The top tier of administrative divisions are the provincial-level divisions, of which there are several types: provinces (including special self-governing provinces), metropolitan cities, special cities, and special self-governing cities. The governors of the provincial-level divisions are elected every four years.[2]
A si (시; 市, pronounced [ɕi]) is one of the divisions of a province, along with gun. A city must have a neighborhood(dong) and can have towns(eup), townships(myeon) if the city is combined with urban and rural areas. Once an eup of a county (gun) attains a population of 50,000, the county can become a city. A city with a population of over 500,000 (such as Suwon, Cheongju, Cheonan and Jeonju) is considered as a specific city, which can set non-autonomous districts(gu). An administrative city doesn't have a city council and the mayor of the city is appointed by the provincial governor.
A gun (군; 郡) is one of the divisions of a province (along with si), and of the metropolitan cities of Busan, Daegu, Incheon and Ulsan (along with gu). A gun has a population of less than 150,000 (more than that would make it a city or si), is less densely populated than a gu, and is more rural in character than either of the other 2 divisions. Gun are comparable to British non-metropolitan districts. Counties are divided into towns (eup) and townships (myeon). Specially, the size of a "gun" is less than a US "county".
A gu (구; 區) is equivalent to district in the West. The metropolitan cities of Busan, Daegu, Incheon and Ulsan contain gun as well. Gu are similar to boroughs in some Western countries, and a gu office handles many of the functions that would be handled by the city in other jurisdictions. Gu are divided into neighborhoods (dong).
An eup (읍; 邑) is similar to the unit of town. Along with myeon, an eup is one of the divisions of a county (gun), and of some cities (si) with a population of less than 500,000. The main town or towns in a county—or the secondary town or towns within a city's territory—are designated as eup. Towns are subdivided into villages (ri). In order to form an eup, the minimum population required is 20,000.
A myeon (면; 面) is one of the divisions – along with eup – of a county (gun) and some cities (si) of fewer than 500,000 population. Myeons have smaller populations than eup and represent the rural areas of a county or city. Myeon are subdivided into villages (ri). The minimum population limit is 6,000.
A dong (동; 洞) is the primary division of districts (gu), and of those cities (si) which are not divided into districts. The dong is the smallest level of urban government to have its own office and staff. In some cases, a single legal dong is divided into several administrative dong. Administrative dong are usually distinguished from one another by number (as in the case of Myeongjang 1-dong and Myeongjang 2-dong). In such cases, each administrative dong has its own office and staff.
The primary division of a dong is the tong (통; 統), but divisions at this level and below are seldom used in daily life.[6] Some populous dong are subdivided into ga (가; 街), which are not a separate level of government, but only exist for use in addresses. Many major thoroughfares in Seoul, Suwon, and other cities are also subdivided into ga.[7]
A ri (리; 里) is the only division of towns (eup) and townships (myeon). The ri is the smallest level of rural government to contain any significant number of people.[8]
History
Although the details of local administration have changed over time, the basic outline of the current three-tiered system was implemented under the reign of Gojong in 1895. A similar system also remains in use in North Korea.
^. Busan City. Archived from the original on 2012-05-18. Retrieved 2013-03-18.
^이 / 里 (in Korean). Nate / Encyclopedia of Korean Culture. Archived from the original on 2013-04-11. Retrieved 2013-03-18.
External links
"Local Government". KOCIS.
"Seoul Mayor first among equals in South Korea local government". Citymajors.
"South Korea Administrative Districts". CityPopulation.de.
"ISO Subentity Codes for South Korea". GeoNames.
