조선후기 專門職 中人의 과학기술활동 = Scientific and Technical Activities of Chungin Specialists(專門職 中人) in the Latter Period of Joseon Dynasty(1600~1910 A.D.)

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

There was a wide difference between Oriental and Occidental civilization in the development of scientific history, especially after the 17th century, Joseph Needham (1900~1995 A.D.) raised the question, "Why were science and technology not developed in the Orient of modern age?" It is for this reason that we now refer to this question as "The Problem of Needham" according it his name. However, this problem has remained up until now and has not yet been dealt with.
In a Confucian society such as the Joseon dynasty, people who worked in science and technology were accorded the status of 'Chungin Specialists (專門職中人)' over the course of time. In this respect, we have to turn our attention to the activity of Chungin Specialists (專門職中人) in order to solve the problem put forth by Joseph Needham.
The official specialists in the Joseon dynasty were composed of interpreters, medical doctors, astronomers, lawyers, accountants or artists. Many Chungin Specialists (專門職中人) passed national examination, named Chabkoa(雜科), for advancement and their professions could be hereditary in the latter period of Joseon dynasty. The interpreters in the latter period of the Joseon dynasty arranged various methods to cope with science and technology as it related to national defense. They were involved in the importation of water buffalo horns (水牛角) from South-East Asia that were used to make bows. The amount tallied up to 70% of all officially imported materials. The guild called bow and hom(弓角契) disappeared in 1750. In 1592 (壬辰倭亂), during the Japanese invasion, the production of nitrates (焰硝) which are the main ingredient of gun powder was more important during the to the Joseon authorities. An interpreter named Hun Pyo (表憲) learned and introduced an extraction method that he learned from outside sources. After the war, nitrates (焰硝) were imported from M'ing (明), but this practice was discontinued following the 1627 Jurchen (女眞) Invasion (丁卯胡亂). In 1631, Doowon Jeong (鄭斗源), an envoy to Beijing, China, received nitrate soil, nitrate flowers and magazine rifles (鳥銃) from Rodrigez in China.
After Ching's (淸) Invasion in 1636 (丙子胡亂), it was generally accepted and encouraged to import nitrate illegally due to the national necessity. However, in the 8th year of King Hyojong (孝宗, 1657), an illegal importation of nitrate was detected in Shenyung Castle (鳳凰城). On the other hand, sulfur (硫黃) was imported from Japan through the illegal trade by interpreters.
In the 2nd and 3rd year of King Hyojong (孝宗, 1651 and 1652 A.D.), interpreters, directed by the Korean Government, such as Keunhaeng Kim (金謹行) and Heenam Hong (洪喜男), decided upon the price for 15,000 keun (斤) of sulfur in a discussion with the governor of Tsushima Island (對馬島) in Japan.
In the 17th year of King Sookjong (1691) the Korean Government noted that the interpreter to China, HyunJhang (張炫), had been demoted two levels as a result of his illegal import of 25 artillery pieces. This transaction had been detected by the Governor of Shenyung Castle (鳳凰城) in China a couple of years prior to the decision.
Following the 24th year of King Sookjong (1698), another interpreter, Jinam Kim (金指南) published a book entitled 'Sinjeon Jachobang (新傳煮硝方)' after mastering the gun powder production method used on the Liaotung Peninsula (遼東半島) in Ch’ing. His method was to mix nitrates, ash from the willow tree and sulfur in the ratio of 78:15:7. It was also his contribution to history to widen the northern territories by concluding the treaty concerning border lines between [oseon and China
Interpreter Wongyu Byun (卞元圭) met Hoongjang Lee (李鴻章) in China to research and buy weapons. However, the purchasing of weapons did not succeed because of the huge amounts funds required. His contribution also included sending f)l people (including 38 students) to the Tientsin (天津) Machine Factory in China in order to study weapons.
This was after the opening of a port and, even though l) young peo

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Ⅰ. 머리말
• Ⅱ. 조선의 雜科와 中人身分
• Ⅲ. 中人들의 活動
• Ⅳ. 맺음말
• Abstract