The Taedong River (

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

: ) is a large river in

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 ...

. The river rises in the

Rangrim Mountains The Rangnim Mountains are a mountain range stretching from north to south, west of the Kaema Highlands, in central North Korea. They are the source of several major rivers of North Korea, such as the Taedong and the Ch'ŏngch'ŏn. The mount ...

of the country's north where it then flows southwest into

Korea Bay The Korea Bay, sometimes the West Korea Bay (; ; or ), is a bight and the northern extension of the Yellow Sea, between the southeastern coastline of China's Liaoning province and the western coastline of North Korea's North Pyongan, South P ...

Namp'o Nampo (North Korean official spelling: Nampho; ), also spelled Namp'o, is the second largest city by population and an important seaport in North Korea, which lies on the northern shore of the Taedong River, 15 km east of the river's mouth. ...

.Suh, Dae-Sook (1987) "North Korea in 1986: Strengthening the Soviet Connection" ''Asian Survey'' 27(1): pp. 56-63, page 62 In between, it runs through the country's capital,

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 populatio ...

. Along the

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

are landmarks such as the

Juche Tower The ''Juche'' Tower (more formally, the Tower of the ''Juche'' Idea), completed in 1982, is a monument in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, and is named after the ideology of ''Juche'' introduced by the country's first leader, Kim Il-sung. ...

and

Kim Il-sung Square __NOTOC__ Kim Il-sung Square is a large city square in the Central District of Pyongyang, North Korea, and is named after the country's founding leader, Kim Il-sung. The square was constructed in 1954 according to a master plan for reconstructing ...

. The river is 439 km or 272.7 mi in length, and is generally deep. It is the fifth-longest river on the

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

and the second-longest in North Korea.

is approximately 110 km upstream from the mouth,

Sunchon Sunch'ŏn () is a city in South Pyongan province, North Korea. It has a population of 297,317, and is home to various manufacturing plants. The city is on the Taedong River. History In 1413, the name of the city became Sunchon, due to a renam ...

192 km upstream, and Taehŭng 414 km upstream. Because of its depth, it is widely used for river transport; it is navigable by large ships up to 65 km inland, although most commercial traffic stops at

Songrim Songrim () is a city on the Taedong River in North Hwanghae Province, North Korea. It had a population of 128,831 in 2008. Administrative divisions Songrim is divided into 19 ''tong'' (neighbourhoods) and 6 '' ri'' (villages): * Chŏn-dong * ...

History

The kingdom of Koguryo was founded on its shores. Many archeological sites dating to the

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

and

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

s have been found along the river, as well as relics and ruins from Koguryo. It was also once known as the Pae River (). The Taedong River basin is believed to be the location of the Taedonggang Culture, the historical centre of the Korean nation, when its ancient civilization flourished in 3000 BC.

Dams and bridges

In 1986, the government completed the 8-km-long

West Sea Barrage The Nampho Dam or West Sea Dam, also known as the West Sea Barrage or West Sea Lock Gate, is a tidal barrage located 15 km west of the special city of Nampho, North Korea. It is a large, eight-km-long system of dams, three lock chambers, an ...

, with three locks and 36

sluice Sluice ( ) is a word for a channel controlled at its head by a movable gate which is called a sluice gate. A sluice gate is traditionally a wood or metal barrier sliding in grooves that are set in the sides of the waterway and can be considered ...

s, at the mouth of the Taedong River near Namp'o. The dam acts to control floodwater and to irrigate lands newly reclaimed from the Korea Gulf. The dam prevents mixing of the outgoing river water with seawater, leading to an increase of contaminants concentration. Other dams, such as the Nyongwon Power Station, have been built to provide energy to the country.(209) ''Korea Today'' No. 640
/ref> In Pyongyang, there are six bridges on the Taedong, including the

Okryu Bridge Ongryu Bridge, also spelled Okryu Bridge and Ongnyu Bridge, is a bridge on the Taedong River in and near Pyongyang, North Korea. Construction began in March 1958; the bridge was opened in August 1960. Located between the old Taedong Bridge bef ...

Rungra Bridge The Rungra Bridge is a bridge in Pyongyang, North Korea, one of the city's six bridges on the Taedong River. Located between the Okryu Bridge to the south and Chongryu Bridge to the north, it connects Moranbong-guyok on the right (west) bank of ...

, and

Taedong Bridge The Taedong Bridge is a bridge over the Taedong River in Pyongyang, 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 ...

Gallery

File:Taedong_River,_Pyongyang,_from_the_Juche_Tower.jpg,

Yanggakdo Yanggakdo, or Yanggak Island is a small island in the Taedong River, located about two kilometers to the south-east of the centre of the North Korean capital city Pyongyang. It is connected to the northern and southern side of Pyongyang by the Yan ...

Island in the middle of the river in Pyongyang File:Pyongyang DPR Korea2b.jpg, The Taedong River flowing through

Image:Taedong_river_1889.jpeg, An image of the Taedong River from 1889 Image:North Korea-Pyongyang-01.jpg, The Taedong in Pyongyang Image:Taedonggang-guyŏk (Pyongyang).jpg, Another view of the river through Pyongyang Image:North Korea-Pyongyang-Grand Peoples Study House-01.jpg, The

Grand People's Study House The Grand People's Study House is the central library located in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. The building is situated on Kim Il-sung Square by the banks of the Taedong River. Features The Study House was constructed in a traditiona ...

on the bank of the river. File:USS Pueblo 1.JPG, The captured vessel moored on the Taedong (now tied up on the Botong River beside the

Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum The Victorious War Museum, or the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum, is a history/military museum dedicated to the Korean War located in the North Korean capital-city of Pyongyang. The museum was first set up in August 1953 and built in ...

) File:Nampho1.jpg, The Taedong River in

Nampo Nampo (North Korean official spelling: Nampho; ), also spelled Namp'o, is the second largest city by population and an important seaport in North Korea, which lies on the northern shore of the Taedong River, 15 km east of the river's mouth. ...

History

Dams and bridges

Gallery

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography

See also