Jejudo

Jejudo

Native name: 제주도 Nickname: Sammu-samda-do (Island of no three kinds and many three kinds)
Image of Jejudo
Map of Jejudo
Geography
Location	East Asia
Archipelago	Jeju
Area	1,848 km2 (714 sq mi)
Length	73 km (45.4 mi)
Width	31 km (19.3 mi)
Highest elevation	1,950 m (6,400 ft)
Highest point	Hallasan
Country
South Korea
Special Autonomous Province	Jeju Special Autonomous Province
Largest settlement	Jeju City (pop. 408,364)
Demographics
Population	583,284
Density	316 /km2 (818 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Korean

Jejudo (also known as Jeju Island) is the largest island off the coast of the Korean Peninsula, and the main island of Jeju Province. The island lies in the Korea Strait, southwest of South Jeolla Province. The island contains the natural World Heritage Site Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes.^[1] Jejudo has a temperate climate; even in winter, the temperature rarely falls below 0 °C (32 °F).

History

Historical names

Historically, the island has been called by many different names including:

• Doi (Hangul: 도이 , hanja: 島夷, literally "Island barbarian")
• Dongyeongju (Hangul: 동영주 ; hanja: 東瀛州)
• Juho (Hangul: 주호 , hanja: 州胡)
• Tammora (탐모라, 耽牟羅)
• Seomra (섭라, 涉羅)
• Tangna (탁라, 乇羅)
• Tamna (탐라, 耽羅)
• Quelpart
• Joonwonhado (준원下島 meaning southern part of peninsula)
• Taekseungnido (Hangul: 택승리도 , meaning the peaceful hot island in Joseon)

Before the Japanese annexation in 1910, the island was usually known as Quelpart to Europeans. The name apparently came from the first European ship to spot the island, the Dutch Quelpaert, which sighted it after being blown off course on its way to the Dutch trading base in Nagasaki, Japan, from Taiwan (then the Dutch colony of Formosa).

When Korea was annexed by Japan in 1910, Jeju then became known as Saishū, which is the Japanese reading of the hanja for Jeju.

Before 2000, when the Seoul government established the official Revised Romanization of Korean, Jejudo was spelled Cheju-do. Almost all written references to the island before that use that spelling.

Geography

Baengnokdam in Hallasan

Waves crashing on Jeju seashore

Halla Mountain in Jeju

Jejudo is a volcanic island, dominated by Hallasan: a volcano 1,950 metres (6,400 ft) high and the highest mountain in South Korea. The island measures approximately 73 kilometres (45 mi) across, east to west, and 41 kilometres (25 mi) from north to south.^[2]

The island was created entirely from volcanic eruptions approximately 2 million years ago, during the time period extending from the Tertiary to the beginning of the Quaternary period, and consists chiefly of basalt and lava. The eruptions took place in the Cenozoic era. It has a humid subtropical climate, warmer than that of the rest of Korea, with four distinct weather seasons. Winters are cool and dry while summers are hot, humid, and sometimes rainy.

An area covering about 12% (224 square kilometres or 86 square miles) of Jejudo is known as Gotjawal Forest.^[3] This area remained uncultivated until the 21st century, as its base of ʻAʻā lava made it difficult to develop for agriculture. Because this forest remained pristine for so long, it has a unique ecology.^[4] The forest is the main source of groundwater and thus the main water source for the half million people of the island, because rainwater penetrates directly into the aquifer through the cracks of the ʻAʻā lava under the forest. Gotjawal forest is considered an internationally important wetland under the Ramsar Convention by some researchers^[5] because it is the habitat of unique species of plants and is the main source of water for the residents, although to date it has not been declared a Ramsar site.^[6]

Climate

Unusual weather event

In January 2016, a cold wave affected the region. Snow and frigid weather forced the cancellation of 1,200 flights on Jejudo, stranding approximately 90,300 passengers.^[12]

Places of Interest

• Manjanggul Lava Tube, 8 km long with a 1 km publicly accessible portion
• Seongsan Ilchulbong or "Sunrise Peak," a volcanic tuff cone and crater
• Mount Hallasan, the island's central dominant peak
• Seongeup Folk Village
• Jeju Teddy Bear Museum

Utilities

The island's power-grid is connected to mainland plants by the HVDC Haenam–Cheju, and electricity is also provided by generators located on the island. As of 2001, there were four power plants on Jeju, with more under planning and construction. The most notable of these are the gas-fired generators of Jeju Thermal Power Plant, located in Jeju City. The present-day generators of this plant were constructed from 1982 onwards, replacing earlier structures that dated from 1968.^[13] As elsewhere in Korea, the power supply is overseen by the Korea Electric Power Corporation, or KEPCO.

In February 2012, the governor of the state of Hawaii, Neil Abercrombie, and the director of the Electricity Market and Smart Grid Division at the Korea Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Choi Kyu-Chong, signed a letter of intent to share information about Smart Grid technology. The Jeju Smart Grid was initially installed in 6,000 homes in Gujwa-eup and is being expanded. South Korea is using the pilot program of the Smart Grid on Jejudo as the testing ground in order to implement a nationwide Smart Grid by 2030.^[14]

Transportation

As of 2012, the Seoul-Jeju City air route is by a significant margin the world's busiest, with 10,156,000 passengers flown between the two cities that year.^[15]

See also

• Jeju language
• Jeju Province
• Jeju City

References

Coordinates: 33°23′N 126°32′E / 33.38°N 126.53°E / 33.38; 126.53