Chung-guyŏk (Central Ward) is one of the 18 '' guyok'' which constitute the city of

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populat ...

, North Korea. The district is located in the center of the city, between the Pothonggang Canal and

Taedong River The Taedong River ( Chosŏn'gŭl: ) is a large river in North Korea. The river rises in the Rangrim Mountains of the country's north where it then flows southwest into Korea Bay at Namp'o.Suh, Dae-Sook (1987) "North Korea in 1986: Strengthen ...

, and is bordered to the north by

Moranbong-guyok Moranbong-guyŏk (), or the Moranbong District, is one of the 18 guyŏk which constitute the capital city of Pyongyang, North Korea. It is located north of Chung-guyok, the city's central district, and is bordered to the north by Sosong and Taeso ...

, to the northwest by Potonggang-guyok, and to the south by Pyongchon-guyok.

Overview

As the centre of Pyongyang, the district holds many of the city's most important buildings. The famous Kim Il-sung Square is located along the banks of the Taedong river, together with the Grand People's Study House, which is the

national library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant w ...

of North Korea. Chung-guyok was once the historical centre of Pyongyang, and was almost completely obliterated during the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

by American bombing. Vestiges of the old city can still be seen, and the district is home to several of North Korea's

National Treasures National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, including the rebuilt Potong and Taedong Gates, the

Pyongyang Bell The Pyongyang Bell is one of the National Treasures of North Korea. The current bell was cast between June and September 1726 during the Ri dynasty to replace an earlier one that was destroyed by fire in 1714. The bell was rung to announce inva ...

, the Ryongwang Pavilion, and the Sungryong and

Sungin Hall Sungin Hall (Hangul: 숭인전, Hanja: 崇仁殿) built in 1325 is one of the earliest shrines located at Chongno-dong, Chung-guyok, Pyongyang, North Korea. It has been registered as No.4 National Treasure of North Korea. The hall faces Sungnyo ...

s. Other buildings include the Koryo Hotel,

Taedonggang Hotel Taedonggang is a brand of North Korean beer brewed by the state-owned Taedonggang Brewing Company based in Pyongyang. There are four brands of beer marketed as Taedonggang, though the brand known simply as "Taedonggang Beer" is that describe ...

Pyongyang First Department Store The Pyongyang Department Store No. 1 ( ko, 평양제1백화점) is a major retail store in Pyongyang, North Korea. On Sungri Street near Kim Il-sung Square in downtown Pyongyang, it is one of the largest retail stores in the country and is ofte ...

, the Korea Stamp Museum, the

Pyongyang Central Children's palace Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 population ...

and Taedongmoon Cinema. The

Pyongyang Metro The Pyongyang Metro () is the rapid transit system in the North Korean capital Pyongyang. It consists of two lines: the Chollima Line, which runs north from Puhŭng Station on the banks of the Taedong River to Pulgŭnbyŏl Station, and the Hyŏ ...

runs through this district, with stops at Yonggwang, Ponghwa and Sungri stations. Pyongyang's central railway station is also located here. Executive offices of the

North Korean government In the North Korean government, the Cabinet is the administrative and executive body. The North Korean government consists of three branches: administrative, legislative, and judicial. However, they are not independent of each other, but all b ...

and its industry are located in the area. The headquarters of the Workers' Party of Korea and the headquarters of the

Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea ( ko, 조선로동당 중앙위원회) is the highest party body between national meetings of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea. According to WPK rules, the ...

are located in the area. Many new riverside terraced apartments were built along the Pothonggang Canal, a project which Kim Jong-un visited multiple times, and the district was renamed by the 690th order of the

Presidium of the SPA The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA; ) is the unicameral legislature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. It consists of one deputy from each of the DPRK's 687 constituencies, elected to five-year ...

Economy

Air Koryo Air Koryo () is the state-owned national airline of North Korea, headquartered in Sunan-guyŏk, Pyongyang. Based at Pyongyang International Airport (IATA: FNJ), it operates international scheduled and charter services to points in Asia. Hist ...

has a booking office in Tongsŏng-dong.

Administrative divisions

Chung-guyok is divided into nineteen administrative districts known as dong.

References

{{Pyongyang Districts of Pyongyang