Cheonan (
Cheonan-si) is a
city||South Korea is divided into 8 provinces , 1 special autonomous province , 6 metropolitan cities , and 1 special city...
located in the northeast corner of
South ChungcheongChungcheongnam-do or Chungnam is a province in the west of South Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the south-western half of the former Chungcheong province and remained a province of Korea until the country's division in 1945, thereafter becoming part of South Korea...
, a province of
South KoreaSouth Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often simply referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul, the second largest...
, and is 83.6 km south of the capital,
SeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest city of South Korea. With a population of over 10 million, it is one of the world's largest cities. The Seoul National Capital Area, which includes the major port city of Incheon and most of Gyeonggi-do, has 24.5 million...
.
Geography
The city is flanked to the east by the Charyeong Mountains, and spills out over plains and rolling hills to the west. Some of the mountains in the city's vicinity include Malloesan (611m), Seonggeosan (579m), Taejosan (422m), Gwangdeoksan (699m), and Manggyeongsan (600m). The city itself is generally flat, with only a few areas, such as Anseon-dong, that are built up on hilly terrain.
To the east of the city are the counties of
JincheonJincheon County is a county in Chungcheongbuk-do Province, South Korea.-Location:Jincheon belongs to the middle of Chungcheongbuk-do. It borders several cities of its province but also meets Gyeonggi-do...
and Cheongwon in
Chungcheongbuk-doChungcheongbuk-do is a province in the centre of South Korea. It was formed in 1896 from the northeastern half of the former Chungcheong province...
, to the north are the cities of
AnseongAnseong is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, 80 km south of Seoul. Its geographical location is .Anseong promotes itself as "The City of Masters". It is known for producing brassware and arts and crafts. From late Spring to Fall, Anseong is holds its own Namsadang Neuri Festival...
and
PyeongtaekPyeongtaek is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Located in the southwestern part of the province, Pyeongtaek was originally founded as a union of two districts in 940 AD, during the Goryeo dynasty. It was elevated to city status in 1986, and is home to a South Korean naval base and a...
in
Gyeonggi-doGyeonggi-do is the most populous province in South Korea. The provincial capital is located at Suwon. Seoul—South Korea's largest city and national capital—is located in the heart of the province, but has been separately administered as a provincial-level special city since 1946...
, to the south is the county of Yeongi and the city of
GongjuGongju , also spelt Kongju, is a city in South Chungcheong province, South Korea. It is located at .- History :Gongju was formerly named Ungjin and was the capital of Baekje from AD 475 to 538. In this period, Baekje was under threat from Goguryeo...
, and to the west is the city of
AsanAsan is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It is located at , bordering the Seoul Metropolitan Area to the north. Asan has a population of approximately 250,000.Asan is known for its hot springs and is a city of spas....
.
The climate is similar to that of
DaejeonDaejeon is located in the center of South Korea. It is the fifth largest city in South Korea, with a population of 1,442,856 at the end of 2005. It is at the crossroads of Gyeongbu railway, Honam railway, Gyeongbu Expressway, and Honam Expressway...
. The average temperature in January is -3.0 degrees Celsius, the average temperature in August is +25.0 degrees Celsius, and the average yearly temperature is +11.8 degrees Celsius. The average yearly precipitation is about 1,312.5 mm.
Symbols
- City Tree : Weeping willow
- City Flower : Golden bell flower
- City Bird : Dove
- City Animal : Dragon
Education
The city has been designated the high tech headquarters for Korea. A number of colleges and universities are located there, including:
- Baekseok College
Baekseok College, formerly Cheonan College of Foreign Studies, is a Christian private college located in the city center of Cheonan, a major city of South Chungcheong province in western South Korea...
, formerly Cheonan College of Foreign Studies
- Cheonan National Technical College
Cheonan National Technical College is a public vocational college located in Cheonan City, a major city of South Chungcheong province in western South Korea. It employs around 90 instructors.-Academics:...
- Cheonan University, renamed Baekseok University and located on the Baekseok College site, though it is a separate entity
- Cheonan Yonam College
Cheonan Yonam College is a private agricultural college in South Korea. It campus is located in a rural area of Cheonan City, in South Chungcheong province. The current president is Kyoung-deok Seo. The entering class of 2003 numbered 520 students....
