고려시대 기인제의 운영과 변천

Abstract

King Taejo(太祖) of Goryeo initiated the Gi-In system(其人制, bring the sons of Hojok, the powerful local gentry, as a hostage and had them escort the King) to win over Hojok through the policy to embrace and conciliate Hojok and strengthen the control over the local power. While Gi-Ins had served as advisors on local communities in the early Goryeo Dynasty, the central government policies on Gi-Ins brought a change in the period when the royal authority and policy systems were stabilized. The previous researches on Gi-Ins mainly analyzed the origin and operation system of the Gi-In system in the early Goryeo Dynasty from a political perspective. They only mentioned the roles of Gi-Ins in a changed position in the late Goryeo Dynasty to be turned into toil or menial works, rather than researching the roles in detail and their influence on the Goryeo society. In this regard, it was necessary to identify the change and use of the functions of the Gi-In system in the Goryeo Dynasty that have not been discovered in detail. To that end, this paper analyzed the articles on Gi-Ins in Goryeosa(高麗史, history book of the Goryeo Dynasty) and Goryeosageolyo(高麗史節要, compilation of Goryeo history) to explore the origin of the Gi-In system, the functions of the system in the early Goryeo Dynasty and how the Goryeo Dynasty used the system. Moreover, this paper reviewed the functions of the Gi-In system and the change of the roles of Gi-Ins in the late Goryeo Dynasty, along with the change in the status and roles of Hyangris(local officials) who were in a close relationship with Gi-Ins. The study found out that the roles of Gi-Ins in the early Goryeo Dynasty were not hard works after identifying that the government treated Gi-Ins well by giving Dongjeongjik(同正職) or lands as a reward for their roles along with the social status as the sons of Hyangris in the early Goryeo Dynasty. However, with the unstable caste system in the late Goryeo Dynasty, it was discovered that Gi-Ins fell into the class who were engaged in menial works as the commoner(身良役賤) and their roles changed a lot from the early Goryeo Dynasty. In the early Goryeo Dynasty, Gi-Ins were responsible for assisting the administration of local affairs as an advisor on their hometown or by recommending the candidates for the national examination. However, during the military government and Mongolian invasion, Gi-Ins were mobilized to serve hard works for the nation such as farming the fallow lands and constructing the palace buildings. Unlike the first purpose of the system in the early Goryeo Dynasty, Gi-Ins were reused in many socio-economic areas. Although the abolishment of the Gi-In System was discussed because of the negative impact of the roles of Gi-Ins focused on hard works, the system kept remained as Goryeo desperately needed to secure labor force.