俸

Phono-semantic compound consisting of:

人 (사람 인) — semantic component, meaning “person” or “human,” indicating relation to people or officials.

奉 (받들 봉) — phonetic component, providing the sound bong / fèng and carrying the sense of service, offering, or duty.

Thus, 俸 originally meant the offering (奉) given to a person (人) — that is, a salary or allowance provided to an official as a reward for service.

Classical definition (Shuowen Jiezi):

「俸，祿也。从人，奉聲。」

“俸 means salary or emolument (祿). Formed from 人 (person) and phonetic 奉 (to offer, to present).”

俸給 (봉급) — salary, wages

祿俸 (녹봉) — stipend or official salary granted to government servants

減俸 (감봉) — pay reduction, disciplinary salary cut

加俸 (가봉) — pay raise or salary increase

In traditional Korean bureaucracy, 俸祿(봉록) referred to the fixed salary provided to officials (관원, 官員), and the term persisted well into the Joseon dynasty.

“녹봉(祿俸)” literally means ‘reward and stipend’ — 祿 being divine favor or merit reward, and 俸 the material payment or salary.

In Classical Chinese, 俸 refers specifically to the official stipend paid by the state to civil or military officials.

Tang and Song periods: the bureaucratic salary system was organized around the concept of 俸祿制度 — the “salary and emolument system.”

Examples:

Book of Han (漢書 · 百官公卿表):

「俸錢有差。」

“Their stipends differed according to rank.”

Book of Tang (唐書):

「官有俸祿，以養廉潔。」

“Officials were granted stipends to maintain integrity.”

Modern Chinese usage:

俸禄 (fènglù) — salary (esp. official)

俸給 (fèngjǐ) — wages or pay

高俸 (gāofèng) — high salary

低俸 (dīfèng) — low salary

Semantic field:

Administrative, bureaucratic, remuneration-related vocabulary.

Closely related terms:

祿 (녹) — emolument, honorarium, reward.

薪 (신) — wages (esp. for lower positions or manual work).

給 (급) — to supply or pay.

Cultural note:

In Confucian bureaucratic ethics, proper distribution of 俸 (salary) was a moral issue — fair pay ensured officials would not resort to corruption (廉俸養廉 “honest stipends foster integrity”).

During the Joseon dynasty, the “녹봉제(祿俸制)” served both as economic support and a symbol of royal trust toward the bureaucracy.

From 녹봉(祿俸) in the Joseon court to 俸給 (fèngjǐ) in modern Chinese, this character still signifies honest compensation for service — the livelihood of those who serve the state.