기자조선
Ancient texts such as the "Samguk Sagi", "Samgungnyusa", "Book of the Later Han", and others have sometimes been used to interpret segments of Korean prehistory. The most well-known version of the founding legend that relates the origins of the Korean ethnicity explains that a mythical "first emperor", Dangun, was born from the child of the creator deity's son and his union with a female bear in human form. Dangun built the first city. A significant amount of historical inquiry in the twentieth century was devoted to the interpretation of the accounts of Gojoseon (2333–108 BCE), Gija Joseon (1122–194 BCE), Wiman Joseon (194–108 BCE), and others mentioned in historical texts.