- Dankook University
Dankook University is a private university in South Korea. The main campus was moved from Seoul to Yongin in 2007 and boasts technologically advanced classrooms, high-end facilities, ample dorm space and one of Korea's most aesthetically beautiful university campuses...
(satellite campus)
- Hoseo University
Hoseo University is a private Christian university in South Korea. The main campus is located in 165, Sechul-ri, Baebang-myeon, Asan, Chungcheongnam-do. Another campus is located in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do. The name, Hoseo, is the regional name for the province .- History :Hoseo University was...
(satellite campus)
- International Graduate University for Peace
- Korea Nazarene University
Korea Nazarene University is a Christian institute of higher education located in Cheonan, Republic of Korea.Though it celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 2007, the university first gained the status of being a four-year college in 1992. In 1993, the Nazarene Theological College Press was...
- Korea University of Technology and Education
The Korea University of Technology and Education, or KUT is a university in Cheonan, South Chungcheong, South Korea. The university was opened in 1991 and its current president is Dr...
- Namseoul University
- Sangmyung University
Sangmyung University is a private, coeducational university in South Korea. It operates campuses in Seoul and in Cheonan.-History:Sangmyung University is located in central Seoul, with a secondary campus in Cheonan, South Korea....
(satellite campus)
- Sun Moon University
Attractions
The
Independence Hall of KoreaThe Independence Hall of Korea is a history museum in Cheonan, South Korea. Opened on August 23, 1982, it has the largest exhibition facility in Korea with total floor area of 23,424 m²...
is a visual history of the struggle for independence in Korea. Opened on August 15, 1987 and made possible by private donations, it is a meant both as a reminder of Korea’s colonial past and as a means of building nationalist spirit. The hall stands on 980 acres of landscaped grounds. As well as the exhibits, visitors can see the Grand Hall of the Nation, the Monument to the Nation, and the Unification Bell.
Cheonan’s Postal Museum displays postal artifacts and material dating back to 1884, when the first postal services began. The entire history of the Korean postal service in on display, complete with photographs and letter carrying paraphernalia. The museum was not constructed here, but rather moved from
SeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest city of South Korea. With a population of over 10 million, it is one of the world's largest cities. The Seoul National Capital Area, which includes the major port city of Incheon and most of Gyeonggi-do, has 24.5 million...
in February 2004 to its current home in the Ministry of Information and Communication Officials Training Institute in Cheonan.
Gagwonsa Buddhist temple is located on Mt. Taejosan. The temple has a bronze sitting
BuddhaIn Buddhism, buddhahood is the state of perfect enlightenment attained by a ....
, one of the largest. The Buddha is 15m high, 30m in circumference, and weighs over 60 tonnes. The Buddha sits with the peak of Mt. Taejosan directly behind it, and faces west out over the city and valley. Worshippers and tourists alike climb the steep stairs from the base of the mountain.
Parks
Samgeori park has been a strategic point of transportation and a place where culture has spread for a long time. The Samnamdaero, which starts in Seoul, parts here. One branch of the road leads to the
YeongnamYeongnam is the name of a region that coincides with the former Gyeongsang Province in what is now South Korea....
region. The other branch leads to the
HonamHonam is a region coinciding with the former Jeolla Province in what is now South Korea. Today, the term refers to North and South Jeolla Provinces....
region.
Haneulgeori is a resting area for the animal residents of Cheonan Samgeori Park, and it provides scenery for visitors with its willow trees and small pond.
Taejosan Park is located at Mt. Taejosan. The park covers an area of over 327,000 square meters. Visitors there may find a sculpture park, six camp sites, a grass field, tennis courts, and an outdoor performance area. There are many facilities for youths and families, and residents use the area for rest and relaxation. For hikers and day-walkers, there is also a very extensive trail network. The park also encompasses the Joabulsang Bronze Buddha statue and the Gagwonsa Buddhist Temple.
