조선에서 서원제도는 周世朋의 白雲洞書院 설립으로 출현하였지만, 이후 서원을 조선사회에 보급․정착시키고 그 성격을 규정하여 발전의 토대를 마련한 것을 退溪 李滉이다. 그러나 南冥 曺植은 여러 가지 여건에서 강우지역의 서원설립에 있어서 주도적 역할을 할 수 있는 위치에 있었음에도 불구하고, 현존하는 자료에는 서원 건립이나 보급․ 정착 등에 관여한 사실이 나타나 있지 않다. 南冥 在世時 강우지역에 최초로 건립된 서원은 咸陽의 灆溪書院이다. 남계서원은 남명의 문인인 介庵 姜翼 등의 함양 인근의 사림과 지방관의 협조에 의하여 설립된다. 그런데, 남명 재세시 남명과 남명학파의 핵심적인 인물들은 남계서원의 건립과 운영에 적극적으로 동참하지 않고 있다. 남명 사후 강우지역에 최초로 건립된 서원은 德川書院이다. 덕천서원은 남명의 문인인 守愚堂 崔永慶 등의 진주 인근의 사림과 지방관의 협조에 의해 건립된다. 덕천서원 창건 당시는 전 강우지역의 남명학파에게는 서원건립은 이슈가 되지 못한 것 같다. 남계서원과 덕천서원은 丁酉再亂으로 소실되고 그후 중건된다. 중건도 창건과 마찬가지로 인근의 사림과 지방관의 협조로 이루어진다. 강우지역에 있어서 남계서원과 덕천서원은 광해군 대에서 인조반정 이전까지는 북인계열에 속하는 남명학파의 총본산으로서 그들의 향촌사회 내 거점으로 정치․사회적으로 중요한 역할을 담당하고 있었다. 그러나, 인조반정 후 북인세력이 제거되면서 이를 뒷받침하고 있던 서원도 조락하고 만다. 숙종․영조 연간을 거치면서 남계서원은 친노론계 서원으로, 덕천서원은 친남인계 서원으로 변모하게 된다.

Gansong is a great scholar in Choson dynasty middleages. He was born in Haman county Kyungsang province depend in Nammyung school. However, He was educaded by three scholars belong to Tygae school from young age. Because his learning and personality was influenced from them strongly. especially from Yuheon. But he cannot help belonging to Nammyung school, for many Nammyung's disciple have resided in his hometown Haman and his wife's hometown moreover Nammyung's hometown Samga. Besides his father-in-law Nopa was the disciple of Nammyung's disciple Junginhong and he had be the chairman of Yongyam memorial hause. Though Gansong became a member of Nammyung school, he never has seceded from Tygae school. He has always play active part as both a member of Nammyung school and a member of Tygae school. Consequently his association span was very wide, and he made the best use of these circumstances. He has strained every nerve to mediate two schools. He was well-balanced scholar, so he has supported neither Nammyung school nor Tygac school. He adopted the good points of two schools and developed himself, became new own personality. Therefore he never have abtained a post in the government keeping his integrity. Though he has lived at seclusion, he has never forgotten nation and people. This point was influenced by Nammyung school. He has wirtten many prosees and poets, this point was influenced by Tygae school. His successors have regarded him as a member of Tygae school in order to uplit him. But this is not true. It is clear that he is both a member of Nammyung school and a member of Tygae school. His poet is very excellent, so deserves minutely study. If so, we can grasp him more crosely.

The culmination of the culture in the Josun Dynasty was reached in the academic achievement of Sik Jo (pen name, Nammyung : 1501 - 1572). His work marked a moral boundary in academia at that time. When we consider his great fame, it was natural many scholars and his followers make him their scholastic and behavioral model. These followers formed the Nammyung School and they took active parts in politics in and out of government service until King Sunjo and Gwanghaegoon. But the execution of Inhong Jung (pen name, Rae-Am : 1536-1623), leader of the Nammyung School and mentor of Gwanghaegoon, served as a momentum for decentralizing the school at the time of The Enthronement of King Injo subsequent to dethronement of King Gwanghasgoon in 1623. Hongdo Ha (pen name, Gyumjae) then acted on behalf of the school when the school had lost its cohesion. The year 1728 witnessed the Moosin Year Disturbance led by Heeryang Jung, which was one of the loud cries raised by confucian scholars to regain the positions they had held before the Enthronement of King Injo. Moreover the Noron Party. the group of followers of Siyul Soug and also the party in power, forced the Namin Party, another party in this area, to support it, while it prohibited the Namins from taking any state examinations by law after the Moosin Year Disturbance had been subdued. The Noron Party designed to attract the Namin Party to their side by disturbing its cooperation with the Soron Party, the followers of Jung Yoon, a disciple of Siyul Song's. With the Noron Party's intricately planned policies and efforts, most pepole in the Namin Party in this area became part of the Toegye School in the end. This paved the way for combining the right side and the left side of the Nakdong River as a natural result. There were few eminent scholars or government officials in high positions from the right side of the Nakdong River. In the meantime many scholars had come to stand by either the Noron Party or the Toegye Schoo. But the majority of Confucian scholars' respect for Nammyung had not faded away and his books were still being published. King Jungjo finally granted Nammyung a Royal Oration for the Sacrificial Rite in 1796 and conferred government positions on his descendants after over a century of persecution. The royal edict triggered the revival of the scholastic trend in this area and built a promising foundation for thriving academic achievement in the 19th ecntury.