본 논문은 호적과 일기를 중심으로 조선시대 妾制의 정착과 가족질서의 확립과정과 첩을 얻는 과정에서 남성이 감당할 경제적 부담의 정도에 대하여 살펴본 것이다. 조선시대의 妾制는 선초에 중혼행위에 대한 제제를 통하여 성립되어 갔다. 조선전기의 사대부들은 ‘禮에는 두 명의 嫡妻가 없다’는 禮法에 의하여 일부일처제를 확립해 나갔다. 중혼자에 대한 처벌과 후처에 대해 강제 이혼과 함께 그 소생에게 불이익을 줌으로서 축첩행위를 억제하였다. 중혼이 불가능하게 되자 양반으로서 첩이 되는 사람은 일반 양인여성과 천인여성으로 한정되어 갔다. 처와 첩은 여러 가지 측면에서 많은 차이를 갖는다. 처는 가문의 후사를 잇기 위해 동일한 계층에서 선택된 여성이지만 첩은 남편이 개인적인 취향에 따라 선택한 여성이다. 이들의 관계는 사회적 공인도나 혼인의 지속성에서 많은 차이를 보인다. 처와 첩의 위치는 바뀔 수 없었으며, 살아서는 물론이고 죽은 뒤에도 대우가 달랐다. 처는 남편의 사후 수절을 강요받았지만, 첩은 남편과의 관계가 해소되면 재혼하는 것이 일반적이었다. 첩의 규모는 戶籍과 日記, 族譜 등을 통하여 추정할 수 있다. 단성지역의 족보와 호적을 비교 검토한 결과 적자녀와 첩자녀의 비율이 70 : 30 정도의 비중을 차지했다. 柳希春(1513～1577)家는 위로 몇 대만 제외하고 친가 처가 외가의 구별 없이 관비와 사비를 취첩하여 자식을 낳았다. 李文楗(1494～1567)家 남성들의 여성편력도 유희춘가 못지 않으며 吳希文(1539～1613)의 아들 吳允謙(1559～1636)도 마찬가지 였다. 상층 양반의 첩이 되는 여성은 官妓와 私婢로 나뉘고, 사비는 다시 自己婢와 他人婢로 구분된다. 타인의 비는 자기의 비에 비하여 贖身․贖良절차가 상당히 복잡하다. 속신은 上典과의 합의를 전제로 하는데, 서로간의 이해관계가 맞지 않을 경우 쉽게 방매하지 않았다. 설사 방매하더라도 3〜4배의 가격을 요구하기도 하였다. 妾과 그 所生은 출계가 미약할 뿐만 아니라 경제적인 능력을 갖추지 못하였다. 이들은 첩이 됨으로 인하여 양반문화에 편승하고, 이후의 경제생활을 남편 쪽에 전적으로 의지하였다. 따라서 남편과 그 가족들은 수시로 노동력과 물자를 제공하여야 했다. 남편이 양반 관직자인 경우 첩은 지방관이나 친인척들로부터 상당한 규모의 물자를 지원받았다. 첩도 양반 관직자의 선물권 범위에 포함되었다. 선물은 평소에도 보내지지만, 가내대소사가 있을 때에는 직접 요청하기도 하였다. 이들 물자는 생활에 적지 않은 보탬이 되었으며, 남편은 첩가에 대한 지방관의 호의에 대하여 고마운 마음을 가졌다. 그러나 양반 관직자의 입장에서는 선물은 어떠한 방식으로든 되돌려 주어야 할 빚이었다. 조선시대에는 지방관이 이임하면서 서로 아끼던 妓女에게 선물을 주는 것이 관례화 되었는데, 이는 첩에게도 해당되는 것이었다. 다만 기녀에 대한 선물이 일회적이라면 첩에 대한 선물은 장기 지속적이라는 특징을 갖는다. 결국 이러한 경제적인 부담은 양반들이 어쩔 수 없이 첩을 얻는 행위를 제한하는 요인으로 작용하였다고 여겨진다.