Galleries
Arario Gallery is a 2006 addition to a revitalized Shinbu-dong area, which has become the central business district of Cheonan. The gallery itself showcases contemporary art from Korean and international artists. Organic works, including those painted with raw materials or organic substances (like fruit and vegetables) are the norm. The gallery’s stated mission is to provide a special place for people of all ages and background to easily view and learn about art. There is also an installation of
Damien HirstDamien Steven Hirst is an English artist and the most prominent member of the group known as "Young British Artists" , who dominated the art scene in Britain during the 1990s. He is internationally renowned, and is reputed to be the richest living artist to date...
's “Hymn” in a glass box constructed as a part of the building.
Sports
The city is home to two soccer clubs:
Cheonan City FCCheonan City is a South Korean soccer club based in the city of Cheonan. It was founded in 2007, and will compete in the National League from the 2008 season.-Current team squad:as of August 7, 2009-External links:**...
of the National League and
Cheonan FCCheonan FC is a South Korean soccer club based in the city of Cheonan. It is currently a member of the K3 League, an amateur league and the third tier of league football in South Korea.-Current team squad:as of March 20, 2009...
of the
K3 LeagueThe K3 League is an top amateur football competition in South Korea. Created in 2007, it is the third tier of South korean football league system-History:2007 was the inaugural season of the K3 League, and ten teams competed in the competition....
. Both play at the grand sporting complex in Buldang-dong, which is also open to the public for running, soccer, ultimate, and field sports. There are basketball courts, especially in the Ssangyong-dong area, as well as public tennis courts, and plenty of driving ranges for golf enthusiasts.
Food
Cheonan is known for small walnut-shaped and flavored cakes, or
hodugwaja (호두과자), which are produced in the area. It is common when leaving from or passing through
Cheonan StationCheonan Station is the main train station in central Cheonan, South Korea, and the junction of the Gyeongbu and Janghang Lines. It has also been served by Seoul Subway Line 1 since 2005....
by train to see many merchants selling hodugwaja.
Cheonan is also known for several agricultural products including grapes and
ya pearPyrus ×bretschneideri, the Chinese White Pear , is an interspecific hybrid species of pear native to northern China, where it is widely grown for its edible fruit. Recent molecular genetic evidence confirms some relationship to P. ussuriensis, but it can also be classified as a subspecies of P....
s.
Festivals
Cheonan's most well-known festival is Heungtaryeong Festival(흥타령 축제). 흥 means pleasure and joy in the Korean language and usually refers to Korean music.
The dancing festival is the essence of the events from B-boy to traditional dances from
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
,
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
,
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
,
UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south. The city of Kiev is both the capital and the largest city of...
. Lots of teams also participate in the festival from 17 other nations such as
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
and
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
The festival started in 2003 and it got the position of "prepared" and "promising" in 2006 and 2007, respectively. As of Dec 26th of 2007, the festival was promoted to the degree of "excellent festival" or "천안 흥타령축제 우수축제 승격."
To mark the historic April 1 Independence Movement, led by Yu Gwansun, each year a re-enactment of independence protests is staged at Aunae Marketplace. The real movement began with the lighting of 24 beacons at Mt. Maebongsan and other mountains on March 31, 1919. The following day, 3,000 people gathered at Aunae Marketplace and protested for independence. Japanese security forces arrived and 19 people were shot dead on the spot, including Yu Gwansun’s parents, with dozens more injured. These days people gather peacefully together in rememberance. Then a torch parade, symbolizing the lit beacons, slowly creeps from Aunae Market place through Byeongcheon and on to the Yu Gwansun Memorial.
On the 8th day of the 4th month of the
Lunar CalendarA lunar calendar is a calendar that is based on cycles of the moon phase. The only widely used purely lunar calendar is the Islamic calendar or Hijri calendar, whose year always consists of 12 lunar months...
each year, Buddhists celebrate the first coming of Buddha. In Cheonan, local temples decorate their buildings and grounds with illuminated paper lanterns, and much of the city centre is closed to traffic for a parade followed by musical acts and a traditional drumming show. Koreans often dress in their
HanbokHanbok or Chosŏn-ot is the traditional Korean dress. It is often characterized by vibrant colors and simple lines without pockets. Although the term literally means "Korean clothing", hanbok today often refers specifically to hanbok of Joseon Dynasty and is worn as semi-formal or formal wear...
s, a traditional Korean costume, and spend the day with friends and family wandering through the pedestrian-friendly streets and lanes on the city core.
