Sejong the Great creates Hangul, the Korean alphabet
Known as Hangul in South Korea or Chosŏn’gŭl in North Korea, it is still the official writing system of Korea, both South Korea and North Korea.
East Asia
Marco Polo publishes his tales of his journey to China
The Travels of Marco Polo, is a 13th-century travelogue describing Polo’s travels through Asia between 1271 and 1295, and his experiences at the court of Kublai Khan.
Nichiren, founder of Nichiren Buddhism, inscribes the Dai-Gohonzon
The Dai Gohonzon is a venerated Mandala image inscribed with both Sanskrit and Chinese logographs on a median log trunk of Japanese camphorwood. It is worshipped in Nichiren Shoshu Buddhism.
Samurai warriors rise to power in Japan
The samurai (also bushi) were a class of warriors which arose in the 10th century CE in medieval Japan and which lasted until the 17th century CE. The type has been romanticised since the 18th century CE as the epitome of chivalry and honor.
The Chinese of the Song Dynasty invent the fishing reel
A fishing reel is a cylindrical device attached to a fishing rod used in winding and stowing line.
The Chinese of the Song Dynasty invent the fire lance
The fire lance was a very early gunpowder weapon that appeared in 10th century China during the Jin-Song Wars.
The Chinese of the Song Dynasty invent dry docks
A dry dock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform.
Early versions of the Bessemer process for producing steel are invented in East Asia
Economic historian Robert Hartwell writes that the Chinese of the Song Dynasty innovated a “partial decarbonization” method of repeated forging of cast iron under a cold blast.
Bi Sheng of China's Song Dynasty invents movable type
The world’s first movable type printing press technology for printing paper books was made of porcelain materials and was invented around C.E. 1040 in China during the Northern Song Dynasty by the inventor Bi Sheng.
The Song Dynasty begins in modern-day China
The Song dynasty was an era of Chinese history that began in 960 and continued until 1279.