Gijang County

Gijang County is a gun, or county, located between Haeundae-gu and Ulsan in northern Busan, South Korea.

Gijang

기장군
County
Korean transcription(s)
 • Hanja機張郡
 • Revised RomanizationGijang-gun
 • McCune-ReischauerKijang-gun
Haedong Yonggung Temple
CountrySouth Korea
RegionYeongnam
Provincial levelBusan
Administrative divisions2 eup, 3 myeon
Area
 • Total217.9 km2 (84.1 sq mi)
Population
 (2013 Dec 31)
 • Total146,260
 • Density670/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
 • Dialect
Gyeongsang
Websitewww.gijang.go.kr

History

Gijang first appears under its current name in the annals of the year 757, during the Unified Silla period. At that time it was made the hyeon of Gijang, part of Dongnae-gun. The Samguk Sagi records that it was known as Gaphwayanggok (甲火良谷) previously.

Historical landmarks in the county include the Buddhist temple of Jangansa, said to have been first built by Wonhyo in the 7th century.

Geography and demographics

Gijang is the most rural of Busan's districts, and consists mostly of vacant and agricultural land. Approximately 156.7 of its 217.9 square kilometers are empty and forested, mostly hilly land. The county's population has risen steadily since 1990, when it stood at 56,847. There is a fishing village set along the coastline.

Economy

Due to its location along the coast of the East Sea of Korea, Gijang is known as a center for the production of various kinds of seafood. These include anchovies and brown seaweed (miyeok).

Dragon metalwork at Jangangsa temple
Gijang fishing village

Education

Gijang is also the current residence of the new Busan International Foreign School, which the Ministry of Education recently spent 46.9 Billion won.

One elementary school, Daebyun Elementary School, was nicknamed the "poop school" since "Daebyun" meant feces. Its name originated from the village Daebyun-ri, which derived from the Daedonggobyunpo Port. The school opened in 1963, and in August 2017 it had 76 students. That month the school announced it was changing its name effective 2018.[1]

Tourism

Other points of interest in the Gijang area include Toam Pottery Park and Ilgwang Beach, as well as the cliffside Haedong Yonggungsa temple. The fishing village is popular for its fresh seafood and sashimi.

Administrative divisions
Administrative divisions

Gijang is divided into five parts:

  • eup (larger towns):
    • Jeonggwan-eup
    • Gijang-eup
    • Jangan-eup
  • myeon (rural townships):
    • Cheolma-myeon
    • Ilgwang-myeon
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See also

References
  • "Gijang-gun Statistical Yearbook 2005 (online version)". Archived from the original on February 9, 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-13.
  1. Chyung, Eun-ju (2017-08-17). "'Feces Elementary School' to change name after 55 years". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2017-08-18.

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