Encountering the Silk Road in Mengjiang with Tada Fumio: Korean/Japanese Colonial Fieldwork, Research, Connections and Collaborations ACTA VIA SERICA Vol. 7, No. 1, June 2022: 131–148 doi: 10.22679/avs.2022.7.1.006 While much has been written about Imperial Japan’s encounter with JHRSROLWLFV DQG GHYHORSLQJ LGHDV DERXW *HRJUDSK\ DV D SROLWLFDO DQG FXOWXUDO discipline, little if anything has been written about relational and research *HRJUDSKLHV EHWZHHQ -DSDQ DQG 6LON 5RDGV ERWK DQFLHQW DQG PRGHUQ 0HPRULHV RI WKH DQFLHQW 6LON 5RDG ZHUH UHYLYLﾀHG LQ WKH ODWH  th century LQ WDQGHP ZLWK WKH *UHDW *DPH RI (XURSHDQ QDWLRQV DV -DSDQ PRGHUQL]HG DQG VRXJKW QHZ SODFHV DQG LQﾁXHQFH JOREDOO\ IROORZLQJ WKH 0HLML UHVWRUDWLRQ ,PSHULDO -DSDQ WKXV VRXJKW WR FRQTXHU DQG FRRSW VSDFHV LPDJLQHG WR EH SDUW RI RU LQﾁXHQFHG E\ WKH DQFLHQW 6LON 5RDG DQG DQ\ PRGHUQ PDQLIHVWDWLRQ RI LW 7KLV SDSHU H[SORUHV D SDUWLFXODU SURFHVV LQ WKDW FRRSWLRQ DQG appropriation, research collaboration between institutions of the Empire. In particular it considers the exploration of Mengjiang/Inner Mongolia after LWV FRQTXHVW LQ  E\ D FROODERUDWLYH WHDP RI .RUHDQ DQG -DSDQHVH *HRJUDSKHUV OHG E\ 3URIHVVRU 7DGD )XPLR 7KLV SDSHU FRQVLGHUV WKH PDNLQJ NQRZDEOH RI VSDFHV LPDJLQHG WR EH RQ WKH DQFLHQW 6LON 5RDG LQ WKH ,PSHULDO SHULRG DQG WKH SURMHFWLQJ RI WKH LPSHUDWLYHV RI WKH (PSLUH EDFN LQWR 6LON Road history, at the same time as such territory was being made anew. This paper also casts new light on the relational and collaborative processes of DFDGHPLF H[FKDQJH VSHFLﾀFDOO\ LQ WKH ﾀHOG RI *HRJUDSK\ EHWZHHQ .RUHDQ and Japanese academics during the Korean colonial period. Keywords: 6LON 5RDG *HRJUDSK\ LQ WKH -DSDQHVH (PSLUH *HRJUDSK\ LQ &RORQLDO .RUHD *HRSROLWLFV 0HQJMLDQJ 7DGD )XPLR 5HVHDUFK &ROODERUDWLRQV 5REHUW :,167$1/(<&+(67(56 DQG $GDP &$7+&$57 5REHUW :,167$1/(<&+(67(56 LV D /HFWXUHU DW WKH 8QLYHUVLW\ RI /HHGV DQG %DWK 6SD 8QLYHUVLW\ $GDP &$7+&$57 LV D /HFWXUHU DW WKH 8QLYHUVLW\ RI /HHGV