Kunsan
|
Gunsan 군산시 |
|
|---|---|
| Municipal City | |
| Korean transcription(s) | |
| • Hangul | |
| • Hanja | |
| • Revised Romanization | Gunsan-si |
| • McCune-Reischauer | Kunsan-si |
|
|
 Location in South Korea |
|
| Coordinates: 35°59′N 126°43′E / 35.983°N 126.717°E | |
| Country |
 South Korea
|
| Region | Honam |
| Administrative divisions | 1 eup, 10 myeon, 19 dong |
| Area | |
| • Total | 377.72 km2 (145.84 sq mi) |
| Population (2015) | |
| • Total | 278,505 |
| • Density | 740/km2 (1,900/sq mi) |
| • Dialect | Jeolla |
| Flower | Camellia |
| Tree | Ginko biloba |
| Bird | Common gull |
Gunsan (Korean pronunciation: [kun.san]) is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. It is on the south bank of the Geum River just upstream from its exit into the Yellow Sea. It has emerged as a high-tech manufacturing industrial city and an international trade seaport that is approximately 200 km southwest of Seoul on the midwest coast of the Korean Peninsula.
Kunsan Air Base operated by the United States Air Force is in the city. To encourage investment, a free trade zone has been declared in the area.
Famous people from Gunsan include actress Lee Eun-ju, comedian Park Myeong-su, and Teen Top member L.Joe.
Gunsan was a small fishing village on the banks of the Geum River, near where the river spills into the Yellow Sea. It sits on the fertile western Honam plain where much rice is harvested. Gunsan became a port in the late 19th century largely due to pressure from the Japanese on the Koreans to ship rice to Japan. In 1899, Gunsan Port officially opened up to international trade. Gunsan City was largely settled by Japanese during the period of Japanese colonization. The old (now demolished) City Hall and the Customs House are of Japanese construction. After liberation from the Japanese in 1945, Gunsan began to grow slowly.
The Korean War of the 1950s left the Gunsan area relatively unscathed. The initial drive south by the Communist North Koreans pushed the United Nations and South Korean forces toward Busan so quickly that Gunsan was spared from protracted fighting.
Nevertheless, a battalion of Korean Marines, entrenched in the hills above Gunsan Port, withheld overwhelming communist forces. Their bravery created extra time for the evacuation of the town and port. The action is commemorated with a monument on the ridgeline where the heaviest fighting occurred. (35°59′26″N 126°42′16″E / 35.99056°N 126.70444°E)
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