Kujang County is a ''kun'', or county, in southeastern North P'yŏngan province,

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 borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. It was created in 1952 from part of Nyŏngbyŏn county, as part of a nationwide reorganization of local government. It borders Nyŏngbyŏn on the west,

Hyangsan Hyangsan County is a Administrative divisions of North Korea, ''kun'', or county, in Chagang Province, Chagang province, North Korea. It was established, following the division of Korea, from portions of Nyongbyon County, Nyŏngbyŏn county. The a ...

and Unsan counties on the north, Nyŏngwŏn on the east, and Kaech'ŏn and Tŏkch'ŏn cities to the south.

History

Kujang County was formed in 1952 from the split of Nyongbyon County.

Geography

The Myohyang Mountains stretch across the eastern part of Kujang. The highest point is Kalbong (칼봉, 1530 m) in the north. The Ch'ŏngch'ŏn River flows through the centre of the county, and the Kuryong River flows along its western flank. Due to the mountainous terrain, only 17% of the county's land is cultivated, while 74% is occupied by forestland.

Administrative divisions

Kujang county is divided into 1 '' ŭp'' (town), 5 '' rodongjagu'' (workers' districts) and 22 '' ri'' (villages):

Climate

The average annual temperature is 8.4 °C, with a January mean of -10.4 °C and an August mean of 24.2 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1300 mm, making for a comparatively cool and wet climate.

Caverns

The caves in the Kujang area are

karstic Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. There is some eviden ...

grottoes formed during the

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), as well as the current and most recent of the twelve periods of the ...

of the

Cenozoic Era The Cenozoic Era ( ; ) is Earth's current geological Era (geology), era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterized by the dominance of mammals, Insect, insects, birds and flowering plant, angiosperms (floweri ...

in limestone formations. Despite similar origins, they vary in size, scope, and aesthetic features due to karstic evolution. Ryongmun Cavern, located 370 meters above sea level, stretches 7 km with

stalagmites A stalagmite (, ; ; ) is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically composed of calcium carbonate, but may consist o ...

and

stalactites A stalactite (, ; , ) is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble and that can be deposited as a colloid, or is in suspension, or is ca ...

. Paekryong Cavern, 470 meters above sea level, features animal-shaped formations and stone columns. Kaechon Flower Cave is known for its "''sea of flowers''" made of mineral-rich stone.

Economy

Zinc, coal, and mica are mined in the district. Factories produce cement and rail cars. There are agricultural areas along the Chongchon and Kuryong rivers. In 2019, the Kujang Youth No.1 Hydropower station opened. Prior to opening, the generator room was flooded in a storm, although the generators were not yet installed at that time. Kujang Youth No.2 Hydropower station is under construction.

Transportation

The Manp'o, P'yŏngdŏk and Ch'ŏngnyŏn P'arwŏn lines of the

Korean State Railway The Korean State Railway is the operating arm of the Ministry of Railways of North Korea (), commonly called the State Rail () and has its headquarters at Pyongyang, P'yŏngyang. The current Minister of Railways is Chang Jun-song. History 19 ...

intersect in Kujang, along with various branch lines serving the county's mines. The Pyongyang-Hyangsan tourist road and several other first-class roads pass through the county. A former trolleybus system existed in Ryongdung-rodongjagu from the 1970s, connecting the workers' village to the nearby mine. Two trolleybuses serviced the route.

References

;Bibliography *

External links

* {{coord, 39, 52, 02, N, 126, 01, 41, E, region:KR_type:city_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Counties of North Pyongan