Chung Ju-yung

Chung Ju-yung
Chung during an interview at Panmunjom in October 1998.
Born	Chung Ju-yung (1915-11-25)November 25, 1915 Tongchon, Kogendo, Japanese Korea (now Tongchon, Kangwon Province, North Korea)
Died	March 21, 2001(2001-03-21) (aged 85) Songpa District, Seoul, South Korea
Nationality	South Korean
Occupation	Businessman
Known for	Founder and honorary chairman of Hyundai.
Children	10 (8 sons and 2 daughters)
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Jeong Ju-yeong
McCune–Reischauer	Chŏng Chuyŏng
Pen name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization	Asan
McCune–Reischauer	Asan

Chung Ju-yung (Hangul: 정주영; Hanja: 鄭周永; November 25, 1915 – March 21, 2001) was a South Korean entrepreneur, businessman and the founder of all Hyundai Groups of South Korea.

Chung Ju-yung was born in Kangwŏn province (now located in North Korea), during a time when Korea was under Japanese rule. Born to a large impoverished family of peasants, he was the eldest out of seven children. As a young boy, Chung dreamed of becoming a school teacher but his hopes were cut short because the restrictive environment at the time kept the family stuck in poverty, effectively keeping Chung away from the opportunities of higher education. Despite the setbacks, Chung continued to go to a local Confucian school run by his grandfather whenever his time was not taken up by tasks on the family farm.

Chung’s talent for business became apparent during his trips into town where he would sell wood. The fast paced atmosphere of the town along with the articles in newspapers he read sparked his imagination and he soon grew tired of the poverty that he and his family had to endure. At the age of sixteen, Chung and a friend decided to travel to the city of Chongjin for work in hopes of escaping the harsh realities of farm life. After a 15-mile trek through the most dangerous parts of the Paechun valley, the pair reached the town of Kowon where they took up jobs as construction workers. They worked long hours for low pay but Chung enjoyed the fact that he could independently earn money. Chung & his friend continued the work for two months until Chung's father found their whereabouts.

The journey that Chung and his friend had embarked on made him realize his passion for civil engineering and gave him a sense of accomplishment that he had been looking for. Once he returned to Asan, he devised another escape plan; this time towards Seoul. With two companions, Chung left for Seoul in April 1933. The journey seemed to be destined for failure, especially since one of the boys had already got caught by a sibling early on. More misfortune came upon them when Chung was conned by a stranger who promised him and his friend jobs but instead took all of the money they had with them. The journey came to an end when Chung's father found the two staying at Chung's grandfather's house nearby.