十九世紀龍井林家的土地經營

The Transformation of Land Management: A Case Study of the Lin Family of Lung-ching(1817-1892)

台中縣龍井鄉山腳村林家，原世居於福建漳州府漳浦縣烏石鄉。據林家「西河青龍族譜」記載，其開台祖林良約於雍正九年（1731）至乾隆六年（1741）之間來台，在中部的塗葛葛窟落腳，可能從事港口傭工之作。林良之子林三會，幼年喪父，前往三塊厝（今龍井鄉山腳村），販運米穀至汕頭、廈門、福州等地，因而致富；轉而從事開墾，拓地三十甲。其後可能因漳泉械鬥與田園遭水患損失，而遷居山腳（今龍井鄉山腳村）。林三會次子林天河生於乾隆四十二年（1777），卒於嘉慶二十一年（1816）。

Still a frontier region of the Ch'ing dynasty, Taiwan in the nineteenth century was a highly commercialized, agricultural immigrant society. The Lin family of Lung-ching played a major role in the integration of the peasant society of central Taiwan. They combined agricultural production, military organization, and industrial investment to pursue security and stability for the economy and society. There were three characteristics of their land management: production with an economy of scale, full employment of labor, and reciprocal relations between patron and client. The Lin family was also successful in manipulating traditional lineage and kinship institutions. All these factors contributed to their success in land management and is an example of the cultural innovations of the Han Chinese in Taiwan.