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| Name | |
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Main article: Names of Seoul
The city has been known in the past by the names Wirye-seong (위례성; 慰禮城, Baekje era), Hanju (한주; 漢州, Silla era), Namgyeong (남경; 南京, Goryeo era), Hanseong (한성; 漢城, Baekje and Joseon era), Hanyang (한양; 漢陽, Joseon era), Gyeongseong (경성; 京城, during colonial era).[15] Its current name originated from the Korean word meaning "capital city," which is believed to be derived from the word, Seorabeol (서라벌; 徐羅伐), which originally referred to Gyeongju, the capital of Silla.[16]
Unlike most place names in Korea, "Seoul" has no corresponding hanja (Chinese characters used in the Korean language). On January 18, 2005, Seoul government officially changed its official Chinese language name to Shou'er (simplified Chinese: 首尔; traditional Chinese: 首爾; pinyin: shǒu'ěr) from the historic Hanseong (simplified Chinese: 汉城; traditional Chinese: 漢城; pinyin: hànchéng), whose use is still common though.[17][18][19]
[edit] Tags:南,城,陽,Korean,Baekje,Korea,Wirye-seong,Silla,Goryeo,Joseon,徐羅伐,Gyeongju,Hanja,Chinese Characters,Simplified Chinese,Traditional Chinese,Pinyin,Gyeongseong, | |
| History | |
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Donggwoldo, the landscape painting of Changdeokgung.
Main article: History of Seoul
Settlement began in Baekje, Wirye-seong, in 17 BC. The location of that site is thought to be within the boundaries of modern day Seoul, and the remains may be at Pungnap Toseong or Mongchon Toseong. It became the capital of the Joseon Dynasty in 1394. There were some modernization efforts by the late 19th century and Seoul became the first city in East Asia to have electricity, trolley cars, water, telephone, and telegraph systems all at the same time.[20] During the Japanese colonial period in the early 20th century, the city was called Gyeongseong (경성, lit. "Capital City"; Japanese: Keijō (京城?)). After independence in 1945, Koreans renamed the city Seoul (which also means "Capital City" in Korean). In 1949, Seoul was separated from Gyeonggi Province and was granted status as "Seoul Special City". In 1950, during the Korean War, Seoul was occupied by North Korean troops and the city was almost entirely destroyed. The city was retaken by UN Forces on 14 March 1951. Since then, the city boundary has steadily grown into surrounding administrative divisions of Gimpo, Goyang, and Shiheung counties. The current boundaries were established in 1995.
[edit] Tags:Joseon Dynasty,Changdeokgung,Donggwoldo,Pungnap Toseong,Japanese,Keijō, | |
| Geography | |
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Cheonggyecheon
Seoul as viewed from space
Seoul is in the northwest of South Korea. Seoul proper comprises 605.25 km2,[2] with a radius of approximately 15 km, roughly bisected into northern and southern halves by the Han River. The Han River and its surrounding area played an important role in Korean history. The Three Kingdoms of Korea strove to take control of this land, where the river was used as a trade route to China (via the Yellow Sea). The river is no longer actively used for navigation, because its estuary is located at the borders of the two Koreas, with civilian entry barred. The city is bordered by eight mountains, as well as the more level lands of the Han River plain and western areas.
[edit] Tags:South Korea,Cheonggyecheon,Han River,Three Kingdoms Of Korea,Yellow Sea,Estuary, | |
| Climate | |
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Main article: Climate of Seoul
Seoul lies in the border region between a humid subtropical and humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Cwa/Dwa), depending on the definition. Summers are generally hot and humid, with the East Asian monsoon taking place from June until July. August, the warmest month, has an average temperature of 22.4 to 29.6 °C (72 to 85 °F) with higher temperatures possible. Winters are often relatively cold with an average January temperature of -5.9 to 1.5 °C (21.4 to 34.7 °F) and are generally much drier than summers, with an average of 28 days of snow annually.
Climate data for Seoul (1981−2010)
Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year
Average high °C (°F)
1.5
(34.7)
4.7
(40.5)
10.4
(50.7)
17.8
(64.0)
23.0
(73.4)
27.1
(80.8)
28.6
(83.5)
29.6
(85.3)
25.8
(78.4)
19.8
(67.6)
11.6
(52.9)
4.3
(39.7)
17.0
(62.6)
Daily mean °C (°F)
−2.4
(27.7)
0.4
(32.7)
5.7
(42.3)
12.5
(54.5)
17.8
(64.0)
22.2
(72.0)
24.9
(76.8)
25.7
(78.3)
21.2
(70.2)
14.8
(58.6)
7.2
(45.0)
0.4
(32.7)
12.5
(54.5)
Average low °C (°F)
−5.9
(21.4)
−3.4
(25.9)
1.6
(34.9)
7.8
(46.0)
13.2
(55.8)
18.2
(64.8)
21.9
(71.4)
22.4
(72.3)
17.2
(63.0)
10.3
(50.5)
3.2
(37.8)
−3.2
(26.2)
8.6
(47.5)
Precipitation mm (inches)
20.8
(0.819)
25.0
(0.984)
47.2
(1.858)
64.5
(2.539)
105.9
(4.169)
133.2
(5.244)
394.7
(15.539)
364.2
(14.339)
169.3
(6.665)
51.8
(2.039)
52.5
(2.067)
21.5
(0.846)
1,450.5
(57.106)
% humidity
59.8
57.9
57.8
56.2
62.7
68.1
78.3
75.6
69.2
64.0
62.0
60.6
64.4
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm)
6.5
5.8
7.4
7.8
9.0
9.9
16.3
14.6
9.1
6.3
8.7
7.4
108.8
Sunshine hours
160.3
163.3
189.0
205.0
213.0
182.0
120.0
152.5
176.2
198.8
153.2
152.6
2,066.0
Source: Korea Meteorological Administration [21]
[edit] Tags:Region,Humid Subtropical,Humid Continental Climate,Köppen Climate Classification, | |
| Administrative divisions | |
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Main article: Gu of Seoul
Seoul is divided into 25 gu (구; 區) (district).[22] The gu vary greatly in area (from 10 to 47 km2) and population (from less than 140,000 to 630,000). Songpa has the most people, while Seocho, the largest area. The government of each gu handles many of the functions that are handled by city governments in other jurisdictions. Each gu is divided into "dong" (동; 洞) or neighbourhoods. Some gu have only a few dong while others like Jongno-gu have a very large number of distinct neighborhoods. Gu of Seoul consist of 522 administrative dongs (행정동) in total.[22] Dong are also sub-divided into 13,787 tong (통; 統), which are further divided into 102,796 ban in total.
