Eumseong County

Eumseong
음성군
County
Korean transcription(s)
  Hangul
  Hanja
  Revised Romanization Eumseong-gun
  McCune-Reischauer Ŭmsŏng-gun

Location in South Korea
Country  South Korea
Region Hoseo
Administrative divisions 2 eup, 7 myeon
Area
  Total 521.05 km2 (201.18 sq mi)
Population (05/2012)
  Total 97,211
  Density 69/km2 (180/sq mi)
  Dialect Chungcheong

Eumseong County (Eumseong-gun) is a county in North Chungcheong Province, South Korea, best known for being the birthplace of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

History

Eumseong County is composed of two towns (eup) and seven townships (myeon), with a total population of 98,619 people (including foreigners) as of March 31, 2013.[1] The most central town is Geumwang (which also goes by the name Muguk).

Town/township Hangul Hanja Area (km2) Households Population
Eumseong-eup 음성읍 陰城邑 86 7,814 19,002
Geumwang-eup 금왕읍 金旺邑 71 8,839 22,602
Soi-myeon 소이면 蘇伊面 49 1,545 3,302
Weonnam-myeon 원남면 遠南面 65 1,548 3,286
Maengdong-myeon 맹동면 孟洞面 35 1,676 5,604
Daeso-myeon 대소면 大所面 38 7,192 18,731
Samseong-myeon 삼성면 三成面 51 3,902 9,410
Saenggeuk-myeon 생극면 笙極面 56 2,228 5,252
Gamgok-myeon 감곡면 甘谷面 69 5,002 11,430
Total 520 39,746 98,619

Many farmers live in Eumseong County. They host two cultural festivals: the Pumba (traditional vagabond) Festival (품바축제) in the spring and the Gochu (chili pepper) Festival (고추축제) in the fall. Eumseong is famous in Korea for its production of high-quality red chili peppers. Eumseong is also renowned for its strawberries, ginseng, watermelon, and beef.

Eumseong County is home to three different high schools. Eumseong High School is located in the city of Eumseong, Chungbuk Semi-Conductor High School is located in Geumwang, and Maegoe High School is located in Gamgok. Maegoe is a Catholic all girls middle school as well as a mixed gender high school located at the base of a steep sided hill under a Christ-shaped statue. In addition, GVCS, an English-speaking Christian boarding school, is located in the city of Eumseong.

There are two institutes of higher education in Eumseong county that are both located in the township Gamgok - Far East University and Gangdong College.[2] Far East University is a four-year school while Gangdong College has only a two-year program. As of 2013, 20 to 30 foreign English teachers live in Eumseong County, who are from countries including the United States of America, Canada, South Africa, England, and Scotland.

The name "Eumseong" means "shaded castle" and is not to be confused with its homonym "human voice".[3]

In 1956, Eumseong's status was promoted from township to town. In 1973, Geumwang's status was also promoted to that of a town.[4]


Samseong

Samseong is located in the northwest of Eumseong County, just east of the Jungbu Expressway. The township's bus terminal has connections to Dong Seoul station that take about 1.5 hours as well as connections to other provincial cities and towns.

Samseong has a middle school, an elementary school and several private academies or hagwons. The township is arranged principally around one street, which comprises a covered market, CU, 7 Eleven, Paris Baguette, and many Korean restaurants and hofs.

There are rice paddies between the various factories. In addition there are two sizeable lakes and a mountain named Mai San which is excellent for hiking.

Known for spotting wildlife, Samseong was formerly a prime location for encountering species now thought to be endangered.

Sister cities

References

  1. Official Eumseong County population statistics
  2. Gangdong College website, in English
  3. Definition of "Eumseong-gun (음성군)", in Korean
  4. Rules concerning institution of eups (towns) (1973-03-12).

External links

Coordinates: 37°00′00″N 127°34′59″E / 37.000°N 127.583°E / 37.000; 127.583

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