The Society for East Sea was established on November 9, 1994. It was two years after the Korean government adopted a position for international use of the East Sea name and successfully raised the issue at the UN General Assembly for Standardization of Geographical Names (UNCSGN) in August 1992. 
The important purpose of the Society was to unify the external channels by collecting the research results of various academic organizations and private researchers on the name of the East Sea. In order to secure the legitimacy of the name of the East Sea, research results in history, geography, old maps, geographical names, international relations and international law, politics, and sea were shared, and experts in the media, publishing and foreign affairs were encouraged to participate.

Launched in 1995, the year after the Society's establishment, the 'International Seminar on Sea Names' is a core project of the Society for East Sea.
The seminar, which was held every year, was started with the aim of persuading overseas experts about the legitimacy of the name of the East Sea, but thanks to accumulated research results, it is developing into an academic forum for sea names and disputed names.