이 논문은 일제강점기 광주번영회를 중심으로, 지역사회에서 일본인들이 어떻게 ‘풀 뿌리 침략’을 통한 식민구조를 만들어갔는지를 살펴본 것이다. 1905년부터 광주에 들어온 일본인들은 영농과 상업 종사자가 대부분이었다. 병합 이후, 식민화시대에 접어들면서 이들은 ‘광주번영회’라는 민간단체를 설립해 식민도시 개발사업을 주도해나가는 세력이 된다. 광주번영회는 3번의 반복적 창립(1911년·1922년·1936년)을 통해 조직의 동력을 지속적으로 유지해나갔다. 3번의 계기는 각각 ‘한일병합’, ‘대광주건설계획’(1920), 광주부(府)의 승격(1935) 등으로, 대규모 토지개발사업을 동반한 것이었다. 특히 1920년대 이들의 대대적인 정치계 진입은 개발정책에 개입할 수 있는 여지를 제공한다. 또한 이들은 1930-40년대에 집중적으로 민간회사를 설립해 번영회 중심의 ‘중역겸임제’라는 방식을 도입, 공고한 정·재계 네트워크를 구축한다. 이로써 자본축적 속도가 빨라졌음을 예측할 수 있다. 일본인들이 광주의 토호세력으로 성장해나가는 이 과정은, 광주번영회가 총독부의 식민정책을 지역사회에 실현시키는 ‘총독정치의 매개집단’이자, ‘풀뿌리 침략’의 전초기지 역할을 했음을 보여준다.

This study examines how Japanese people in local communities developed a colonial structure through ‘grassroots invasion’ after the establishment of a political and business network, with a focus on the Gwangju Cooperative during the Japanese colonial period. Japanese people began to live in Gwangju in 1905, before the annexation of Korea by Japan. As farmers and small businessmen, they started to accumulate capital, and emerged as an influential group in the local communities. After the annexation of Korea by Japan, which led to the era of colonization, they established a private organization called the Gwangju Cooperative and led a project to develop a colonial city. The Gwangju Cooperative maintained the organizational power through its repeated establishment on three occasions in 1911, 1922, and 1936. The three occasions include the annexation of Korea by Japan, the establishment of the Great Gwangju Construction Plan (1920), and the promotion of Gwangju Prefecture (1935). All of these were accompanied by large-scale land development projects. In particular, many members of the cooperative emerged in the political world during the 1920s, which provided room for their active intervention in development policies. In the process, Japanese people seem to have made considerable gains. The urban development centered on Japanese settlements, which at that time served as a driving force that greatly increased the value of their land assets. They established private companies and turned themselves into industrial capitalists, especially in the 1930s and 1940s. At that time, the Gwangju Cooperative members introduced an exclusive ‘interlocking directorate’ and established a robust political and business network. This seems to have greatly increased their capital accumulation rate. This process suggests that the Gwangju Cooperative was not merely a private organization but a ‘mediator group for the Japanese governor general’s politics’ and an outpost for ‘grassroots invasion’ that enabled Japanese colonial administration of Korea to implement colonial policies in the local communities. They took control of the political and business world in Gwangju with the active support of the national and government powers, and, as local powers, helped complete the colonial structure from the bottom of the communities.