19세기 충청도 양반 가문의 입후(入後) 사례연구－경주김씨 학주공파 고문서 자료를 중심으로－

Abstract

Originally, Joseon's legal adoption was possible only when a person who did not have a son from both a lawful wife and a concubine adopted a son who was not a firstborn son among the sons of family relatives as an adopted child. However, in the Joseon Yangban (Aristocratic) class after the 17th century, as the notion of discrimination between the legitimate child and the bastard was strengthened, even though a concubine already had a son, there was a trend of accepting a legitimate child from the same family as an adopted child or adopting the eldest son. As this aspect was contrary to the provisions of “Gyeonggukdaejeon”, special permission from the king was required. According to studies so far, to be recognized as such an exception, it is said that the social status of the adopted family was an important factor. This article based on old documents owned by Gyeongju Kim Clan Hakjugong-pa, one of the prestigious Giho-region families, reviewed cases related to adoption in the 18th and 19th centuries and specific cases were considered. Like many families at the time, it was confirmed that this family also had an adopted child after death or adopted a firstborn child, etc. In particular, through the case of adoption of a firstborn child, in addition to the possibilityof conflict between the adopted family and the birth family in the future, up to the 19th century, the possibility that the family succession of concubine children was also considered as a means to prevent the discontinuation of the family was confirmed. In addition, by comparative review of family register data and genealogy, there were not a few cases of adoption after the death of the father, and even if the absence of the successor after the death of the father lasts for a long time, it was also confirmed once again that they preferred adopting descendants of close relatives, such as their nephews. This intention is proved by the fact that the family waited for his younger brother's second son to grow up before adopting him while the deceased father's role has long been replaced by his younger brother. In other words, since the actual cases of family customs such as adoption in the late Joseon appeared in very diverse aspects, more case studies are needed to systematically understand the customs of the Joseon era on adoption.