조선 초기 지식인의 선비(鮮卑) 인식 고찰－『조선왕조실록』 기사를 중심으로－ = Perceptions of the Xianbei among Early Joseon Intellectuals－An Analysis Based on the Joseon Wangjo Sillok－

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study examines references to the Xianbei (鮮卑) and Xianbei-affiliated polities in the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty (Joseon Wangjo Sillok, 朝鮮王朝實錄) in order to analyze how early Joseon intellectuals understood Xianbei history and used it in discussions of state affairs. The study focuses on thirty-six relevant entries from the reign of Taejo (太祖) to that of Yeonsangun (燕山君). In this article, “perception of the Xianbei” does not refer only to ideas about the Xianbei as an ethnic group. It also includes the ways in which the historical experiences of Xianbei-affiliated polities, such as Former Yan (前燕), Northern Wei (北魏), and Northern Zhou (北周), as well as their figures, institutions, and policies, were received and used by early Joseon intellectuals.
The ability of early Joseon intellectuals to refer to Xianbei-related cases was closely connected to the reception and circulation of Chinese historical texts, the reading of works such as the Zizhi tongjian (資治通鑑), and the institutional environment in which historical knowledge was treated as a resource for statecraft. In the Veritable Records, Xianbei-related cases were cited by various speakers, including kings, high officials, censorial officials (臺諫), government offices, and students of the Seonggyungwan. These cases were used in discussions of Buddhist policy, ritual and institutions, administration, personnel management, remonstrance, diplomacy, and political judgment. In contrast to references to the Xiongnu (匈奴) and the Göktürks (突厥), which tended to be invoked mainly in connection with military and frontier issues, Xianbei-related cases were repeatedly cited in debates concerning the internal order of Joseon governance.
These patterns show that early Joseon perceptions of the Xianbei were not limited to a simple understanding of a foreign people. The Xianbei were recognized as a group of northern origin distinct from the Hua-Xia (華夏) cultural order, yet this distinction did not serve as the final criterion of evaluation. Early Joseon intellectuals interpreted cases concerning the Xianbei and Xianbei-affiliated polities in relation to political conduct, institutional operation, ritual practice, and bureaucratic ethics. Xianbei-related records therefore functioned not only as knowledge of an ancient northern people preserved in historical texts, but also as historical precedents supporting political and institutional judgment in early Joseon.