Public-Private Talks: The Historical Transformation of Gong and Sa (공, 公 and 사, 私)

This working paper traces how gong (공, 公) and sa (사, 私) were actually used in Korean primary sources from Goryeo through the modern period. The sources show that the terms were applied across land, status, labor, property, administration, exchange, ritual, law, rights, education, and organizations. Despite this breadth, their linguistic forms repeatedly converge on a limited set of patterns: paired gong/sa terms, gongsa+noun compounds, boundary-crossing expressions, and formulations of joint benefit or hardship. The clearest modern change is not the disappearance of earlier meanings but the addition of formal institutional classifications such as public/private law, rights, schools, and management. The paper therefore documents long-term continuity together with cumulative institutional change