Gijang-gun

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Gijang-gun
Hangul:	기장군
Hanja:	機張郡
Revised Romanization:	Gijang-gun
McCune-Reischauer:	Kijang kun
Statistics
Area:	217.9 km²
Population:	80,554 (2004 reg.)
Pop. density:	369.7 people/km²
Administrative divisions:	2 eup, 3 myeon

Gijang-gun is a gun, or county, in northern Busan, South Korea. The current magistrate is Hyundol Choi.

Due to its location along the coast of the Sea of Japan (East Sea), Gijang is known as a center for the production of various kinds of seafood. These include anchovies and brown seaweed (miyeok).

Historical landmarks in the county include the Buddhist temple of Jangansa, said to have been first built by Wonhyo in the 7th century. The 14th-century Gijang fortress wall has been preserved, as has a Japanese fortress dating from Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea in the 1590s.

Gijang is the most rural of Busan's districts, and consists mostly of vacant and agricultural land. Approximately 156.7 of its 217.9 square kilometers are empty and forested, mostly hilly land. The county's population of approximately 80,500 has risen steadily since 1990, when it stood at 56,847.

Gijang first appears under its current name in the annals of the year 757, during the Unified Silla period. At that time it was made the hyeon of Gijang, part of Dongnae-gun. The Samguk Sagi records that it was known as Gaphwayanggok (甲火良谷) previously.