This purpose of this paper is to look at the process to settle concubine and secure family order and how it impacted on their pocketbooks in Joseon dyansty, based on census registrations and diaries. 1) Concubine system of Joseon dynasty had been settled since multi-marriage was restricted in early Joseon dynasty. Protestants of early Joseon cited the saying, 'No two proper wives are there in courtesy,' restricting concubines and settling monogamy system. Keeping concubine was restrained by punishing who had multi-married, by compulsory divorce, or by discriminating children of concubines. As multi-marriage gets impossible, concubines of nobility had limited to women of common or humble class. 2) Range of who became concubines in Joseon dynasty was wide from illegitimate daughter of nobility to official gisaeng and slave, while the best part of them were official gisaengs or private slaves. Concubinage was ripe in Joseon dynasty where a government official comes in company with his beloved official gisaeng when he was appointed as a local official, to make her his gisaeng concubine. 3) Wife and concubine are different from many views. While a wife was selected from the same class to carry on a family line, concubine was done only by her husband's private taste. Relation of them also were very different from the view of social contribution or consistency of the marriage. Positions of a wife and a concubine cannot be exchanged, meanwhile they were discriminated not only during their lives but also after their deaths. A wife was compelled to take the mantle, but a concubine generally remarried after being separated from her husband. 4) Scale of concubines is supposed from census registrations, diaries, and genealogical tables. As a result of comparison between genealogical tables and census registrations of a same surname village, the ratio of proper kids against concubines' kid was about 70 : 30. All of maternal and paternal line of Yu Hui-chun family gave births of kids from concubines, except only a few generation up above. Men of Lee Mun-geon family were close to those of Yu Hui-chun family. Oh Yun-gyeom son of Oh Hi-mun was the same from this view. 5) Concubines of upper nobility are divided into official gisaengs and private slaves, while private slaves are again divided into his own slave and other one's slave. To purchase other one's slave and make her a commoner, much tough courses were needed. Buying a slave was based on agreement with her master, but it was difficult if both parties were not agreed on conditions. In this case the original master used to call 3 or 4 times of price so that the potential buyer couldn't keep her as a concubine. 6) Concubines and her kids were from humble class and did not have any economic power. They took the advantage of being a concubine to share noble culture, turning the whole aftermath economic life to their husbands and other family members. Husbands frequently offered labor and supplies. Being anxious about the concubine, slaves were alternatively sent to her followed by the wife's ex post facto approval. 7) If the husband were a noble official, his concubine received and enjoyed a considerable scale of resources from local officials and his relatives. Even concubines were on the list of presents for a noble official. Presents were sent in ordinary times, but the husband directly asked to offer presents in case of big and small family events. Those supplies considerably helped to live their lives, and the husband was very graceful for the favor of local officials toward his concubine. However, this was absolutely a kind of debt as a noble official. In Joseon dynasty, they made it a practice to present a beloved gisaeng to newly appointed local official, which was all the same with a concubine. However, presents to gisaeng were for just one time while those to a concubine consisted for along time. On balance, this burden on their pocketbooks forced them to limit keeping a concubine.

This purpose of this paper is to look at the process to settle concubine and secure family order and how it impacted on their pocketbooks in Joseon dyansty, based on census registrations and diaries. 1) Concubine system of Joseon dynasty had been settled since multi-marriage was restricted in early Joseon dynasty. Protestants of early Joseon cited the saying, 'No two proper wives are there in courtesy,' restricting concubines and settling monogamy system. Keeping concubine was restrained by punishing who had multi-married, by compulsory divorce, or by discriminating children of concubines. As multi-marriage gets impossible, concubines of nobility had limited to women of common or humble class. 2) Range of who became concubines in Joseon dynasty was wide from illegitimate daughter of nobility to official gisaeng and slave, while the best part of them were official gisaengs or private slaves. Concubinage was ripe in Joseon dynasty where a government official comes in company with his beloved official gisaeng when he was appointed as a local official, to make her his gisaeng concubine. 3) Wife and concubine are different from many views. While a wife was selected from the same class to carry on a family line, concubine was done only by her husband's private taste. Relation of them also were very different from the view of social contribution or consistency of the marriage. Positions of a wife and a concubine cannot be exchanged, meanwhile they were discriminated not only during their lives but also after their deaths. A wife was compelled to take the mantle, but a concubine generally remarried after being separated from her husband. 4) Scale of concubines is supposed from census registrations, diaries, and genealogical tables. As a result of comparison between genealogical tables and census registrations of a same surname village, the ratio of proper kids against concubines' kid was about 70 : 30. All of maternal and paternal line of Yu Hui-chun family gave births of kids from concubines, except only a few generation up above. Men of Lee Mun-geon family were close to those of Yu Hui-chun family. Oh Yun-gyeom son of Oh Hi-mun was the same from this view. 5) Concubines of upper nobility are divided into official gisaengs and private slaves, while private slaves are again divided into his own slave and other one's slave. To purchase other one's slave and make her a commoner, much tough courses were needed. Buying a slave was based on agreement with her master, but it was difficult if both parties were not agreed on conditions. In this case the original master used to call 3 or 4 times of price so that the potential buyer couldn't keep her as a concubine. 6) Concubines and her kids were from humble class and did not have any economic power. They took the advantage of being a concubine to share noble culture, turning the whole aftermath economic life to their husbands and other family members. Husbands frequently offered labor and supplies. Being anxious about the concubine, slaves were alternatively sent to her followed by the wife's ex post facto approval. 7) If the husband were a noble official, his concubine received and enjoyed a considerable scale of resources from local officials and his relatives. Even concubines were on the list of presents for a noble official. Presents were sent in ordinary times, but the husband directly asked to offer presents in case of big and small family events. Those supplies considerably helped to live their lives, and the husband was very graceful for the favor of local officials toward his concubine. However, this was absolutely a kind of debt as a noble official. In Joseon dynasty, they made it a practice to present a beloved gisaeng to newly appointed local official, which was all the same with a concubine. However, presents to gisaeng were for just one time while those to a concubine consisted for along time. On balance, this burden on their pocketbooks forced them to limit keeping a concubine.

gisaeng-keeping (to take a gisaeng as a concubine), returning to original places (sending them to where they were originally belonged), slave-purchase (the process to buy other one's slave and to make his), making a commoner (the process to turn a salve into a commoner)