『한국 근대 행정구역 사전 : 1895-1963년』 편찬 방법과 의의

Abstract

This article explains the method employed in Dictionary of Modern Administrative District in Korea: 1895-1963 to deconstruct data, create different units of administrative districts, label each unit as “Do,” “Gun,” and “Myeon,” and record changes of district units, and the significance of this method. Administrative district system is an essential tool for governance as it plays a significant role in shaping people’s livelihood and their perceptions of a certain place. Dictionary of Modern Administrative District in Korea records the changes of district units and their organizations, ranging from “Gun” to “Myeon", from 1895 to 1963. The district system used in this dictionary is the one that Governor-General of Joseon had established after administrative district merge and reform in 1914, which divided the peninsula into 13 “Do”s, 12 “Bu”s and 220 “Gun”s. This system came to life as an expansion on the administrative district reform that the government of Korean Empire initiated, and it continued to last after the independence in 1945 till the district reform in 1963. This system allows scholars to examine the organization of administrative districts prior to the rapid industrialization and urbanization. Analysis of the origin of modern administrative district system and the history of its transformation, which began in 1895, helps scholars understand the modern history of Korea, which is characterized by modernization, followed by colonial rule, independence and partition of the peninsular into two states. This will also deter groundless assumptions on and interpretations of district names and enable [who] to change the district names to something relevant to the lives of Korean people in the contemporary society and future.