Hadong County (, ''Hadong-gun'') is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

South Gyeongsang Province South Gyeongsang Province ( ko, 경상남도, translit=Gyeongsangnam-do, ) is a province in the southeast of South Korea. The provincial capital is at Changwon. It is adjacent to the major metropolitan center and port of Busan. The UNESCO World ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. It is on the far-west side of the province, bordering

South Jeolla Province South Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollanam-do''; ), also known as Jeonnam, is a province of South Korea. South Jeolla has a population of 1,902,324 (2014) and has a geographic area of located in the Honam region at the southwestern tip of the Korean ...

. The county office is located at Hadeong-eup.

History

The county of Hadong was called ''Dasachon'' (, "county of much sand") when it was a part of the Jin state, later becoming a part of ''Nangnoguk'' (), one of twelve statelets of the

Byeonhan confederacy Byeonhan (, ), also known as Byeonjin, (, ) was a loose confederacy of chiefdoms that existed from around the beginning of the Common Era to the 4th century in the southern Korean peninsula. Byeonhan was one of the Samhan (or "Three Hans"), al ...

. According to the ''History of the Three Kingdoms'', the region was called ''Handasa-gun'' (), then changed into ''Hadong-gun'' in 757 CE, during the reign of King

Gyeongdeok of Silla Gyeongdeok of Silla (景德王; 742–765) was the 35th ruler of Silla and son of King Seongdeok (reigned 702–737). He succeeded his elder brother, King Hyoseong, the 34th ruler of Silla. His reign is considered a golden age in Unified Silla� ...

. During the

Goryeo dynasty Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...

, the area was known as ''Hadong-hyeon'' (). In 1414, during the reign of the Joseon-era

King Taejong Taejong of Joseon (13 June 1367 – 8 June 1422), personal name Yi Bang-won ( Korean: 이방원; Hanja: 李芳遠), was the third ruler of the Joseon dynasty of Korea and the father of King Sejong the Great. Before ascending to the throne, he ...

, it became known as ''Hanamhyeon'' () with ''Namhaehyeon'' (). It was raised to the status of ''Hadongdohobu'' () in 1740, in the thirtieth year of King Sukjong's reign. During the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

the region was the site of a

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

n attack on

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

forces, the

Hadong Ambush The Hadong Ambush was an engagement between United States and North Korean forces, occurring on July 27, 1950, in the village of Hadong in southern South Korea, early in the Korean War. The fight ended in a North Korean victory following a succes ...

. * 1702: Agyang-myeon ( 악양면, 岳陽面) added to Hadong-gun * April 1, 1914: Seo-myeon () and Geumyang-myeon () added * January 1, 1915: Part of Seomjin-ri (), Daap-myeon (), Gwangyang-gun ( 광양군, 光陽郡),

added * 1917: Naehoengbo-myeon () renamed to Hoengcheon-myeon (); Deokyang-myeon () renamed to Jingyo-myeon () * January 1, 1933: Geumyang-myeon () was abolished and incorporated into Jingyo-myeon () and Geumnam-myeon (), formerly Nam-myeon () * October 1, 1938: Hadong-myeon () elevated to Hadong-eup ()

Local sights and attractions

Nestled between the Seomjin River and

Mount Jiri Jirisan is a mountain located in the southern region of South Korea. It is the second-tallest mountain in South Korea after Jeju Island's Hallasan, and the tallest mountain in mainland South Korea. The 1915m-high mountain is located in Jiri ...

, the county is a popular destination for both domestic and foreign tourists who enjoy nature. Parts of the

Jirisan National Park Jirisan National Park ( ko, 지리산국립공원, 智異山國立公園) is a national park in South Korea, located on the boundaries of Jeollanam-do, Jeollabuk-do, and Gyeongsangnam-do. It is also located bordering the towns of Namwon, Gurye, ...

lie within the county and form the county's notable hilly, mountainous landscape. The Ssanggyesa (Ssangye Temple) is a notable historic temple of the

Jogye Order The Jogye Order, officially the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism (대한불교조계종, 大韓佛敎曹溪宗), is the representative order of traditional Korean Buddhism with roots that date back 1200 years to the Later Silla National Master D ...

