漢代功次升遷制度考

A Study of Merit-Based Promotion under the Han Dynasty

以「功次」晉升是漢代多數官吏升遷的途徑，在官僚制度的日常運作中發揮重要作用。本文分析功次升遷制度具體如何運作，並探討考課如何構成這項制度的一環。「功次」指的是排列同秩級官吏的功勞多寡次序。當上一階秩級的官職出缺時，即依據此種排序挑選功勞多者遷補。因官職的任命機構有異，比較功勞的範圍也有差異，大抵是所選任官職的層級愈往上，比較功勞的範圍就愈大，由縣而郡，再及於全國。官吏每年可憑積累出勤日數獲得基本的功勞，同時也需要接受考課，或許可依每年的考課成績獲得額外的賜勞或奪勞。官吏的任職表現以「得筭」、「負筭」來量化計算，猶如得分與扣分。負責考課的官府分項給予官吏積分，所有項目加總得出總分。受同一官署管轄的同秩級、同職務官吏所得之筭相互比較，以筭的多寡定出九個等第，每等可有數人，前三等為「最」，末三等為「殿」，此即為「課殿最」。官吏可能因課最、課殿獲額外的賜勞或懲罰奪勞。考課成績能影響官吏的功勞多寡，與累日積勞共同構成功次升遷制度。此種制度是一種不斷互相比較的制度，並非任職期滿或累積一定數量的功勞即可保證升遷。若透過相互競爭任官績效能獲取額外的功勞，功次升遷制度也可發揮揀選人才的作用。

Merit-based promotion was an important element in the everyday functioning of the Han dynasty bureaucracy and a common method for officials to advance up the ranks. This paper aims to analyze the actual operations of the system of merit-based promotion and assess the role played by personnel evaluations. The term gongci 功次 describes a way of arranging officials within their ranks according to merit, and when a position opened within the bureaucratic rank above, a candidate was selected to fill it based on this ranking. The scope of merit falling under scrutiny differed between appointing institutions due to their unique requirements, and for positions higher in rank, generally became broader. The number of days an official was on duty in a given year, for example, was a basic criterion in assessing merit, and officials were subject to periodic evaluations, the results of which could cause one to lose or obtain additional merit. An official’s performance was thus quantified through the deducting or awarding of suan 筭, similar to modern points-based systems. Authorities who carried out the personnel evaluations awarded points to individual officials in numerous categories, tallying them together to produce a final score. Officials of the same rank and post who fell under the jurisdiction of the same administrative unit were divided into nine grades, each potentially containing multiple officials, based on their number of accumulated suan. The top three were called zui 最, whereas the bottom three were regarded as dian 殿, a process of which was termed “assigning dian and zui” 課殿最 in its entirety. Extra merit was then awarded to or deducted from bureaucrats designated as zui or dian, respectively. Therefore, personnel evaluation scores affected an official’s merit, and in concert with the number of days on duty, formed the merit-based promotion system, one of constant competition. Since officials could not count on guaranteed promotion after a certain period of holding a position or upon the accumulation of a fixed amount of merit, but rather had to compete for appointments through evaluations and wider contributions, the system fostered the selection of the most able individuals.