January 26, 2023
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This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Administrative divisions of South Korea news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2013 Learn how and when to remove this template message South Korea is made up of 17 first tier administrative divisions 6 metropolitan cities gwangyeoksi 광역시 廣域市 1 special city teukbyeolsi 특별시 特別市 1 special self governing city teukbyeol jachisi 특별자치시 特別自治市 and 9 provinces do 도 道 including one special self governing province teukbyeol jachido 특별자치도 特別自治道 1 2 These are further subdivided into a variety of smaller entities including cities si 시 市 counties gun 군 郡 districts gu 구 區 towns eup 읍 邑 townships myeon 면 面 neighborhoods dong 동 洞 and villages ri 리 里 3 Contents 1 Local government 2 Provincial level divisions 3 Municipal level divisions 3 1 Si city 3 2 Gun county 3 3 Gu district 4 Submunicipal level divisions 4 1 Eup town 4 2 Myeon township 4 3 Dong neighborhood 4 4 Ri village 5 History 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksLocal government EditOfficial Revised Romanization of Korean spellings are used Level Group name Type Hangul Hanja RR Romaja No 2014 1 Upper level local autonomy 4 광역지방자치단체 廣域地方自治團體 Province 도 道 do 8Special self governing province 특별자치도 特別自治道 teukbyeol jachido 1Special city 특별시 特別市 teukbyeolsi 1Special self governing city 특별자치시 特別自治市 teukbyeol jachisi 1Metropolitan city 광역시 廣域市 gwangyeoksi 62 Lower level local autonomy 4 기초지방자치단체 Municipality 基礎地方自治團體 City 시 市 si 60City specific 시 특정시 市 特定市 si teukjeongsi 15County 군 郡 gun 82District autonomous 구 자치구 區 自治區 gu jachigu 693 N A City administrative 시 행정시 市 行政市 si haengjeongsi 2District non autonomous 구 일반구 區 一般區 gu ilbangu 354 N A Town 읍 邑 eup 216Township 면 面 myeon 1198Neighborhood legal status 동 법정동 洞 法定洞 dong beopjeongdong 2073Neighborhood administrative 동 행정동 洞 行政洞 dong haengjeongdong 5 N A Urban Village 통 統 tongRural Village 리 里 ri6 N A Hamlet 반 班 banProvincial level divisions EditMain articles Provinces of South Korea and Special cities of South Korea The top tier of administrative divisions are the provincial level divisions of which there are several types provinces including special self governing provinces metropolitan cities special cities and special self governing cities The governors of the provincial level divisions are elected every four years 2 Map Code Emblem Name Official English name 5 Hangul Hanja Population 2020 Census Area km2 Gangwon Seoul Incheon Gyeonggi S Chungcheong N Chungcheong Sejong Daejeon N Gyeongsang N Jeolla Daegu Ulsan Busan S Gyeongsang Gwangju S Jeolla Jeju North Korea JapanYellow Sea Korea Strait Busan Strait Korea Strait Tsushima Strait Sea of Japan East Sea KR 11 Seoul special city Seoul 서울특별시 서울 特別市 9 586 195 605 20KR 26 Busan metropolitan city Busan 부산광역시 釜山廣域市 3 349 016 770 04KR 27 Daegu metropolitan city Daegu 대구광역시 大邱廣域市 2 410 700 883 49KR 28 Incheon metropolitan city Incheon 인천광역시 仁川廣域市 2 945 454 1 062 63KR 29 Gwangju metropolitan city Gwangju 광주광역시 光州廣域市 1 477 573 501 24KR 30 Daejeon metropolitan city Daejeon 대전광역시 大田廣域市 1 488 435 539 85KR 31 Ulsan metropolitan city Ulsan 울산광역시 蔚山廣域市 1 135 423 1 057 14KR 50 Sejong special self governing city Sejong Special Self Governing City 세종특별자치시 世宗特別自治市 346 275 465 23KR 41 Gyeonggi Province Gyeonggi do 경기도 京畿道 13 511 676 10 184KR 42 Gangwon Province Gangwon do 강원도 江原道 1 521 763 16 875KR 43 North Chungcheong Province Chungcheongbuk do 충청북도 忠淸北道 1 632 088 7 433KR 44 South Chungcheong Province Chungcheongnam do 충청남도 忠淸南道 2 176 636 8 204KR 45 North Jeolla Province Jeollabuk do 전라북도 全羅北道 1 802 766 8 067KR 46 South Jeolla Province Jeollanam do 전라남도 全羅南道 1 788 807 12 247KR 47 North Gyeongsang Province Gyeongsangbuk do 경상북도 慶尙北道 2 644 757 19 030KR 48 South Gyeongsang Province Gyeongsangnam do 경상남도 慶尙南道 3 333 056 10 533KR 49 Jeju special self governing province Jeju Special Self Governing Province 제주특별자치도 濟州特別自治道 670 858 1 849Municipal level divisions Edit A map of all South Korean metropolitan cities districts gu municipal cities si and counties gun Si city Edit Main articles Cities of South Korea and List of cities in South Korea A si 시 市 pronounced ɕi is one of the divisions of a province along with gun A city must have a neighborhood dong and can have towns eup townships myeon if the city is combined with urban and rural areas Once an eup of a county gun attains a population of 50 000 the county can become a city A city with a population of over 500 000 such as Suwon Cheongju Cheonan and Jeonju is considered as a specific city which can set non autonomous districts gu An