Some 93 percent of reference books in the libraries of major U.S. universities do not use the Korean name for the Dokdo islets, a group of young patriotic activists said Thursday.
Dokdo has acquired symbolic status in the eyes of many Korean patriots amid persistent Japanese attempts to legitimize a colonial claim to the Korean territory on the international stage.
Dokdo Network, which consists mostly of students, said 28 members visited the libraries of major universities on the U.S. west coast, including Stanford and UCLA, in August, and found that 93 percent of reference books in geography, history, and maritime and international law use the Japanese name for the islets.
Only three percent use the Korean name and four percent the old French maritime designation Liancourt Rocks.
"Some 80 to 85 percent of all foreign reference books at the libraries of 20 major universities in Korea, including Seoul National, Yonsei and Korea universities, use the Japanese name to refer to Dokdo," said Koh Chang-keun at Dokdo Network. "We need to ask libraries in Korea and abroad, as well as the publishers to change the name to Dokdo."