Don Southerton | |
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Nationality | American |
Alma mater | University of Colorado Denver (BA, History) University of Colorado Denver (MA, History) |
Occupations |
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Spouse | Anna Cash-Mitchell (m. 2003) |
Donald Southerton is a business consultant, writer, and global Korean issues specialist. Southerton, who is a University of Colorado Denver alumnus, taught traditional Korean martial arts before establishing and becoming CEO of Bridging Culture Worldwide, in 2003. Southerton is also the author of a number of books emphasizing on matters related to South Korea. His latest book Korea 101:The Book was released in September 2024. [1]
A native of Honesdale, Pennsylvania developed his interest on Asian culture while studying in the Mansfield University of Pennsylvania. [2] [3] He received a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in history from the University of Colorado Denver. [4] Southerton has also taken postgraduate classes in UCLA, University of Southern California, UC San Diego and the Intercultural Institute of California in San Francisco. [5]
Southerton begun training in Tang Soo Do (Moo Duk Kwan) and eventually received his 1st Degree Black Belt in the mid 1970s. [6] [7] He was the cadet martial arts instructor and competition team coach at the United States Military Academy at West Point. [6] [8] [9] In 1987 he was promoted to a master instructor in Tang Soo Do. [10] Southerton was inducted into the Taekwondo Hall of Fame in October 2013. [11] Starting in 1987, he worked as staff development consultant for Bethesda, Maryland-based Educational Funding Company, where he supported the company's Korean American clients, due to his understanding of Korean culture and traditions. [3]
In 2003 he founded and became CEO of Bridging Culture Worldwide, to consult South Korea-based companies operating internationally. Since he has worked with South Korean companies making business in the United States such as Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors as well as with American companies, ranging from F&B and Retail, in their effort to introduce themselves into the South Korean markets. [12] [13] [14]
In 2005 Bridging Culture announced it would begin publishing books. [15] The first book, written by Southerton himself, was published in 2005 under the title "The Filleys: 350 Years of American Entrepreneurial Spirit". [15] In 2006 he published "A Yankee in the Land of the Morning Calm", his first novel. [15] He completed the history as a trilogy publishing "A Yankee in the Land of the Morning Calm: Gold & Rail" and "A Yankee in the Land of the Morning Calm: The Northern Frontier" in 2007 and 2013 respectively. [16] [17] [18] In August 2009 he published Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea's International Gateway. [19]
In December 2012 he published a book titled "Korea Facing: Secrets for Success in Korean Global Business". [20] [21] In March 2014 he published "Hyundai Way: Hyundai Speed", a book analyzing Hyundai's management style. [22] Beginning 2015, Southerton published "Korea Perspective", a book focusing on daily interaction between Koreans and non-Koreans, in a business environment. [23] Throughout his career Southerton has commented on South Korean related issues in BBC, Korea Times, Korea Herald, The Wall Street Journal and Forbes among others and he has given speeches on South Korean-related topics. [18] [24] [25]
Southerton currently serves as an advisor for a number of global and South Korean groups. [26] <ref>
Taekwondo, also spelled tae kwon do or taekwon-do, is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving punching and kicking techniques. The literal translation for taekwondo is "kicking", "punching", and "the art or way of". It sometimes involves the use of weapons.
Incheon, formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City, is a city located in northwestern South Korea, bordering Seoul and Gyeonggi to the east. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Incheon was home to just 4,700 people when it became an international port in 1883. Today, about 3 million people live in the city, making it South Korea's third-most-populous city after Seoul and Busan.
Kajukenbo is a hybrid martial art from Hawaii. It was developed in the late 1940s and founded in 1947 in the Palama Settlement on Oahu, Territory of Hawaii.
Jae-chul Shin was a Korean martial artist and founder of the World Tang Soo Do Association.
Korean martial arts are fighting practices and methods which have their place in the history of Korea but have been adapted for use by both military and non-military personnel as a method of personal growth or recreation. The history of Korean martial arts can be traced as far back as the prehistoric era.
Hwang Jang-lee is a Japanese-born Korean martial artist and actor best known for his Hong Kong martial arts films. He is a ninth-dan grandmaster in Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo who began training in 1957. Prior to his acting career, Hwang was a martial arts instructor for the Korean military in Vietnam.
