근대이행기 울산 병영 지역정체성의 재생산

Abstract

Ulsan, which used to depend mainly upon farming industry before 1962, grew up to be a representative industrial and metropolitan city of Korea with a population growth by more than one million for the 50 years since being designated as a special industrial complex. However, it is also regarded as a ‘city of others’ due to the absence of a sense of belonging among the immigrants to this city. As opposed to this trait of Ulsan city, Byeongyeong community of the city has a unique local identity, characterized by the strong community spirit among the Byeongyeong residents, their pride in the local community, their sense of belonging and exclusiveness toward those from other regions. This article is to delve, first of all, into the reasons why the residents of Byeongyeong area came to have the unique local identity. Judging the geographical trait of the area and the rampart serving as a physical barrier as elements deemed to help forging the local identity, this article analyzed the difference between the area inside the fortress and its outer areas, based on the household registers of the Joseon period. Gyeongsang jwabyeongyeong (Garrison in Gyeongsang-do province) was located at higher place, thus naturally detached from other areas. In addition, ramparts were established there, separating the area inside the fortress area from the rest of the city. Therefore, the residents inside the fortress could easily develop their own community spirit through folkloric performances such as Seonangchigi. The community of Byeongyeong also joined the March First Independence Movement of 1919 and also had the first private school of Ulsan, Byeongyeong Elementary School. The March First Independence Movement in Byeongyeong offered the residents the opportunity to share a communal experience and memory. They also took pride in themselves, as there was no case of engagement in the March First Independence Movement among their rivaling Ulsan residents. Their action of joining the March First movement served as a basis to create community spirit among the residents of Byeongyeong and a feeling of pride in the their community. In Byeongyeong community, which had no influential figure, the Byeongyeong Youth Society, organized by the alumni of Byeongyeong Elementary School, played a role of leading the community opinion and the March First Movement. As most of the natives of Byeongyeong were graduates of the elementary school, the Byeongyeong people almost automatically meant the graduates of Byeongyeong Elementary School. In other words, the Byeongyeong Elementary School helped to produce a group of influential people in the community and served as source to instill community spirit among those who graduated from the school. While the rampart and the Seonagchigi ritual helped the residents of Byeongyeong create their own community spirit and a sense of belonging in the pre-modern times, the March First Movement and the Byeongyeong Elementary School played a role of strengthening their community spirit and sense of belonging to the community in the modern era.