Civil official; Deputy Director of the Office of Special Advisers
| Life | 1532 ~ 1585 |
| Era | 조선 전기 (명종~선조) |
| Clan | 영월 신씨 |
Sin Eung-si (辛應時, 1532–1585) was an early Joseon civil official of the Yeongwol Shin clan. His courtesy name was Gunmang, his pen name Baengnok ("White Foothills"), and his posthumous title Munjang. He was a great-grandson of Sin Seok; his grandfather was Sin Yun-hyeong, his father the magistrate Sin Bo-sang, and his mother a daughter of Min Geo. A Segye Ilbo clan series calls him a ninth-generation descendant of the Goryeo chancellor Sin Jung-seok; his elder brother was Sin Eung-gi. He studied under Baek In-geol.
He passed the licentiate examination in 1552, in the same class as the later righteous-army leader Go Gyeong-myeong, and the civil examination in 1559. After serving as a tutor to the crown prince and as a censor, he was chosen for the royal study-leave program for promising young officials. He passed the higher re-examination in 1566, served in the Ministries of Rites and War and as a Hongmungwan editor, and became a royal lecturer early in King Seonjo's reign.
While mourning his mother he compiled the Jumun mullye, a selection of passages on ritual from Zhu Xi's collected works. He later served as Governor of Jeolla, magistrate of Yeonan, Third Minister of Rites and Third Minister of War, rising to Inspector-General of the Censorate and Deputy Director of the Hongmungwan. From 1580 he spent two years as magistrate of Gwangju, where he wrote the poem "Gwangsan" about the Bongsaengjeong pavilion.
The Encyclopedia of Korean Culture says he quoted historical precedents fluently at royal lectures, reformed customs and promoted education as a local official, and lived so frugally that his house held almost no furniture. He was especially close to Seong Hon and Yi I. His son Sin Gyeong-jin also studied under Yi I, became Inspector-General, and was honored as an incorruptible official.
His writings survive, together with his son's, as the Baengnok yugo, and he was enshrined at Munhoe Seowon in Baecheon, Hwanghae Province.
His son Sin Gyeong-jin (辛慶晉) became Inspector-General and was honored as an incorruptible official.