The Geumgang River is located in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

. It is a major river that originates in Jangsu-eup,

North Jeolla North Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollabuk-do''), also known as Jeonbuk, is a province of South Korea. North Jeolla has a population of 1,869,711 (2015) and has a geographic area of 8,067 km2 (3,115 sq mi) located in the Honam region in the southwes ...

Province. It flows northward through North Jeolla and

North Chungcheong North Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청북도, ''Chungcheongbuk-do''), also known as Chungbuk, is a province of South Korea. North Chungcheong has a population of 1,578,934 (2014) and has a geographic area of located in the Hoseo region in the ...

Provinces and then changes direction in the vicinity of Greater

Daejeon Daejeon () is South Korea's fifth-largest metropolis, with a population of 1.5 million as of 2019. Located in the central-west region of South Korea alongside forested hills and the Geum River, the city is known both for its technology an ...

and flows southwest through

South Chungcheong South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located i ...

Province before emptying into the

Yellow Sea The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour ter ...

near

Gunsan Gunsan (), also romanized as Kunsan, is a city in North Jeolla Province, South Korea. It is on the south bank of the Geum River just upstream from its exit into the Yellow Sea. It has emerged as a high-tech manufacturing industrial city and an i ...

city. The river is long, making it the third longest in South Korea. The area of the Geum River Basin is . The upper part of the river flows slowly through part of the Noryeongsanmaek Mountains and is marked by extensive stream meandering. On the other hand, river curves on middle and lower parts of the river are more gradual and there is comparatively less stream meandering. Tributary streams of the Geumgang include the Gap-cheon, Yugu-cheon, Miho-cheon, Unsan-cheon, Seokseong-cheon, and Nonsan-cheon. Several small alluvial plains including the Honam and Nonsan Plain have been formed by the flow of the Geumgang and its tributaries.

History and Culture

In the area of

Buyeo County Buyeo County (''Buyeo-gun'') is a county in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. Buyeo-eup, the county's capital, was the site of the capital of Baekje from 538-660 AD, during which it was called Sabi Fortress. Famous people associated with B ...

, the river bears the name Baengma-gang river, which means White Horse River. Numerous legends associate the ancient kingdom of

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (, ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. Baekje was founded by Onjo, the third son of Goguryeo's founder Jum ...

with the Baengma. The Baengma River is the subject of a well-known song of the '' sin minyo'' tradition, ''Kkumkkuneun Baengma-gang'' (꿈꾸는 백마강, "Dreaming Baengma-gang"). The Geumgang River and its tributaries were a means of cultural contact from prehistoric times (see

Mumun Pottery Period The Mumun pottery period is an archaeological era in Korean prehistory that dates to approximately 1500-300 BC. This period is named after the Korean name for undecorated or plain cooking and storage vessels that form a large part of the potter ...

) and into the

Three Kingdoms of Korea Samhan or the Three Kingdoms of Korea () refers to the three kingdoms of Goguryeo (고구려, 高句麗), Baekje (백제, 百濟), and Silla (신라, 新羅). Goguryeo was later known as Goryeo (고려, 高麗), from which the modern name ''Kor ...

through their ancient function as a transportation route that begins on the west coast and penetrates deep in the interior of the Peninsula. Bronze Culture flourished in this area from c. 850 B.C.-A.D. 100 (see

Liaoning bronze dagger culture The Liaoning bronze dagger culture or Lute-shaped bronze dagger culture is the provisional designation of an archeological complex of the Bronze Age in Manchuria and the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. Its classification is controversial. Wh ...

). Archaeological evidence suggests that some of the very first complex societies in southern Korea briefly flourished in the valleys formed by tributaries of this river. The Geumgang River Basin contained the chiefdoms of Mahan, and a former centres of the early kingdom of

such as

Ungjin Ungjin, also known as Gomanaru (Hangul: 고마나루, literally "bear port") is a former city on the Korean Peninsula. It was located in modern-day Gongju, South Chungcheong province, South Korea. It was the capital of Baekje from AD 475 to 538 ...

(AD 475–525) and Sabi (AD 525–660) are located along the Baengma portion of the river. The river's Korean name ("Silk River") is a

homonym In linguistics, homonyms are words which are homographs (words that share the same spelling, regardless of pronunciation), or homophones ( equivocal words, that share the same pronunciation, regardless of spelling), or both. Using this definiti ...

of the word for "diamond" (금강; 金剛) and should not be confused with Kŭmgang Mountain (금강산; 金剛山; "Diamond Mountain") 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 Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

Economy

Dams have been built on the Middle and Upper Geumgang to facilitate water for agriculture and industry. They include the Daecheong Dam and the Yongdam Dam. The city of Greater Daejeon and the farms and industries of South Chungcheong Province rely heavily on the Geum River and its tributaries. The alluvial plains formed by the Geumgang and its tributaries are the locations of significant agricultural production in Korea.

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