A cultural identity debate between China and South Korea has extended from kimchi to ginseng chicken soup, as a university academic in Seoul seeks to take down a description in search engine results that says the dish is from the southern Chinese province of Guangdong.

Public relations professor Seo Kyung-duk wrote to online Chinese-language encyclopedia Baidu Baike to protest at claims about the origin of the soup, which the Koreans called Samgye-tang, and to ask that a certain search entry be removed, Yonhap News Agency said on Tuesday.

The entry Seo demanded Baidu Baike delete reads: “Samgye-tang is one of the ancient Cantonese soup dishes, made with ginseng, poussin and glutinous rice. It became one of the most representative dishes in Korea’s royal court cuisine after spreading to the peninsula.”

For decades, South Korea has been at loggerheads with China over cultural ownership, from the birthplace of ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius to the Mid-Autumn Festival, which Koreans celebrate as the Chuseok Festival. Each side alleges the other is committing cultural piracy.

Seo, of Sungshin Women’s University, in 2019 created a publicity website about Korean history with actress Song Hye-kyo. The professor is also known for writing to the New York Times to argue about the origin of kimchi, a dish of salted and fermented vegetables usually served on the side.

The Yonhap report, citing the South Korean Rural Development Administration, said that wealthy Koreans invented the method of adding ginseng powder to stewed chicken soup during the Japanese colonial period in the early 1900s. The modern-day Samgye-tang first appeared in the 1960s and spread to households after the 1970s.

It is believed to promote health and is part of South Koreans’ diet, especially during hot and sultry days in summer. Ginseng, a slow-growing perennial plant, is also used in Chinese folk medicine for anticarcinogenic and antiaging properties.

China does not have an HS code for Samgye-tang to classify products traded with overseas countries, while South Korea uses the HS code 1602.32.1010 to represent its signature soup dish.

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