Transportation
The city is very well-connected to Seoul by road and by train. Notably, the KTX high speed railway serves Cheonan. Cheonan is also served by Seoul Subway Line 1, which began running between Seoul and Cheonan.
Economy
The local economy is fuelled to a great extent by tech sector companies in the area. Large national corporations such as Samsung,
LG GroupThe LG Group is South Korea's third largest conglomerate that produces electronics, chemicals, and telecommunications products and operates subsidiaries like LG Electronics, LG Telecom and LG Chem in over 80 countries. LG Group sponsors the LG Cup Baduk Tournament.LG Group founder Koo In-Hwoi...
, and several technology companies all have operations in Cheonan. The large number of universities also contributes to an influx of spending, as students from around Korea flock here for eight months of the year.
Administrative districts and divisions
Cheonan is divided into 2
gu, and 16 administrative
dong (subdivided into 30 distinct legal
dong), 4
eup and 8
myeon.
- Seobuk-gu (Northwest)
- Dongnam-gu (Southeast)
Dongnam-gu
- Mokcheon-eup (목천읍)
- Pungse-myeon (풍세면)
- Gwangdeok-myeon (광덕면)
- Buk-myeon (북면)
- Seongnam-myeon (성남면)
- Susin-myeon (수신면)
- Byeongcheon-myeon (병천면)
- Dong-myeon (동면)
- Jungang-dong (중앙동) (4 legal dong)
- Munseok-dong (문성동) (2 legal dong)
- Weonseong-1-dong (원성1동) (2 legal dong)
- Weonseong-2-dong (원성2동)
- Bongmyeong-dong (봉명동) (2 legal dong)
- Ilbong-dong (일봉동) (2 legal dong)
- Sinbang-dong (신방동) (2 legal dong)
- Cheonglyong-dong (청룡동) (5 legal dong)
- Sinan-dong (신안동) (2 legal dong)
Seobuk-gu
- Seonghwan-eup (성환읍)
- Seonggeo-eup (성거읍)
- Jiksan-eup (직산읍)
- Ipjang-myeon (입장면)
- Seongjeong-1-dong (성정1동) (2 legal dong)
- Seongjeong-2-dong (성정2동)
- Ssangyong-1-dong (쌍용1동)
- Ssangyong-2-dong (쌍용2동)
- Ssangyong-3-dong (쌍용3동)
- Baekseok-dong (백석동) (2 legal dong)
- Buseong-dong (부성동) (6 legal dong)
Population diversity
Even with scores of Korean students graduating from the many tech programs at local universities, the demand for tech sector employees is still very high, and much of that demand is filled by foreign employees. The city is now home to a large foreign population, which has tripled over the past 5 years. There are more than 9000 foreigners residing in the Cheonan area.
Sister cities
BeavertonBeaverton is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States, seven miles west of Portland in the Tualatin River Valley., its population is estimated to be 86,205, almost 14% more than the 2000 census figure of 76,129...
,
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United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
since May 1, 1989
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,
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ClusesCluses is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.Citizens are known as Clusiens. The commune is situated in the Arve Valley, on the river which bears the same name...
-
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
See also
- List of cities in South Korea
- Geography of South Korea
South Korea is located in East Asia, on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula jutting out from the far east of the Asian land mass.The only country with a land border to South Korea is North Korea, lying to the north with 238 km of border running along the DMZ. South Korea is mostly...
- Stele of Bongseon Honggyeongsa
The Stele of Bongseon Honggyeongsa Temple was designated as the seventh National Treasure of Korea on December 12, 1962.The Bongseon Honggyeongsa Temple was built in 1021 during the reign of King Hyeonjong who built the temple in accordance with the wishes of his father King Anjong and because he...
, a National TreasureThe National Treasures of Korea are a numbered set of tangible treasures, artifacts, sites, and buildings which are recognized by South Korea as having exceptional artistic, cultural and historical value...
located in Cheonan
External links