In the late Joseon Dynasty, Heungseon Daewongun abolished the seowon in 1868 due to the excessive construction of clan seowons and various problems of the seowons as the base of the Bungdang. Later, as Heungseon Daewongun stepped down in 1873, Confucian scholars actively engaged in the movement to restore seowon. In the Gyeongnam area, there were about 298 seowon and sau during the Joseon Dynasty. After the demolition, there were 31 new and restored places from 1868 to 1910, 38 Japanese colonial eras, and 78 places from liberation to the present, respectively. The first time was when Gojong, like Heungseon Daewongun, maintained a strong policy that it was impossible to restore seowon. For this reason, most Confucian scholars built an altar(壇) on behalf of Seowon and continued the ritual for ancient sages(先賢). If the conditions for setting up an altar were not possible, a school or shrine was established at the site of the seowon, and a yeongdang was established if there was a portrait. In Gyeongnam, 31 seowon were restored in various forms such as Jaesil, Gangdang, Jeongsa, Sau, and Jeongja. By region, there are 7 Sancheong, 4 in Changwon, Miryang, and Ulsan, 3 in Uiryeong, and 2 in Gimhae and Changnyeong, respectively.
 Restoration and establishment of Japanese colonial era showed a slight increase from the previous period. This is because the effect of the abolition of seowon disappeared during the period, and the importance of traditional education was increasing as part of rescue activities through education. By region, there are 7 in Sancheong, 6 in Haman, 5 in Hapcheon, 3 in Geochang, Jinju, and Hamyang, and 2 in Uiryeong and Changnyeong regions, respectively.
 After liberation, the growth rate increased from the 1970s, starting with four cases in the 1940s, and reached its peak in the 1980s, and has been rapidly decreasing since then. The increase since the 1970s seems to have occurred as a result of economic development that led to the honor of the family's famous ancestors. However, Doyang Seowon(道陽書院) in Sancheong established after 1978, Wolbong Seowon(月峰書院) in Gimhaein 1984, and Taedong Seowon (泰東書院) in Hapcheon in 2012, are characterized by celebrating Confucian scholars during the modern era. Seowon restored to commemorate the modern and contemporary Confucian scholars should be viewed from the perspective of establishing and reconstructing the academic transmission space of those who were the last heirs of traditional Confucianism, rather than simply seeing it as an outdated product.
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Sep 26, 2024
Guo Yi 
Open Access