Completed in 1145, it is well-known in Korea as the oldest surviving chronicle of Korean history.

Its compilation was ordered by King Injong of Goryeo (r. 1122–1146) and undertaken by a government official and historian named Kim Bu-sik with his team of junior scholars.

[2] Samguk sagi is critical to the study of Korean history during the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla periods.

The ideological factors are made manifest in the work's preface, written by Kim Busik, where the civil historian states, "Of today's scholars and high-ranking officials, there are those who are well-versed and can discuss in detail the Five Classics and the other philosophical treatises... as well as the histories of Qin and Han, but as to the events of our country, they are utterly ignorant from beginning to end.

In contrast, he lifts generously from the Chinese dynastic chronicles and even unofficial Chinese records, most prominently the Book of Wei, Sanguo Zhi, Jin Shu, Jiu Tangshu, Xin Tangshu, and the Zizhi Tongjian.