Chungin
Encyclopedia
The chungin also jungin, were the petite bourgeoisie
of the Joseon Dynasty
of Korea
. The name "chungin" literally means "middle people". This privileged class of commoners consisted of a small group of petty bureaucrats and other skilled workers whose technical and administrative skills enabled the yangban
and the royal family to rule the lower classes. Chungin were the lifeblood of the Confucian agrarian bureaucracy, for whom the upper classes depended on to maintain their vice-like hold on the people. Their traditions and habits are the forerunners of the modern Korean administrative system and police state in both North and South Korea.
aristocracy but above commoners in social status. They included government-employed technical specialists (e.g. interpreters, physicians, jurists, astronomers, accountants, calligraphers, and musicians), military officers from or had marriage ties to the families producing technical specialists, hereditary government functionaries (both capital and local), and illegitimate children of aristocrats.
In everyday life, the chungin were below the aristocratic yangban but superior to the sangmin
. Their roles were minor technical and administrative officials who supported the structure of the government. The highest-ranking chungin, local functionaries, administratively enabled the yangban to oppress the lower classes, especially the total control they had over the sangmin. The chungin functioned as a class of petite bourgeoisie
and were essentially petty bureaucrats in the rural areas especially.
Although inferior to the aristocracy in social standing, the chungin enjoyed far more privileges and influence than commoners. For example, the chungin were not taxed nor subject to military conscription. Like the yangban, they were allowed to live in the central part of the city, hence the name "middle people". Also, the chungin tended to marry within their own class as well as into the yangban class. In addition, since they were eligible to enter the palace as royal servants
, it was possible for a chungin girl, if her father had a clean reputation or good connections and she was able to catch the king or Queen Dowager's good eye, to become a royal consort or even a Royal Noble Consort, the third highest level in the hierarchy of the king's harem, after the Queen Dowager and the queen. An example is Royal Noble Consort Hee of the Jang clan, mother of Gyeongjong
.
However, to become a chungin, passing the chapkwa examination, which tested their practical knowledge of certain skills, was usually required. The chungin besides being known as a class of petite bourgeoisie, they were the smallest social class in dynastic Korea.
The Korean chungin, as a social class, were roughly analogous to the petite bourgeoisie in Europe. Local functionaries in the rural areas were basically equal to petty bureaucrats.
Petite bourgeoisie
Petit-bourgeois or petty bourgeois is a term that originally referred to the members of the lower middle social classes in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
of the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...
of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
. The name "chungin" literally means "middle people". This privileged class of commoners consisted of a small group of petty bureaucrats and other skilled workers whose technical and administrative skills enabled the yangban
Yangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
and the royal family to rule the lower classes. Chungin were the lifeblood of the Confucian agrarian bureaucracy, for whom the upper classes depended on to maintain their vice-like hold on the people. Their traditions and habits are the forerunners of the modern Korean administrative system and police state in both North and South Korea.
Professions and roles in the society
In dynastic Korea, particularly during the Joseon period, the chungin were lower than the yangbanYangban
The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
aristocracy but above commoners in social status. They included government-employed technical specialists (e.g. interpreters, physicians, jurists, astronomers, accountants, calligraphers, and musicians), military officers from or had marriage ties to the families producing technical specialists, hereditary government functionaries (both capital and local), and illegitimate children of aristocrats.
In everyday life, the chungin were below the aristocratic yangban but superior to the sangmin
Sangmin
The sangmin were the common people of Joseon Korea. About 75% of all Koreans at that time were sangmin. The sangmin consisted of peasants, laborers, fishermen, some craftsmen and merchants. The sangmin were considered "clean workers" but had little social status. Generally they were poor. They...
. Their roles were minor technical and administrative officials who supported the structure of the government. The highest-ranking chungin, local functionaries, administratively enabled the yangban to oppress the lower classes, especially the total control they had over the sangmin. The chungin functioned as a class of petite bourgeoisie
Petite bourgeoisie
Petit-bourgeois or petty bourgeois is a term that originally referred to the members of the lower middle social classes in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
and were essentially petty bureaucrats in the rural areas especially.
Although inferior to the aristocracy in social standing, the chungin enjoyed far more privileges and influence than commoners. For example, the chungin were not taxed nor subject to military conscription. Like the yangban, they were allowed to live in the central part of the city, hence the name "middle people". Also, the chungin tended to marry within their own class as well as into the yangban class. In addition, since they were eligible to enter the palace as royal servants
Gungnyeo
Gungnyeo is a Korean term referring to women waiting on the king and other royalty in traditional Korean society. It is short for "gungjung yeogwan", which translates as "a lady officer of the royal court". Gungnyeo includes sanggung and nain , both of which hold rank as officers...
, it was possible for a chungin girl, if her father had a clean reputation or good connections and she was able to catch the king or Queen Dowager's good eye, to become a royal consort or even a Royal Noble Consort, the third highest level in the hierarchy of the king's harem, after the Queen Dowager and the queen. An example is Royal Noble Consort Hee of the Jang clan, mother of Gyeongjong
Gyeongjong
Gyeongjong or Kyŏngjong may refer to:*Gyeongjong of Joseon, r. 1720–1724, Korean ruler*Gyeongjong of Goryeo, r. 976–981, Korean ruler...
.
However, to become a chungin, passing the chapkwa examination, which tested their practical knowledge of certain skills, was usually required. The chungin besides being known as a class of petite bourgeoisie, they were the smallest social class in dynastic Korea.
The Korean chungin, as a social class, were roughly analogous to the petite bourgeoisie in Europe. Local functionaries in the rural areas were basically equal to petty bureaucrats.
Famous chungin
Chungin were prominent especially in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when they tended to welcome Western institutions and ideas for modernizing Korea. Well known chungin include Yu Daechi (a.k.a. Yu Honggi), O Gyeongsok and his son O Sechang, Byeon Su and Kim Gyusik.See also
- YangbanYangbanThe yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." In reality, they were basically administrators and bureaucrats who...
- SangminSangminThe sangmin were the common people of Joseon Korea. About 75% of all Koreans at that time were sangmin. The sangmin consisted of peasants, laborers, fishermen, some craftsmen and merchants. The sangmin were considered "clean workers" but had little social status. Generally they were poor. They...
- CheonminCheonminCheonmin, or "vulgar commoners," were the lowest caste of commoners in dynastical Korea. They abounded during the Goryeo and Joseon periods of Korea's agrarian bureaucracy. Like the caste system in India, this social class was largely hereditary and based on certain professions considered...
- petite bourgeoisiePetite bourgeoisiePetit-bourgeois or petty bourgeois is a term that originally referred to the members of the lower middle social classes in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
- Joseon DynastyJoseon DynastyJoseon , was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo at what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul...