清代哥老会山堂考--山堂组织的发展与等级结构的变迁

Organization Expansion and Changes of Hierarchy Structure of Ko-Lao Hui in the Qing Dynasty

清代哥老会以山堂为基础在各地发展组织。山堂是某个独立的哥老会组织的一种象征性称呼,哥老会模仿当时民间流行的梁山水浒故事而取山名、堂名。哥老会山堂的放票地区和成员规模由其骨干成员的活动范围和组织能力决定,其范围有的只限于一县的某个角落,有的则发展到不同省区的各州县,其会员总数也从数十到几万人不等。哥老会山堂的组织结构最初比较简单,发展到后来,其内部成员、山堂之间的关系显得非常复杂。以这些复杂而庞大的组织为基础,哥老会建立了广大而松散的人际关系网络。哥老会山堂的结构特点,成为其组织发展的基础与动力。

Ko-Lao-Hui developed with Shan-Tang as organizational archetype in the Qing dynasty. Shan-Tang was a kind of symbolic code name for certain independent Ko-Lao Hui organization. Following the way in the popular story ＇ Shui Hu Zhuan＇ （The Outlaws of the Marsh）, every organization used their particular names of both ＇Shan＇ （mountain） and ＇ Tang＇ （hall）. The territory and size of an organization depends on the radius of action as well as organizing capacity of its leaders. Some were limited to certain nook in a county with only dozens of members, while others spread into different counties in different provinces with members as much as tens of thousands. Organization structure of Ko-Lao- Hui was simple at first, but the relationships among inner members as well as outer organizations became very complex in later ages. Based on such complex and enormous organizations, Ko-Lao-Hui formed a huge but incompact relationship network. This structural characteristic had given Ko-Lao-Hui foundation and dynamic for its expansion.