Kyŏnghŭng County is a ''kun'', or county, in
North Hamgyong 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 ...
. Formerly known as Ŭndŏk County (), from 1977 to 2010.
The county borders the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
to the northeast. Except for the southwest, it is dominated by low hills, with occasional plains. The highest point is
Songjinsan, which is . The dominant river is the
Tumen, which separates the county from China. The level ground along the Tumen is developed, but approximately 80% of the county is forested.
Mining, particularly
coal mining
Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...
, is the chief industry in Undok, where
lignite
Lignite (derived from Latin ''lignum'' meaning 'wood'), often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35% and is considered the lowest ...
is found; Undok is the site of the Aoji Coal Mine. In addition, farming and livestock raising are widespread. The chief crops are maize, rice, soybeans, and potatoes. The
Aoji-ri Chemical Complex
The Aoji-ri Chemical Complex () is a large industrial complex in Haksong-ri (formerly Aoji-ri), Kyonghung County, North Hamgyong Province, North Korea, which produces about 51 different products, including methane (35,000 tons per year), ammonia ...
is located in the county as well.
Undok lies on the
Hambuk Line
The Hambuk Line is an electrified standard-gauge trunk line of the Korean State Railway in North Korea, running from Ch'ŏngjin on the P'yŏngra Line to Rajin, likewise on the P'yŏngra line.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama no ...
and
Hoeam Line
The Hoeam Line is a non-electrified secondary line of the Korean State Railway in Kyŏnghŭng County, North Hamgyŏng province, North Korea, running from Haksong on the Hambuk Line to Obong.Kokubu, Hayato, 将軍様の鉄道 (Shōgun-sama ...
railroads.
History
Under
Joseon
Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
period "Kyunghung", the ancient name of Undok, was one of the six post/garrisons () established under the order of King
Sejong the Great of Joseon
Sejong (; 15 May 1397 – 8 April 1450), commonly known as Sejong the Great (), was the fourth monarch of the Joseon dynasty of Korea. He is regarded as the greatest ruler in Korean history, and is remembered as the inventor of Hangul, the n ...
in 1433, to safeguard his people from the hostile Chinese and Manchurian nomads living in
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...
.
Notable personalities
*Lee Gyung-Rok () the prefect of Kyŏnghŭng ()
Administrative divisions
Kyŏnghŭng County is divided into 1 town ("Ŭp") 12 villages ("Ri") and 3 worker's districts ("Rodongjagu").
See also
*
Geography of North Korea
North Korea is located in East Asia in the Northern half of Korea, partially on the Korean Peninsula. It borders three countries: People's Republic of China, China along the Amnok River, Yalu (Amnok) River, Russia along the Tumen River, and Sou ...
*
Administrative divisions of North Korea
The administrative divisions of North Korea are organized into three hierarchical levels. These divisions were created in 2002. Many of the units have equivalents in the Administrative Divisions of South Korea, system of South Korea. At the ...
*
Tumen River Bridge
The Tumen River Bridge () crosses the Tumen River between , where the Quan River enters the Tumen River in Jilin Province, China, and Wonjong in Rason, North Korea. It is the international link in a road route between Hunchun, Hunchun City in Ch ...
External links
Location of the four forts and the six posts*
{{coord missing, North Korea
Counties of North Hamgyong