Moo Duk Kwan is the name of a martial art organization founded by Hwang Kee in South Korea in 1945. Licensed Moo Duk Kwan schools teach Soo Bahk Do, formerly Tang Soo Do. 'Moo Duk Kwan' translates as "School of Martial Virtue". Tang Soo Do Moo Duk Kwan translates to “the brotherhood and school of stopping inner and outer conflict and developing virtue according to the way of the worthy hand”
Tang Soo Do is a Korean martial art based on karate and may include fighting principles from taekkyeon, subak, as well as northern Chinese martial arts. From its beginnings in 1944 to today, Tang Soo Do is used by some Kwans to identify the traditional Korean fusion of martial arts styles. In the mid 1950s, Tang Soo Do became the basis for the martial art Taekwondo when the Korean Nine Kwans united.
Subak (手搏) is an ancient martial art that originated in Korea and uses bare-hand techniques. The term was also used in Korea to refer to any fighting style that used bare hands. It is a different fighting style from Soo Bahk Do, which is a modern martial art with the same pronunciation.
Hwang Kee was one of the most important and influential figures in the Korean martial arts. He was the founder of the school of Tang Soo Do Moo Duk Kwan style.
Songdo, officially known as Songdo International Business District (Songdo IBD), is a smart city built on 600 ha (1,500 acres) of reclaimed land along Incheon's waterfront, 30 km (19 mi) southwest of Seoul, South Korea. It is connected to Incheon International Airport by a 12.3 km (7.6 mi) reinforced concrete highway bridge called Incheon Bridge. Along with Yeongjong and Cheongna, it is part of the Incheon Free Economic Zone.
The Korean terms hyeong, pumsae, poomsae and teul are all used to refer to martial arts forms that are typically used in Korean martial arts such as Taekwondo and Tang Soo Do.
Emperor of the Sea is an epic South Korean television drama series starring Choi Soo-jong, Chae Shi-ra, Song Il-kook، Soo Ae and Chae Jung-an It aired on KBS2 from November 24, 2004, to May 25, 2005, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 51 episodes. The period drama is based on Choi In-ho's 2003 novel Hae-sin, which depicts the life of Jang Bogo, who rises from a lowly slave to a powerful maritime figure who dominated the East Asia seas and international trade during the Unified Silla dynasty.
Moo Duk Kwan Taekwondo is a modern Korean martial art formed in April 1965 by Kim Young-taek, Hong Chong-soo, and Lee Kang-ik, after a significant group of former students of Hwang Kee chose to leave the original Moo Duk Kwan organization in order to join the Taekwondo unification movement.
The 2013 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, officially 4th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games and also known as Incheon 2013, was a pan-continental event held in Incheon, South Korea from 29 June to 6 July 2013 that served as a dress-rehearsal for the upcoming 2014 Asian Games, which was also held in the same city. It was the first event to be held under the "Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games" name following the merger of two OCA events – Asian Indoor Games and Asian Martial Arts Games, inherited the edition numeral of the former. Doha, Qatar was initially scheduled to host the 4th Asian Indoor Games in 2011, but withdrawn in June 2008 due to "unforeseen circumstances", with the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) chose Incheon instead as a replacement and postponed the games to 2013.
Patrick E. Johnson was an American martial artist. He was a 9th degree black belt in American Tang Soo Do and was the president of the National Tang Soo Do Congress, which was originally created by Chuck Norris in 1973.
Futsal for the 2013 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games was held in two venues, at the Songdo Global Campus, and the Dongbu Students Gymnasium. Matches took place from 26 June to 6 July 2013, with a break on 2 July.
American Tang Soo Do is a hybrid martial art formed in 1966 by Chuck Norris who combined the Korean martial art of Tang Soo Do with Japanese styles of Judo, Shito-ryu Karate and Shotokan Karate. Over the years it has been further developed by former black belts of his and their students.
Jung Kil Kim, also known as Tiger Kim, is a martial arts practitioner. A native of the nation of South Korea he won numerous titles including the Asian Martial Arts Championship Tournament.
Sun-hwan Chung, also known as James Sun-hwan Chung, is one of the highest-ranking Tang Soo Do, Hapkido, and taekwondo grandmasters in the world. He is founder of the Moo Sool Do form of martial arts and is president of the World Academy of Martial Arts, LLC.