administrative city doesn t have a city council and the mayor of the city is appointed by the provincial governor Gun county Edit Further information List of counties in South Korea A gun 군 郡 is one of the divisions of a province along with si and of the metropolitan cities of Busan Daegu Incheon and Ulsan along with gu A gun has a population of less than 150 000 more than that would make it a city or si is less densely populated than a gu and is more rural in character than either of the other 2 divisions Gun are comparable to British non metropolitan districts Counties are divided into towns eup and townships myeon Specially the size of a gun is less than a US county Gu district Edit Main article Gu administrative division Further information List of districts in South Korea A gu 구 區 is equivalent to district in the West The metropolitan cities of Busan Daegu Incheon and Ulsan contain gun as well Gu are similar to boroughs in some Western countries and a gu office handles many of the functions that would be handled by the city in other jurisdictions Gu are divided into neighborhoods dong Submunicipal level divisions EditEup town Edit Main article List of towns in South Korea An eup 읍 邑 is similar to the unit of town Along with myeon an eup is one of the divisions of a county gun and of some cities si with a population of less than 500 000 The main town or towns in a county or the secondary town or towns within a city s territory are designated as eup Towns are subdivided into villages ri In order to form an eup the minimum population required is 20 000 Myeon township Edit Main article List of townships in South Korea A myeon 면 面 is one of the divisions along with eup of a county gun and some cities si of fewer than 500 000 population Myeons have smaller populations than eup and represent the rural areas of a county or city Myeon are subdivided into villages ri The minimum population limit is 6 000 Dong neighborhood Edit Main article Dong administrative division A dong 동 洞 is the primary division of districts gu and of those cities si which are not divided into districts The dong is the smallest level of urban government to have its own office and staff In some cases a single legal dong is divided into several administrative dong Administrative dong are usually distinguished from one another by number as in the case of Myeongjang 1 dong and Myeongjang 2 dong In such cases each administrative dong has its own office and staff The primary division of a dong is the tong 통 統 but divisions at this level and below are seldom used in daily life 6 Some populous dong are subdivided into ga 가 街 which are not a separate level of government but only exist for use in addresses Many major thoroughfares in Seoul Suwon and other cities are also subdivided into ga 7 Ri village Edit Main article Ri administrative division A ri 리 里 is the only division of towns eup and townships myeon The ri is the smallest level of rural government to contain any significant number of people 8 History EditAlthough the details of local administration have changed over time the basic outline of the current three tiered system was implemented under the reign of Gojong in 1895 A similar system also remains in use in North Korea See also EditAdministrative divisions of North Korea ISO 3166 2 KR ISO codes for cities and provinces in South Korea List of cities in South Korea List of South Korean regions by GDP Provinces of Korea Special cities of South KoreaReferences Edit Administrative division South Korea Government Archived from the original on June 1 2008 Retrieved 30 April 2018 a b Local Governments KOREA net Retrieved 30 April 2018 Stevens Andrew Seoul Mayor first among equals City Mayors Retrieved 30 April 2018 a b Local Governments Korea net Retrieved 30 April 2018 http www ngii go kr en download Toponymic Guidelines ROK pdf Archived 2017 03 12 at the Wayback Machine p 41 통 in Korean Nate Encyclopedia of Korean Culture Archived from the original on 2013 04 11 Retrieved 2013 03 18 부산광역시 법정 동 리 洞 里 현황 Busan city administrative units Busan City Archived from the original on 2012 05 18 Retrieved 2013 03 18 이 里 in Korean Nate Encyclopedia of Korean Culture Archived from the original on 2013 04 11 Retrieved 2013 03 18 External links Edit Local Government KOCIS Seoul Mayor first among equals in South Korea local government Citymajors South Korea Administrative Districts CityPopulation de ISO Subentity Codes for South Korea GeoNames Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Administrative divisions of South Korea amp oldid 1135401255, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
