Provinces of South Korea
Provinces are one of the first-level divisions within South Korea. There are 9 provinces in South Korea: North Chungcheong, South Chungcheong, Gangwon, Gyeonggi, North Gyeongsang, South Gyeongsang, North Jeolla, South Jeolla, and Jeju Special Self-Governing Province.
| Province 도(道) | |
|---|---|
-en%252BInter-Korean_border.svg.png.webp) | |
| Category | Unitary State |
| Location | Republic of Korea (ROK) |
| Number | 22 (15 controlled by ROK, 5 controlled by DPRK & 2 split between ROK and DPRK) |
| Populations | 276,589 (Sejong) – 9,904,312 (Seoul) |
| Areas | 1,849 km2 (714 sq mi) (Jeju) – 19,030 km2 (7,350 sq mi) (North Gyeongsang) – 20,569 km2 (7,942 sq mi) (Gangwon including DPRK controlled-parts) |
| Government | Self-governing |
| Province | |
| Hangul | |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | do |
| McCune–Reischauer | to |
| Special self-governing province | |
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | teukbyeol-jachido |
| McCune–Reischauer | teukbyeol-chach’ido |
History
Although the details of local administration have changed dramatically over time, the basic outline of the current three-tiered system was implemented under the reign of Gojong in 1895. A similar system also remains in use in North Korea.
Types
Provinces (도, 道) are the highest-ranked administrative divisions in South Korea, which follows the East Asian tradition name Circuit (administrative division). Along with the common provinces, there are four types of special administrative divisions with equal status: special self-governing province, special city, metropolitan city, and special self-governing city.
A special self-governing province (특별자치도, 特別自治道) is a province with more autonomy over its economy and more powers are given to the provincial government. Jeju is the only special self-governing province, while Seoul is the only special city and Sejong is the only special self-governing city.
Administration
Governors for the provinces and mayors for the special/metropolitan cities are elected every four years. Current governors and mayors are listed at List of governors of South Korea.
List of provinces
| Name | Official English name[1] | Hangul | Hanja | ISO | Population (2011 est.)[2] | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) | Capital | Historical province | Cultural region | Abbreviation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Chungcheong | Chungcheongbuk-do | 충청북도 | 忠淸北道 | KR-43 | 1,588,633 | 7,433[3] | 213 | Cheongju | Chungcheong | Hoseo | Chungbuk | 충북 | 忠北 |
| South Chungcheong | Chungcheongnam-do | 충청남도 | 忠淸南道 | KR-44 | 2,064,665 | 8,204[4] | 251 | Hongseong | Chungnam | 충남 | 忠南 | ||
| Gangwon | Gangwon-do | 강원도 | 江原道 | KR-42 | 1,549,780 | 20,569[5] | 75 | Chuncheon | Gangwon | Gwandong | Gangwon | 강원 | 江原 |
| Gyeonggi | Gyeonggi-do | 경기도 | 京畿道 | KR-41 | 12,239,862 | 10,171[6] | 1,203 | Suwon | Gyeonggi | Sudogwon | Gyeonggi | 경기 | 京畿 |
| North Gyeongsang | Gyeongsangbuk-do | 경상북도 | 慶尙北道 | KR-47 | 2,739,179 | 19,030[7] | 144 | Andong | Gyeongsang | Yeongnam | Gyeongbuk | 경북 | 慶北 |
| South Gyeongsang | Gyeongsangnam-do | 경상남도 | 慶尙南道 | KR-48 | 3,374,725 | 10,532[8] | 320 | Changwon | Gyeongnam | 경남 | 慶南 | ||
| North Jeolla | Jeollabuk-do | 전라북도 | 全羅北道 | KR-45 | 1,895,882 | 8,043 | 236 | Jeonju | Jeolla | Honam | Jeonbuk | 전북 | 全北 |
| South Jeolla | Jeollanam-do | 전라남도 | 全羅南道 | KR-46 | 1,938,136 | 11,858 | 163 | Muan | Jeonnam | 전남 | 全南 | ||
| Jeju | Jeju Special Self-governing Province | 제주특별자치도 | 濟州特別自治道 | KR-49 | 583,284 | 1,849[9] | 315 | Jeju | Jeju | Jeju | 제주 | 濟州 | |
Claimed provinces
| This article is part of a series on the |
| Administrative divisions of South Korea |
|---|
| Provincial level |
| Province (list) |
| Special self-governing province (Jeju) |
| Special city (Seoul) |
| Metropolitan city (list) |
| Special self-governing city (Sejong) |
| Municipal level |
| Specific city (list) |
| City (list) |
| County (list) |
| Autonomous District (list) |
| Submunicipal level |
| Administrative city (list) |
| Non-autonomous District (list) |
| Town (list) |
| Township (list) |
| Neighborhood (list) |
| Village (list) |
| Hamlet |
South Korea claims five provinces on the territory controlled by North Korea. These claimed provinces are managed by the Committee for the Five Northern Korean Provinces (Korean: 이북5도위원회; Hanja: 以北五道委員會). These provinces are based on the divisions of the Japanese era and are different from the present North Korean provinces.
| Historical province | Name | Hangul | Hanja | Area (km²) | Capital | Cultural region | Abbreviation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamgyeong | North Hamgyeong | 함경북도 | 咸鏡北道 | 20,345 | Cheongjin | Gwanbuk | Hambuk | 함북 | 咸北 |
| South Hamgyeong | 함경남도 | 咸鏡南道 | 31,977 | Hamheung | Gwannam | Hamnam | 함남 | 咸南 | |
| Pyeongan | North Pyeongan | 평안북도 | 平安北道 | 28,443 | Sinuiju | Gwanseo | Pyeongbuk | 평북 | 平北 |
| South Pyeongan | 평안남도 | 平安南道 | 14,944 | Pyeongyang | Pyeongnam | 평남 | 平南 | ||
| Hwanghae | Hwanghae | 황해도 | 黃海道 | 16,744 | Haeju | Haeseo | Hwanghae | 황해 | 黃海 |
References
- Archived 2017-03-12 at the Wayback Machine, p. 41.
- "South Korea Administrative Districts". CityPopulation.de. Retrieved 2013-03-14.
- 충북면적 (in Korean). North Chungcheong Province. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- 일반현황 (in Korean). South Chungcheong Province. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- "Natural Environment". Gangwon Province. Archived from the original on 10 July 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- 위치와 자연환경 (in Korean). Gyeonggi Province. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- 경북현황 (in Korean). North Gyeongsang Province. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- 일반 현황 (in Korean). South Gyeongsang Province. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- "Geography". Jeju Province. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
