Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province, Yeongnam, South Korea

🇰🇷 Mungyeong is a city in North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The local government, economy, and transportation networks are all centered in Jeomchon, the principal town. Mungyeong has a lengthy history, and is known today for its various historic and scenic tourist attractions. Since the 1990s, the proportion of people who rely on the tourism industry through Mungyeong Saejae has gradually increased.

The city of Mungyeong was created after Jeomchon City and rural Mungyeong County were combined in 1995. It is now an urban-rural complex.

History The Mungyeong area is believed to have been controlled by a mixture of Jinhan and Byeonhan states during the Samhan period in the first centuries of the Common Era. The Jinhan state of Geungi-guk may have been located near Sanyang-myeon. Byeonhan states such as Sabeol-guk and Gosunsi-guk, which probably controlled the Hamchang area of Sangju, may also have extended their control over adjacent areas that are now part of Mungyeong. However, this stage of local history is almost entirely hypothetical, since very little evidence of any kind remains.

At any rate, the rising power of Silla controlled the area by 505. Capitalizing on the territory's strategic potential, Silla set up various mountain fortresses in the area to control movement in and out of western Korea. Control of transit through the area would have gained even greater importance after Silla's 553 seizure of the Han River valley on the western side of the mountains. At this time the low Haneuljae pass near Poam Mountain was probably the favored crossing, in contrast to the higher Mungyeong Saejae pass which came into favor in the Joseon period.

As Silla reorganized its administrative structure under King Seongdeok in 757, the Mungyeong area was placed under the province of Sangju, and divided among various hyeon, or local districts. During this Unified Silla period the temple of Gwaneumsa, of which all but a few traces have vanished, was constructed near Haneuljae in present-day Mungyeong-eup.

In the early Goryeo period, in 983, King Seongjong reorganized local government yet again. Most of Mungyeong remained divided into assorted hyeon, under the central jurisdiction of Sangju. In 1390, Mungyeong-gun (Mungyeong County) begins to appear in the records, although not with its current boundaries.

In the Joseon period, the Eight Provinces were laid out and thus Mungyeong became part of Gyeongsang, which it remains. During later Joseon times, the road from Seoul to Busan was established running over Mungyeong Saejae. Beginning in the 18th century, gates were erected on the road to control traffic and protect travelers from brigandage. These gates are still preserved today.

The first railroads were constructed in the area during the period of Japanese occupation. Jeomchon Station was opened on December 25, 1924. However, the pace of resource extraction did not accelerate greatly until the post-war period, under the first South Korean government led by Syngman Rhee. Construction on the Gaeun Line, with the goal of improving access to the coal deposits around Gaeun, began on January 18, 1953, before the official end of the Korean War (the line was completed in 1955).

Local self-governance was established in the early years of the Republic of Korea, but abruptly cancelled following the military coup of 1961. After the end of military dictatorship, local representative government was reinstituted in 1991. At that time, the present-day territory of Mungyeong was divided between Jeomchon City and Mungyeong County. The city acquired its present-day borders on January 1, 1995, when the two former units were merged to form Mungyeong City.

Geography Mungyeong extends a total of 40 km (25 mi) from west to east, and 37 from north to south. Its shape very roughly approximates a right triangle, with the hypotenuse corresponding to the peaks of the Sobaek mountains. The northern tip is in Dongno-myeon, at 36°52'10'' N latitude. The southern extremity lies in Nongam-myeon, at 36°41'40'' N. The easternmost edge of the city can also be found in Dongno-myeon, at 128°22'42'' E longitude. On the west, Mungyeong comes to an end in Gaeun-eup, at 127°52'48'' E.

Mungyeong City stands on the border between North Gyeongsang and North Chungcheong provinces. On its northern and western borders, it adjoins the North Chungcheong districts of Danyang County, Jecheon City, and Chungju City on the north and Goesan County on the northwest. Within North Gyeongsang province, Mungyeong adjoins Yecheon County to the east and Sangju City to the south.

The topography of Mungyeong is dominated by the Sobaek mountains, which form the line between North Gyeongsang and North Chungcheong provinces. The city's highest point lies on this line, at 1161-meter Munsu peak of Worak Mountain in Dongno-myeon. The city's terrain, cut by numerous valleys, slopes down from the Sobaek peaks toward the valleys of the Nakdong River and its tributary, the Yeong. At their meeting-point in Yeongsun-myeon, the rivers are barely 200 m above sea level. Above the valleys, the soil is thin and outcroppings of igneous or sedimentary bedrock are common. Millions of years of erosion have created spectacular cliffs and escarpments in many areas, some of which have become major attractions for local tourism.

Divisions Mungyeong city is divided into 2 eup, 7 myeon and 5 dongs. These are the primary divisions of the city; each is divided in turn into a large number of ri. (For more information on these terms, see Administrative divisions of South Korea). The dongs are all clustered around the town of Jeomchon. The smallest is Jeomchon 1-dong, which covers only 0.98 square km and covers the traditional city centre of Jeomchon. The largest is Jeomchon 4-dong north-west of town, which at 29.62 km² (11.44 sq mi) is bigger than all the others put together. Prior to January 1, 2004, the dongs were known by individual names; for example, Jeomchon 4-dong was known as "Mojeon-dong".

Six of the myeon, or townships, form an L, with its bottom in the south-east near the confluence of the Yeong and Nakdong rivers: Yeongsun-myeon, Sanyang-myeon, Maseong-myeon, Hogye-myeon, Sanbuk-myeon and Dongno-myeon. Nongam-myeon lies south of Gaeun, at Mungyeong's southern limit.

Gaeun-eup was once an important town in its own right, but has now become largely marginalized. Mungyeong-eup, the principal centre of the city apart from Jeomchon, is found in the northern area of the county. It was the seat of Mungyeong County before that entity was merged with Jeomchon City to form the modern boundaries of Mungyeong. It still retains a relatively high profile in the county, with its own library and intercity bus terminal.

Economy The Mungyeong economy during much of the 20th century was based on coal mining. However, these mines were closed in the 1980s, and since then the municipal government has focused on developing tourism, agriculture and light industry in the region.

Because of its mountainous condition, most of Mungyeong's land (roughly 75%) is unsuitable for farming. Nonetheless, the agricultural sector continues to play an important role in the local economy as well. Some local produce is sold directly in the area, but most is exported to major urban centres on South Korea. Orchard farming, particularly apple growing plays an important role, with 4.4 km² (1.7 sq mi) of land devoted to orcharding.

The local government has set up various institutions to promote agricultural and industrial development, including "agro-industrial complexes" located around the rural districts. These efforts have met with some success, as for example the area under orchard cultivation expanded significantly in the late 1990s.

Communications and media In terms of media it may be considered largely identical with the rest of northern North Gyeongsang. Broadcast is dominated by network outlets in Daegu or Andong, and most available newspapers are printed in Seoul, although provincial newspapers also circulate.

Local journalism, therefore, is primarily limited to local weekly newspapers such as the Saejae Sinmun. These weeklies are dominated by classified advertising, but also carry a selection of local news and commentary.

In recent years, cable television and high-speed internet service has become widespread in Mungyeong.