일제강점기 세탁비누의 산업화 양상과 시대적 가치 재조명

Abstract

Laundry has been performed as an ancillary housework for clothing management, and the development of laundry places, tools and detergents has brought a change to laundry culture. Especially, for wet laundry using water, detergent performs an important role in cleaning. This paper aims to examine industrialization aspects of new culture and the value of the times focusing on laundry soaps of the Japanese colonial era, which were manufactured to manage new clothes, with the advancement in modern science technology and the demands of the times, such as the encouragement of colored clothing, new material-based fabrics and the influx of foreign costumes. It is known that the laundry soap manufacturing industry in Gyeongseong began in 1906. In early 1910, the products produced in Gyeongseong were labeled with the origin ‘From Gyeongseong(京城産)’ to distinguish from the products of other regions, and this implies that there were domestic soap manufacturing industrial complexes other than Gyeongseong. According to diverse statistical data (『A List of Factories in Joseon』 and 『Japanese Government-General of Korea Annual Statistics Annual Report』) researched and reported by the Japanese Government-General of Korea in the 1930s regarding production sites depending on soap uses, cosmetic soaps were manufactured around in Gyeongseong and laundry soaps were manufactured nationwide. Major laundry soap factory areas were Gunsan in Jeonbuk Province, Busan in Gyeongnam Province and Wonsan in Hamnam Province, where are surrounded by big rivers and they were all industrial cities during the Japanese colonial era. The manufacture of laundry soaps was recognized as a promising industry in 1927 and with the high growth in the 1930s, it was established as a major product of Joseon. The manufacture of laundry soaps was recognized as one of side jobs encouraged by the Japanese Government-General of Korea for social enlightenment in late 1920 due to the easiness of raw material purchase, simple facility, small business funds, easy acquisition of techniques and so on. In the 1930s, it expanded as a side job for individuals or rural communities and grew as a factory manufacturing business. The high material value of laundry soaps of the times can be proven by the fact that they were used for promotion as prizes or gift-aways. For these reasons, laundry soaps in the Japanese colonial era have significance as new culture and an indicator of modern laundry culture with economic feasibility and efficiency.