Pangyo, Seongnam

Pangyo (판교, 板橋) refers to a planned city surrounding Pangyo-dong, Baekhyeon-dong, Unjung-dong, and Sampyeong-dong of Bundang-gu and Siheung-dong and Sasong-dong of Sujeong-gu (Seongnam city).

The area is surrounded by Mt. Cheonggyesan and Geumtosan to the North and Mt. Barasan to the south, with Unjungcheon and Geumtocheon, tributaries of Tancheon, flowing through the center of the city.

This area is 9,307,000㎡(2,815,000 pyeong) and can hold up to 80,412 people with 29,350 families.

Gyeongbu Expressway separates the town into two unofficial regions: Seopangyo (literally, West Pangyo) and Dongpangyo (literally, East Pangyo).

The origin of the name of Pangyo (Board Footbridge) was 'Neodeori' or 'Neoldari', meaning a footbridge made of planks of wood over the Unjungcheon (Cloud Staying Brook) originating from the west and running toward the east in the front of Pangyo, written in Chinese characters. According to the record from Sinjeung Dongguk yeoji seungnam (A Korean Geography published in Joseon Dynasty) in 1530, Pangyo-won, Yeokwon-gun, Gwangju-mok are recorded to be45-ri away to the south of the state. Therefore, it can be assumed that the use of the place name Pangyo traces back to the early Joseon Dynasty.

It has been said that the place name of Naksaeng (Pleasant Life) from Naksaeng-myun was originated from either Nakseong from the Nakseong Market or Nakseong (Defeated Castle) in that the king surrendered hearing the news of Sea-gyu Jeong, a soldier in Chungju, who was marching north to protect Namhansanseong Fortress but defeated at Pangyo. However, in the description of Gwangju-mok in Sinjeung Dongguk yeoji seungnam, there is a comment of the governor of Gwangju-mok Hwa-boo Paek, who arrived at the Naksaeng station on the way of going home in April, 1349 in the travel account by Gok Yi during the reign of King Chungjeong. Therefore, the place name Naksaeng should have been originated from Koryo Dynasty.

Pangyo was approved for development in 2001 to alleviate the excessive demand for apartments in Gangnam and central Bundang. The town was developed into an eco-friendly city with the lowest population density among newly developed cities. Pangyo was designed with large green spaces and parks along its streams. Waste facilities, energy plants, and sewage treatment facilities in the community were built to maximize energy efficiency with the use of green technology.

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Wikipedia