Korean Buddhism Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what its early practitioners saw as inconsistencies within the Mahayana Buddhist traditions that they received from foreign countries. To address this, the ...

and is a designated

National Treasure The idea of national treasure, like national epics and national anthems, is part of the language of romantic nationalism, which arose in the late 18th century and 19th centuries. Nationalism is an ideology that supports the nation as the fundame ...

. Pak Gyeongni's 16-volume novel ''Land'' is partly set in the village of Pyeongsa-ri () in Agyang-myeon, Hadong County. A replica of the fictional Choi family's home was built there to commemorate the author's legacy.

Green tea

Hadong has been famous for its

green tea Green tea is a type of tea that is made from '' Camellia sinensis'' leaves and buds that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process which is used to make oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China, and since the ...

since the

Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of K ...

era, when an envoy brought green tea seeds from the

Tang Empire The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

to be planted locally. The local government has historically promoted this as a major local attraction, including sponsoring a tourism advertisement that aired on

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

in 2007. The annual "wild tea" festival, lasting 25 days, takes place during May and June.

Development

While much of Korea has experienced an explosion of industrial development, Hadong remains a destination for those who wish to escape the bustle of city living. However, a lack of activity in the industrial sector has left the government with little incentive to expanding the sometimes inadequate existing road infrastructure. A petition for the allocation of funds for new road construction was signed by a number of Hadong residents. Former South Korean president

Lee Myung-bak Lee Myung-bak (; ; ; born 19 December 1941) is a South Korean businessman and politician who served as the 10th president of South Korea from 2008 to 2013. Before his presidency, he was the CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction, and the ma ...

has recently announced plans for the construction of a Gyeongsangnam-do leisure resort palace in Hadong.

Climate

Notable people

Jeong Gi-ryong Jeong Ki-ryong (1562–1622) was a prominent Korean Army general during the Joseon Dynasty. He fought against the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598) (Seven Years' War), and won the battles of Geochang and Geumsan. He was one of those wh ...

* Yi Byeong-ju, a novelist, journalist, and reporter * Jeong Ho-seung *

Kang Man-soo Kang Man-Soo (born 24 August 1955) is a South Korean former volleyball player who competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics, in the 1976 Summer Olympics, and in the 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII ...

* Jeong Gongchae, who won the 1960

Contemporary Literature (Hyundae Munhak) Award The company Contemporary Literature (“Hyundae Munhak” in Korean), founded in South Korea in 1954, is one of the leading publishing companies in the literary field and has been publishing the nation's most prestigious monthly literary magazine ' ...

for poetry for "Coal" () and "Freedom" ()

Schools

**High schools * **Middle schools *Agyang Middle School

Twin towns – sister cities

Hadong is twinned with: *

Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...

Gwangyang Gwangyang () is a city in South Jeolla Province, South Korea. Gwangyang city is the home of POSCO's Gwangyang Steel Works, the largest facility of its kind in the world. The city is also home to K League Classic football side Jeonnam Dragons. Gw ...

Geoje Geoje ( Hangeul: ; Hanja: 巨濟; ) is a city located in South Gyeongsang province, just off the coast of the port city of Busan, South Korea. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (former Daewoo Shipyard) in Okpo and Samsung Heavy Industries ...

Seongdong-gu Seongdong District (Seongdong-gu) is one of the 25 '' gu'' which make up the city of Seoul, South Korea. It is situated on the north bank of the Han River. It is divided into 20 ''dong'' (neighbourhoods). Administrative divisions Seongdong Dist ...

Haeundae-gu Haeundae District ( ko, 해운대구) is a district ( ''gu'') of Busan, South Korea. Haeundae has a population of about 423,000, the most populous district of Busan with 11.6% of the city population, and covers an area of 51.44 km² (19. ...

Zhangqiu Zhangqiu () is one of 10 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, East China. The district has an area of 1721.29 square kilometers, 20 towns, 908 villages and the permanent resident population w ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Ya'an Ya'an (, Tibetan: Yak-Nga ) is a prefecture-level city in the western part of Sichuan province, China, located just below the Tibetan Plateau. The city is home to Sichuan Agricultural University, the only 211 Project university and the largest ...

Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie (), also known in Tujia language as ''Zhangx jif avlar'' /dzaŋ˩ ji˥ a˩.la˥/, is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan Province, China. It comprises the district of Yongding, Wulingyuan and counties of Cili a ...

References

External links

County government website
{{Authority control Counties of South Gyeongsang Province