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The Current Status of the Old Documents Seen through Prefaces and Epilogues and the Meaning of the Construction of the Korean Prefaces and Epilogues Data Information System

Kang, Soon-Ae 1

1한성대학교

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ABSTRACT

Prefaces and epilogues take a large portion of the old literature in Korea. The Institute of Korean Culture at Korea University has completed the first project, with an aim to establish a knowledge-genealogical research resource, and produced three final reports. The subjects of this project are the prefaces and epilogues extracted from the photographic editions of the old documents as well as the old documents held in selected libraries and institutions. The aim of the second project is to complete a compilation of the prefaces and epilogues of the nonexistent old documents. In this study, the co-researcher of this project presents the significance of the bibliographical investigation and database establishment. The meaning of the prefaces and epilogues can be found through various approaches, including culture-art historical approach, ideological approach and historic-figure approach. The publication-culture approach, in particular, offers the detailed facts regarding compilation, publication and distribution of the old documents. For this project, a total of 1,045 kinds and 8,413 articles of prefaces and epilogues were taken from photographic editions, and 396 kinds and 1,591 articles were from the old documents held in various libraries. They amount to a total of 1,450 kinds and 1,591 articles. The authors of those prefaces and epilogues were in all 2,057 persons and the period of authorship falls mostly in the 18th and 19th century. The prefaces and epilogues written for the same old documents densely belonged to 集部(Jip-bu) and 史部(Sa-bu) and Ha Gyeom-Jin and Gi Wu-Man turned out to be the most productive writers. It is expected that once the analysis on the characteristics of prefaces and epilogues by one author is complete, new prefaces and epilogues could be found more easily. Out of 10,004 articles, a total of 3,694 prefaces and epilogues were from the nonexistent ancient literature. For those articles, 2,536 authors were identified, and some authors were identified thorough their pen-names. The period of compilation falls largely in the 17th through 19th century. The woodblock printed editions were identified from 69 prefaces and epilogues, and they mostly belonged to 史部(Sa-bu) and 集部(Jip-bu). The establishment of ‘Korean prefaces and epilogues data information system’ can be considered significant in the following aspects: it could help modify and supplement comprehensively the existing bibliographies of old documents by providing the specific information about compilation and publication of old documents; it could serve as a base of a contemporary outlook for the intellectual genealogy; it could allow a new recognition of old documents by thoroughly understanding the nonexistent Korean ancient literature; and it could facilitate the release and sharing of the results.

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