not drawn criticism were studied and proposed as suitable alternatives.