Jinhae-gu (

Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The let ...

: 진해구,

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...

: 鎭海區) is a

district 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 ...

Changwon Changwon () is the capital city of Gyeongsangnam-do, on the southeast coast of South Korea. With a population of 1.07 million , Changwon is South Korea's ninth-most populous city. A port city, Changwon is bordered by Masan Bay to the south ...

City, South Korea. This region is served by the

Korean National Railroad The Korea Railroad Corporation (Korean: 한국철도공사, Hanja: ), branded as KORAIL (코레일, officially changed to in November 2019), is the national railway operator in South Korea. Currently, KORAIL is a public corporation, managed ...

, and is famous for its annual cherry blossom festival every spring. The city front is on a sheltered, island-studded bay, and is almost completely surrounded by mountains covered with pine trees. The emblem of Jinhae contains a cherry blossom.

History

Jinhae was developed as a naval base ( Chinkai Naval Station) of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

during the Japanese occupation period in the early 20th century. On July 1, 2010, Jinhae and its neighboring cities,

and

Masan Masan is an administrative region of Changwon, a city in the South Gyeongsang Province. It was formerly an independent city from 1949 until 30 June 2010, when it was absorbed to Changwon along with Jinhae. Masan was redistricted as two district ...

, merged to form the city of Changwon, currently the seat of the

Provincial Council of South Gyeongsang Province Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...

Economy

The city's economy is primarily dependent on the

Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ko, 대한민국 해군), also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy in ...

personnel and their families or employees of the ROKN shipyard and base facilities. Today, Jinhae hosts major naval facilities and commands of the South Korean navy including Commander-in-Chief Republic of Korea Fleet (CINCROKFLT) and the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. See also * Military academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally pro ...

. Jinhae is part of a large urban corridor that links the adjacent cities of

and

. These three cities merged as one in 2010, hence the name "Jinhae-gu" instead of "Jinhae-si". Moreover, the city is also host to the only US Naval base in Korea,

US Naval Fleet Activities, Chinhae Commander Fleet Activities Chinhae ( ko, 진해 함대지원부대;
l

Admiral Yi Sun Shin over a Japanese invasion attempt In April, the cherry blossoms start to bloom in the south of the Korean peninsula and the cherry blossom festivals begin to be held throughout the country, while displaying a strong regional flavor. (Suh, 2002) “Cherry blossom festivals are presented at some ten locations in Korea including Jinhae, Gyeongju, Gunsan, Yeongam, and Yoido in Seoul, which annually attract millions of visitors. The Jinhae Naval Port Festival, a cherry blossom festival with a tradition of 40 years, includes a ceremony to commemorate the achievements of Admiral Yi Sun-sin. In Yeongam, where the cherry blossom festival is held together with the Wangin Culture Festival, there is a cherry blossom-lined walkway with 250 steps, as well as a parade of 1,000 lanterns. In Hadong, Gyeongsangnam-do province, a cherry blossom festival is staged in the area between the Hwagae marketplace and Ssangyesa Temple. Since the region has long been known for its traditional market, the cherry blossom festival events include an unveiling of a statue of a vendor, selection of a "cherry blossom ssireum champion" and "cherry blossom singer," and a naturally formed cherry blossom archway, which is known as "pathway leading to a wedding." (Yong, 2016) The Jinhae Gunhangje Cherry Blossom Festival where every year, an estimated 340,000 cherry trees burst into an ocean of pale pink blossoms. It is by far the largest and the most beautiful cherry blossom festival in South Korea. Along the Yeojwacheon Stream at night are also what you must do during the festival. Decorated with beautiful lanterns and colorful umbrellas, you will be swept away by a dazzling array of colorful splendor. These cherry blossom trees attract an estimated 1 million tourists to Jinhae every year. The festival is officially known as Gunhangjae (군항제), or Naval Port Festival. Two of the best places to view the cherry blossoms are Yeojwacheon stream (여좌천) and Gyeonghwa train station (경화역 벚꽃길). Gyeonghwa station. (Kim, 2000) In addition to Yeojwacheon Starlight Festival, Sokcheonhang Port Multimedia Fireworks Show. Another festival is the Cornelian Cherry Festival at Sangwi village. It is a smaller festival but it is worth taking the time to appreciate the brilliant Cornelian cherry flowers decorating the fields in the morning. Farmers driving their oxen to the fields in the early morning fog is a picturesque scene from Sangwi village that can be witnessed only during the early morning hours. The Sangwi village is usually crowded as a marketplace with its Cornelian cherry flowers still in full bloom, due to the many tourists who come to drink the sap from acer mono. If you avoid this hectic period, you will be able to return home with your heart filled with the vigor of spring. The Yeouido and Seokchon Cherry Blossom Festivals in Seoul. These festivals attract a large amount of the Seoul population, plus many tourists. The island of Jeju has a cherry blossom festival, but in recent years has been cancelled due to Covid. The final big festival takes place in Gyeongju. The Gyeongju chery blossom festival is one of the most unique on the Korean peninsula. It takes place in and around the old Silla kingdoms capital city. The cities roads are flanked by old growth cherry trees, as are the parks, burial mounds, and the temples located throughout the city and mountains. Many of the trees are protected due to their being located on UNESCO World Heritage site grounds. Jinhae Cherry Blossoms

Sister cities

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, United States *

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, Japan *

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* Nagato City,

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, Japan

Notable people from Jinhae-gu

* Jinyoung (real name: Park Jin-young,

: 박진영), actor and member of

K-pop K-pop (), short for Korean popular music, is a form of popular music originating in South Korea as part of South Korean culture. It includes styles and genres from around the world, such as pop, hip hop, R&B, experimental, rock, jazz, gos ...

boygroup Got7 and duo

JJ Project JJ Project () is a South Korean duo, consisting of Jay B and Jinyoung. They were formed by JYP Entertainment and released their debut single "Bounce" in May 2012. They later debuted as a part of Got7 in January 2014. Career In 2009, Lim Jae ...

References

External links

website
* Official Cherry Blossom Festival page (Gunghangj

{{Authority control Districts of Changwon Cherry blossom festivals