Hamgyong Province () was one of the Eight Provinces of

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and Sout ...

during the

Joseon Dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and ...

. Hamgyŏng was located in the northeast of Korea. The provincial capital was Hamhŭng.

Names

The province was first established as Yonggil ( ko, 영길, , ''Yŏnggil'') in 1413. It was renamed Hamgil (, ) three years later. In 1470, it was renamed Yongan (, , ''Yŏngan''). In 1509, it was renamed Hamgyong after its two principal cities,

Hamhung Hamhŭng (''Hamhŭng-si''; ) is North Korea's second-largest city, and the capital of South Hamgyŏng Province. It has an estimated population of 768,551. Located in the southern part of the South Hamgyong province, Hamhung is the main and most p ...

(, , ''Hamhŭng'', "Complete Success") and Kyongsong (, , ''Kyŏngsŏng'', "Mirror," "Clear," or "Perceptive City"). In the 18th century, this was transcribed via

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of v ...

as Kyen-king and glossed as meaning "the Happy". In the 19th century, it was transcribed as Ham-kieng. Within Korea, the province was also referred to by the regional name Dongbuk ("Northeast"). the southern half of the province was also referred as " Kwannam", the northern half of the province was also referred as " Kwanbuk".

History

Korea's northeastern frontier was first organized into the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outs ...

of Yonggil in 1413. In 1895, the province was replaced by the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

(, , ''bu'') of Kyongsong in the northeast, Kapsan (, ) in the northwest, and Hamhŭng in the south. In 1896, Kyŏngsŏng District was reorganized into North Hamgyŏng Province, and Kapsan and Hamhŭng Districts were reorganized into South Hamgyŏng Province. These divisions continue in present-day

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 Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and ...

Geography

Hamgyŏng was bounded on the west by

P'yŏngan Pyeong-an Province (, ) was one of Eight Provinces of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. Pyeong'an was located in the northwest of Korea. The provincial capital was Pyeongyang (now Pyongyang, North Korea). History Pyeong'an Province was formed in ...

, on the south by

Hwanghae Hwanghae Province (''Hwanghae-do'' ) was one of the Eight Provinces of Korea during the Joseon era. Hwanghae was located in the northwest of Korea. The provincial capital was Haeju. The regional name for the province was Haeseo. History In 139 ...

and Kangwŏn, on the east by the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, ...

, and on the north by

Qing China The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

and the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. T ...

References

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

Seoul City history article on Hanseong and 22 other late 19th-century districts (in Korean)
{{Authority control Provinces of Korea Joseon dynasty