Around the fourteenth century, Wako (specifically, the early Wako), a multiethnic group of pirates that included Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans, began increasing their activities in the seas from northern Kyushu in Japan to those around the Korean peninsula and along the coast of China; in addition to the formal tributary trade missions, it was now also permissible for trade to be conducted between Japan and Korea by private merchants, adding a more international flavor to the maritime world of East Asia during this period.
14世紀前後の北九州から朝鮮半島、中国沿岸などでは日本人、中国人や朝鮮民族らの多民族構成とする倭寇（前期倭寇）が活発化し、日朝貿易においては朝貢貿易に加えて民間貿易も許可されていたため、東アジアの海上世界は民族雑居状態が存在していた。