Seoul Districts
Dobong District (도봉구; 道峰區)
Dongdaemun District (동대문구; 東大門區)
Dongjak District (동작구; 銅雀區)
Eunpyeong District (은평구; 恩平區)
Gangbuk District (강북구; 江北區)
Gangdong District (강동구; 江東區)
Gangnam District (강남구; 江南區)
Gangseo District (강서구; 江西區)
Geumcheon District (금천구; 衿川區)
Guro District (구로구; 九老區)
Gwanak District (관악구; 冠岳區)
Gwangjin District (광진구; 廣津區)
Jongno District (종로구; 鍾路區)
Jung District (중구; 中區)
Jungnang District (중랑구; 中浪區)
Mapo District (마포구; 麻浦區)
Nowon District (노원구; 蘆原區)
Seocho District (서초구; 瑞草區)
Seodaemun District (서대문구; 西大門區)
Seongbuk District (성북구; 城北區)
Seongdong District (성동구; 城東區)
Songpa District (송파구; 松坡區)
Yangcheon District (양천구; 陽川區)
Yeongdeungpo District (영등포구; 永登浦區)
Yongsan District (용산구; 龍山區)
[edit] Tags:Dobong District,道,峰,區,Dongdaemun District,東,大,門,Dongjak District,銅,雀,Eunpyeong District,恩,平,Gangbuk District,江,北,Gangdong District,Gangnam District,西,Geumcheon District,衿,川,Guro District,九,老,Gwanak District,冠,岳,Gwangjin District,廣,津,Jongno District,鍾,路,中,Jungnang District,浪,Mapo District,麻,浦,Nowon District,蘆,原,Seocho District,瑞,草,Seodaemun District,Seongbuk District,Seongdong District,Songpa District,松,坡,Yangcheon District,Yeongdeungpo District,永,登,Yongsan District,龍,山, | |
| Demographics | |
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Seoul proper is noted for its population density, which is almost twice as concentrated as New York and eight times greater than Rome, though slightly less than that of Paris. The density of its metropolitan area is the highest in the OECD.[23] Nearly all of Seoul's residents are Korean, with some small Chinese and Japanese minorities. As of 2009, the city’s population is 10,208,302.[24] The number of foreigners living in Seoul is 255,501 in 2010 according to Seoul officials.[25] As of the end of June 2011, 10.29 million Republic of Korea citizens lived in the city. This was a .24% decrease from the end of 2010. As of June 2011, 281,780 foreigners were located in Seoul. Of them, 186,631 foreigners (66%) were People's Republic of China citizens of Korean ethnicity. This was a 8.84% increase from the end of 2010 and a 12.85% increase from June 2010. The next largest group consisted of PRC citizens who are not of Korean ethnicity; 29,901 of them resided in Seoul. The next highest group consisted of the 9,999 United States citizens. The next highest group were the Republic of China (Taiwan) citizens, at 8,717.[26]
The two major religions in Seoul are Buddhism and Christianity. Other religions include Shamanism and Confucianism, the latter seen more as a pervasive social philosophy rather than a religion.
[edit] Tags:Oecd, | |
| Economy | |
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Teheranno at night
See also: Economy of South Korea
As the headquarters for Samsung, LG, Hyundai, Kia and SK, Seoul has become a major business hub. Although it accounts for only 0.6 percent of South Korea's land area, Seoul generates 21 percent of the country's GDP.[27]
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| Finance | |
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A large concentration of international companies are headquartered in Seoul.[28] International banks with branches in Seoul include Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, Grupo Santander, UBS, Credit Suisse, UniCredit, Société Générale, Calyon, BBVA, Macquarie Group, ING Bank, State Street and Standard Chartered. The Korea Exchange Bank is also headquartered in the city.
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| Shopping | |
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Main article: Shopping in Seoul
Insadong
The largest market in South Korea, the Dongdaemun Market, is located in Seoul. Myeongdong is a shopping and entertainment area in downtown Seoul with mid- to high-end stores, fashion boutiques and international brand outlets. The nearby Namdaemun Market, named after the Namdaemun Gate, is the oldest continually running market in Seoul. Sinchon is a shopping area that caters mainly to a younger and university student crowd.
Insadong is the cultural art market of Seoul, where traditional and modern Korean artworks, such as paintings, sculptures and calligraphy are sold. Hwanghak-dong Flea Market and Janganpyeong Antique Market also offer antique products. Some shops for local designers have opened in Samcheong-dong, where numerous small art galleries are located. Itaewon caters mainly to foreign tourists and American soldiers based in the city. The Gangnam district is one of the most affluent areas in Seoul and is noted for the fashionable and upscale Apgujeong-dong and Cheongdam-dong areas and the COEX Mall. Wholesale markets include Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market and Garak Market. The Yongsan Electronics Market is the largest electronics market in Asia. The Gasan Digital Complex also has an extensive variety of electronic products.
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