Kangwon Province (Kangwŏndo; ) is a province of North Korea, with its capital at

Wŏnsan Wŏnsan (), previously known as Wŏnsanjin (), Port Lazarev, and Genzan (), is a port city and naval base located in Kangwŏn Province, North Korea, along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, on the Sea of Japan and the provincial capital. ...

. Before the

division of Korea The division of Korea began with the defeat of Empire of Japan, Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allies of World War II, Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached ...

in 1945, Kangwŏn Province and its

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 ...

n neighbour Gangwon Province (also spelled ''Kangwon Province'' sometimes) formed a single province that excluded

History

Kangwŏn was one of the Eight Provinces of Korea 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 re ...

. The province was formed 1395, and derived its name from the names of the principal cities of

Gangneung Gangneung () is a municipal city in the province of Gangwon-do, on the east coast of South Korea. It has a population of 213,658 (as of 2017).Gangneung City (2003)Population & Households. Retrieved January 14, 2006. Gangneung is the economic ...

(or Kangnŭng; ; ) and the provincial capital

Wonju Wonju () is the most populous city in Gangwon Province, South Korea. The city is located approximately east of Seoul. Wonju was the site of three crucial battles during the Korean War. Geography Wonju sits at the southwestern corner of Gangw ...

(or Wŏnju; ; ). In 1895, Kangwŏn 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 ...

of Chuncheon (''Chuncheon-bu;'' ; ) in the west and Gangneung (''Gangneung-bu;'' ; ) in the east. Wonju became part of Chungju District. In 1896, Korea was redivided into thirteen provinces, and the two districts were merged to re-form Kangwŏn Province. Although Wonju rejoined Kangwŏn province, the provincial capital was moved to Chuncheon. In 1945, Kangwŏn Province (along with the rest of Korea) was divided by the

38th parallel north The 38th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 38 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean. The 38th parallel north formed ...

in 1945 into

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

zones of occupation in the north and south respectively. In 1946, the northern province was expanded to include the North Korean portion of

Gyeonggi Gyeonggi-do (, ) is the most populous province in South Korea. Its name, ''Gyeonggi'', means "京 (the capital) and 畿 (the surrounding area)". Thus, ''Gyeonggi-do'' can be translated as "Seoul and the surrounding areas of Seoul". Seoul, the na ...

Province and the area around

in South Hamgyŏng Province. The provincial capital of the North Korean portion of the province was established at Wŏnsan, as Kangwŏn's traditional capitals Wonju and Chuncheon both were south of the 38th parallel. In 1948, the province became part of the new

Democratic People's Republic of 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 ...

. As a result of 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 ...

Armistice Agreement of 1953, the boundary between the North and South Korean portions of the province was shifted northward to the

Military Demarcation Line The Military Demarcation Line (MDL), sometimes referred to as the Armistice Line, is the land border or demarcation line between North Korea and South Korea. On either side of the line is the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The MDL and DMZ ...

. In 2002,

Mount Kumgang Tourist Region The Mount Kumgang Tourist Region is a special administrative region of North Korea. It was established in 2002 to handle South Korean tourist traffic to Mount Kumgang (Diamond Mountain). It was one of the symbols of the South Korean Sunshine Pol ...

was split off from the rest of the province to form a separately-administered region.

Geography

The province is bordered by South Hamgyŏng to the north,

South P'yŏngan South Pyongan Province (Phyŏngannamdo; ) is a province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the southern half of the former Pyongan Province, remained a province of Korea until 1945, then became a province of North Korea. Its ca ...

and

North Hwanghae North Hwanghae Province (Hwanghaebuk-to; , lit. "north Yellow Sea province") is a province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1954 when the former Hwanghae Province was split into North and South Hwanghae. The provincial capital is Sari ...

to the west, and

Kaesŏng Kaesong (, ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close t ...

to the south. Additionally, the province is across the

Korean Demilitarized Zone The Korean Demilitarized Zone (Korean: ; Hanbando Bimujang Jidae) is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula near the 38th parallel north. The demilitarized zone (DMZ) is a border barrier that divides the peninsula roughly in ha ...

from its South Korean counterpart

Gangwon Gangwon or Kangwŏn may refer to: * Gangwon Province (historical), the Goryeo, Joseon Dynasty and the Japanese Korean province * Gangwon Province (South Korea), a province of South Korea, with its capital at Chuncheon. Before the division of Kore ...

and

. To the east is 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, it h ...

. The province is dominated by the T'aebaek Mountains, the highest peak of which is

Mount Kumgang Mount Kumgang () or the Kumgang Mountains is a mountain massif, with a peak, in Kangwon-do, North Korea. It is located on the east coast of the country, in Mount Kumgang Tourist Region, formerly part of Kangwŏn Province, and is part of the ...

("Diamond Mountain"). Kangwŏn and Gangwon Provinces are together referred to as the

Gwandong Gwandong (관동; ) is a region coinciding with the former Gangwon Province in Korea. Today, the term refers to South Korea's Gangwon Province and North Korea's Kangwon Province. The name is often used to refer to people residing in the regio ...

region. The region west of the Taebaek Mountains is called Yŏngsŏ, while the region east of the mountains is called Yŏngdong. In April 2003, the Mt. Chuae Plant Reserve was created. The reserve is 687 hectares and is in Shindong-ri, Sepho County, and Sanyang-ri, Kosan County. Mt. Chuae is 1,528 meters above sea level and is part of the Masingnyong Mountains. The DPRK Nature Conservation Union is trying to preserve mixed forests of pine and broad-leaf trees. The DPRK Cabinet-level decision has banned animal grazing and collecting plant resources and other acts of damaging the environment.

Administrative divisions

Kangwŏn Province is divided into 2 cities (''si''), 1 special administrative region, and 15 counties (''kun''). NK-Gangwon

Cities

* Munchŏn-si (; ) *

-si (; )

Counties

* Anbyŏn-gun (; ) * Ch'angdo-gun (; ) * Ch'ŏnnae-gun (; ) * Ch'ŏrwŏn-gun (; ) * Hoeyang-gun (; ) * Ich'ŏn-gun (; ) * Kimhwa-gun (; ) * Kosan-gun (; ) * Kosŏng-gun (; ) * Kŭmgang-gun (; ) **

(; ) * P'an'gyo-gun (; ) * Pŏptong-gun (; ) * P'yŏnggang-gun (; ) * Sep'o-gun (; ) * T'ongch'ŏn-gun (; )

References

External links

Seoul City history article on Hanseong and 22 other late 19th-century districts (in Korean)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kangwon-Do (North Korea) Provinces of North Korea