New Year honour for SOAS expert on Korea

Academic and research associate Dr James Hoare from SOAS’s Centre of Korean Studies has been awarded an OBE for his dedication and services to UK interests on the Korean peninsula, in this year’s New Year Honours list.

Dr Hoare received his PhD in Japanese History from SOAS in 1971 and has been a part of the SOAS community for many years. Highly regarded as a prominent figure between the UK and the affairs of Korea, Dr Hoare served as a member of HM Diplomatic Service from 1969 to 2023 – with postings in Seoul, Beijing and Pyongyang, where he opened the British Embassy in 2001.  

Like my friends and colleagues in the Centre of Korean Studies, I continue to work to further understanding of the peninsula and the wider East Asian world.

After retirement, he became an Honorary Research Associate in Korean Studies at SOAS and had spells as a teaching fellow. He was also an active member of the British Korean Society and the British Association for Korean Studies. Throughout his career, Dr Hoare has produced around 37 books, having also made contributions to journals, edited volumes, and book reviews covering Japan, the two Koreas and China – with a core focus on diplomacy and international law. 

Speaking on the prestigious honour, Dr Hoare said: 

“I am truly grateful for the recognition of my role in furthering Britain’s relations with the Korean peninsula, and to those former colleagues in the FCDO and the academic work who have brought it about. Like my friends and colleagues in the Centre of Korean Studies, I continue to work to further understanding of the peninsula and the wider East Asian world."

With a longstanding presence having been established in 1987, the SOAS Centre of Korean Studies has one of the largest concentrations of Korean scholars in Europe, presiding over academia and research in current affairs, political relations, history, culture and economy. 

The full list of 2025 New Year Honours is now available.