Yi Ik (Seongho)

Yi Ik (1681-1763), known by his pen name Seongho, was a scholar of the Silhak (Practical Learning) movement from the Southern faction who was active during the reign of King Yeongjo in late Joseon. He brought together the agriculture-centered strand of Silhak and advanced the "limited-field" theory (hanjeollon), which sought to regulate landholding so as to protect the livelihood of ordinary people. His encyclopedic work Seongho Saseol, gathering a lifetime of observation and reflection, went on to deeply influence later Silhak thinkers and the Southern scholarly lineage.