Unchanged Residential Area System in Bukchon(北村), Seoul since the 18th century Bukchon(北村), Seoul since the 18th century

Abstract

Bukchon, Seoul is area enclosed by a mountain range and to the North is high and to the South is low. The inside is made up of the five lower valleys and every valley streams flowing. The Administrative District Names of each valley were Ganghwa-bang, Yangdeokbang, Gahoe-bang, Anguk-bang, Jingjang-bang, Gwangwang-bang from east in the Joseon Dynasty. Inside each valley, there was a naturally formed village and each village(坊) had a culture of autonomous residents. That culture of each Bang(坊) is created by the royal family and nobility who has not a financial difficulties or not required efforts to avoid citizen labor(坊役). Hanseongbu(modern Seoul) citizens organized Gye(契)-Unit on the basis of human bonds and a spatial homogeneity in oder to perform their citizen labor in the 17th and 18th centuries. But because Bukchon people was able to avoid or exempt citizen labor from social status, they did not organize Gye-Unit. As a result, there was organized into 1Bang-1Gye by administrative districts without experiencing conflict divided into several Gye-Units. Bukchon could be maintained as a non-commercial residential areas like early Joseon Dynasty thanks to the system of 1valley-1Bang(village)-1Gye. Due to this, the culture of Bukchon became increasingly exert great force and it functioned as a power for holding the social status of residents. Since the 18th century, though Hanseogbu was turned commercial city, Bukchon was still as unchanged residential area, due to topography, location, social status construction, village culture etc.