경남 창원 토지조사의 실시와 지역 주민의 대응

Abstract

This paper examined how Changwon residents in Korea understood and responded in terms of the Japanese Chosǒn land survey project that was carried out since 1910. To begin with, before the land survey project, Japanese colonialism made the owners of forests register their property through the law of forests in 1908. In the early period, the rate of report was low; however, 52,000 reports were made in 1911. This is because Korean people who wanted to confirm and protect their private ownership of forests, increased consciousness of land-owernship. Japanese colonialism established the register bureau of land in March 1910and carried out the land survey in August 1910. In the beginning of the land survey project, most Koreans understood that this project was not necessary and able to increasing the land tax, more over that this was for making private ownership into state ownership. The authority of the land survey actively dealt with this problem not only by giving the ‘explanation of a modern land survey project’ to the press for nine times but also distributing it in the type of the special booklet. The land report in Changwon, Kyungsangnam-do province, began on June 1st, 1913 and was conducted by the end of January in 1915. With respect to the documents of the land reports in each township in Changwon, it seemed that most reports were smoothly done from June to October in 1913. As a matter of fact, in the process of arranging the report documents after the end of the reports, those who reported their land were required to submit various documentary evidences. In the case of Japanese, some absentee landlords did not attach the letter of attorney properly, and raised the ownership dispute with Changwon residents due to the excessive expansion of the land purchase. Changwon people mostly reported their lands according to the policy of the land survey authority afterward, they had to submit many documents regarding dealing in real estate and the inheritance of land. In some regions such as Woongdong township, etc., in the case of submitting the new registration of land, there were many instances where it was handled mainly by administrative convenience, not based on the date of the ownership transfer. In regard to the land ownership disputes with Japanese, Chosǒn land-oweners strived to secure their land ownership through the reconciliation of disputed land, cancellation, raising counterargument, and so forth. On this time, Changwon residents were enforced to follow the Japanese policy of the land Survey project of Land-ownership; however, they were trying to respond to it for conforming their land-ownership.