(8) PREFACE early written attestations.My analysis of the lexicographical record also forms the basis for my discussion of a number of other characteristics of ancient China shamanism,including the changes over time in the position of the shaman and the cultural contributions that he made.For the research,the oracle bone inscriptions and other materials,for example,archaeological record,bronze inscriptions,anthropology and religion,have provided me with an excellent basis in shamanistic practice. My ultimate goal is to make a contribution to the understanding of the earliest phases of the culture of my homeland,Korea,through the comparison of the early shamanistic cultures in both Korea and China.I hope that the inquiry will enable me to shed some light on the poorly attested period of Korean cultural formation before the impact of contact with the expanding Chinese cultural sphere.In addition,I believe that this book entitled References to Shamanism in the Shang Dynasty Oracle Bones would be fruitful in better understanding of the important religious practice in its various early forms. 檀紀四千三百三十六年三月孟春之際 冬斑 謹藏於臺大宿齋