新羅의 벼농사와 水利 (Rice farming and Irrigation of Shilla)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 호남사학회
· 수록지 정보 : 역사학연구 / 36호 / 1 ~ 22페이지
· 저자명 : 노용필

초록

新羅에서는 2세기경 무렵에 벼농사가 거의 일반화되다시피 하였고, 4세기 이후 6세기에 걸쳐 水利 灌漑 施設에 대해 국가적인 보강이 되면서 벼농사가 더욱 진전을 이루어졌다. 그래서 眞興王 때의 「昌寧碑」에는 신라인들만이 만들어 쓴, 논을 의미하는 ‘畓’이라는 한자가 기록되기에 이르렀을 정도였던 것이다. 당시에 이루어진 이와 같은 수리 관개 시설의 국가적인 보강 작업에 관한 金石文 자료 가운데 등장하는 塢는 ‘사면이 높고 중앙이 낮아 우묵 들어간 곳’을 지칭하므로, ‘주위보다 낮게 쌓아 河와 川의 물을 막아 주는 물막이 시설물’을 가리키는 것으로 풀이된다. 그러므로 塢는 곧 洑로 보다 낮은 물막이 시설물로서 ‘하’와 ‘천’의 군데군데에 조성되어 주변의 논으로 농업용수를 공급해줄 수 있게 해주는 수리 관개 시설물이었다. 이러한 塢의 축조로 인해서 농업용수의 공급이 안정적으로 이루어지면서 점차로 旱田이 줄어들고 상대적으로 水田 즉 畓이 늘어나고, 또한 종전의 閑田도 이른바 薄田의 상태를 벗어나 良田이 됨으로써 점차 常耕化되어 가는 추세를 맞고 있었다고 하겠다.
한편 法興王과 眞興王 재위를 거치면서 이루어진 영토 확장의 결과 土地와 耕作者가 증가하였고 또 그것을 매개로 論功行賞을 함에 따라 야기되는 경제 관계 분쟁을 위해서도 토지·산림 등의 소유권 행사를 둘러싼 犯法 행위에 대한 처벌 규정도 명시할 필요가 있었을 뿐더러 그 관련 업무의 실무 계통의 수립과 처벌 결정권의 소재를 명백히 해 둘 국가적 필요성이 대두되었다. 그래서 세워진 「昌寧碑」의 내용 가운데 白田과 水田 그리고 바다로 흘러들어가는 河와 川 주위에 형성된 밭과 논을 경작하고 사는 것을 의미하는 ‘州’가 나온다. 이는 河와 川 주변의 水澤地가 개발되고 있었음을 의미하며, 그만큼 벼농사에 있어서 생산기술이 크게 발달하여 논의 증대와 쌀의 증산이 이루어졌음을 반영한 것이었다. 이러한 三國時代 新羅의 벼농사 발전은 영토 확장의 커다란 원동력이 되어 끝내 삼국 통일을 이룰 수 있는 중요한 사회경제적인 토대가 되었다고 하겠다.

영어초록

The rice farming in the Shilla era was almost generalized at around 2th Century, and the rice farming was further improved according national reinforcement of water supply and irrigation facilities ranged from 4th Century to 6th Century.
Therefore, a Chinese character called 'Dab' meaning a rice field, which is made and written by only Shilla people, became to be recorded in 「Changryeong tombstone」in the King Jinheung Dynasty.
As a Chinese character, Oh(塢) appearing in epigraph material about national reinforcement work of the water supply and irrigation facilities carried out at the time designates a place where "the four sides are high and the center is low and concave", it can be explained that it designates 'a coffering installation blocking water of a river and a stream by accumulating to be lower than the surroundings.
Therefore, Oh(塢) was a coffering installation lower than a reservoir(洑) and was made here and there in a river and a stream, os it was the water supply and irrigation facilities that could supply agricultural water to nearby rice fields.
As supply of agricultural water was executed stably due to construction of Oh(塢), fields were gradually reduced and rice fields were increased, and as the previous uncultivated land was deviated from barren farming land and became a rich land, it can be said that it tended to become cultivated every year.
On the other hand, as a result of territory expansion carried out through King Beoheung and King Jinheung in their reign, land and farmers had increased, and penalty regulations about violation behavior of the law surrounding ownership such as land and forest, etc. were necessary to be clarified for economy-related dispute caused by a grant of rewards after examination of services according to it, as well as national necessity for clarifying the establishment of a practical system of its related business and the location of penalty decision rights was emerged.
So a Chinese character, 'Joo(州)', which means to live while cultivating a field and a rice field formed near a river(河) and a stream(川) flowing into the sea as well as a field(旱田) and a rice field(水田) appears from the content of the built-up 「Changryeong tombstone」. This means that building land near a river and a stream had been developing, and it reflects that as production techniques in rice farming had largely developed as much, increase of a rice field and production increase of rice had been achieved.
The development of rice farming in Shilla of the three countries' era had become large driving force of territory expansion, so it can be said that it became an important social and economic foundation that could achieve unification of three countries in the end.

참고자료

· 없음