Jeong Yak-yong (Dasan)

Jeong Yak-yong (1762–1836) was a scholar-official of late Joseon and one of the leading figures of Silhak, the school of "practical learning," whose work he brought together across many fields. Through writings such as Mongmin simseo and Gyeongse yupyo, he set out ideas for government that served the people and for institutional reform, and he also contributed to practical technology, notably by designing the geojunggi (a pulley-based crane) used in building Suwon Hwaseong. Even during his long exile of eighteen years in Gangjin, he produced a vast body of writing that left a deep mark on the intellectual history of late Joseon.