Interpreting the Dual Connotations of Li(Ritual) in the Dongyi Zhuan of the Sanguozhi

This study analyzes the expressions of Li (禮, Ritual) found in the Dongyi Zhuan of the Sanguozhi (Records of the Three Kingdoms), with the aim of examining how societies in the southern Korean during the 2nd and 3rd centuries perceived and adopted social order. The Dongyi Zhuan, compiled by the Chinese historian Chen Shou from a Chinese perspective, depicts the social conditions of neighboring peoples. This paper reveals that the concept of Li in the Dongyi Zhuan is used in a dual manner: referring both to indigenous customs and to the ritual order centered on Chinese civilization. Focusing on the case of Mahan, the study explores the specific aspects of Li in practice. In Mahan society, sericulture, weaving, and ornament-making were passed down as everyday skills, and agricultural and celestial rituals served to strengthen communal solidarity—these are considered manifestations of indigenous Li. In contrast, the adoption of Chinese attire and seals (yichek and insu) and the presence of language instruction reflect the external acceptance of Chinese order. However, the absence of practices such as kowtowing and distinctions based on age or gender suggests that Chinese ritual norms were not fully internalized or institutionalized. This indicates that Mahan selectively adopted the external forms of Chinese order while maintaining an autonomous cultural framework, resisting full assimilation of Chinese ideological and hierarchical principles.