Daegu
Daegu, officially called Daegu Metropolitan City, is the 4th largest city in South Korea (after Seoul, Busan and Incheon). It is the capital of North Gyeongsang province (Gyeongsangbuk-do), although not legally part of that province; like South Korea's other metropolitan cities, Daegu's government reports directly to the national government. Its geographical location is 35°52′N 128°36′E / 35.867°N 128.600°E.
Daegu is the largest city in the northern Yeongnam region.
History
Throughout and before recorded history, Daegu has served as a nexus of transportation, lying as it does at the junction of the Geumho and Nakdong rivers. During the Joseon Dynasty, the city was the administrative, economic and cultural centre of the entire Gyeongsang region, a role largely taken over now by Busan in South Gyeongsang.
Early history
During the Proto-Three Kingdoms of Korea period, Daegu was the site of a walled-town polity known in historical records as Dalgubeol. The first mention of Dalgubeol is dated to 261.[citation needed] We know nothing of its earlier history, and little of what came later, except that it was absorbed into the kingdom of Silla no later than the fifth century.
Silla
Silla defeated the other Three Kingdoms of Korea in the late 7th century, with assistance from Tang China. Shortly thereafter, in 689, Silla's King Sinmun considered moving the capital from Gyeongju to Daegu, but was unable to do so.[1] We know of this initiative only through a single line in the Samguk Sagi, but it is presumed that it indicates both an attempt by the Silla king to augment royal authority and the entrenched resistance of the Gyeongju political elites that was the likely cause of the move's failure.[2]
The city was given its current name in 757.
Most relics of the Silla period are found on Palgongsan around Donghwasa temple in northern Daegu. Donghwasa itself dates from the Silla period, as does the pagoda of King Minae.
Later Three Kingdoms and Goryeo
During the Later Three Kingdoms period, 890-935, Daegu was initially aligned with Hubaekje. In 927, northern Daegu was the site of the Battle of Gong Mountain between the forces of Taebong under Wang Geon and those of Hubaekje under Gyeon Hwon. In this battle, the forces of Taebong were crushed and Wang Geon himself was saved only by the heroism of his general Sin Sunggyeom. However, it appears that the conduct of the Hubaekje forces at this time changed local sympathies to favor Wang Geon, who later became the king of Goryeo.
Numerous place-names and local legends around Daegu still bear witness to the historic battle of 927. Among these are "Ansim," which literally means "peace of mind," said to be the first place where Wang Geon dared to stop after escaping the battle, and "Banwol," or half-moon, where he is said to have stopped and admired the moon before returning to Taebong. A statue commemorating the battle now stands in northern Daegu, as does a memorial to Sin Sunggyeom.
The first edition of the Tripitaka Koreana was stored in Daegu, at the temple of Buinsa.[3] However, this edition was destroyed when the temple was sacked in 1254, during the Mongol invasions of Korea.[4]
Joseon
Always an important transportation center, in the Joseon Dynasty Daegu lay on the Great Yeongnam Road which ran between Seoul and Busan. It lay at the junction of this arterial road and the roads to Gyeongju and Jinju.
In 1601, Daegu became the administrative capital of Gyeongsang province, and the city has been the capital of North Gyeongsang province since that province's formation in 1896.
Daegu's first regular markets were established during the late Joseon period. The most famous of these, and the only one to still be operating, is the Yangnyeongsi herbal medicine market. This became a center of herbal trade in Joseon, and even attracted buyers from neighboring countries. Traders from Japan, who were not permitted to leave the Nakdong River valley, hired messengers to visit the market on their behalf.
Korean Empire and Japanese rule
Korea began to open to the world in the late 19th century. In 1895, Daegu became the site of one of the country's first modern post offices, as part of the reforms pushed by the Japanese after the murder of Queen Min.[5]
Beginning in the late 1890s, many Japanese merchants and workers came to Daegu, which lay on the newly-constructed Gyeongbu Line railroad connecting Seoul and Busan.
In 1905, the old fortress wall was surreptitiously destroyed. Only one portion of this, the First Yeongnam Gate, remains, standing now in Dalseong Park. The rest of the fortress wall is remembered only through the names such as the streets Dongseongno and Bukseongno, "east fortress street" and "north fortress street," which now run where the wall once stood, and Seomun Market which once stood at the city's west gate.
The Korean independence movements were active in Daegu. These began as early as 1898, when a branch of the Independence Club was established in the city.[6] As the demise of the Korean Empire approached in 1907, local citizens led by Seo Sang-don organized the National Debt Repayment Movement. This movement spread nationwide, although it was unsuccessful in its attempt to repay the country's debt through individual donations. Resistance activities continued after the 1910 annexation, notably during the March 1st movement of 1919. At that time, four major demonstrations took place in Daegu, involving an estimated 23,000 people.[7]
South Korea
The end of Japanese rule in 1945 brought years of turbulent change to Daegu. Under the USAMGIK provisional military government and the subsequent First Republic, Daegu was a hotbed of unrest. In October 1946, the Daegu uprising took place, one of the most serious incidents of unrest during US military rule.[8] It was also the site of major demonstrations on February 28 1960, prior to the fraudulent presidential election of that year.[9]
Daegu and all of North Gyeongsang saw heavy guerrilla activity in the late 1940s, as thousands of refugees arrived from the fighting in Jeolla.[10] In November 1948, a unit in Daegu joined the mutiny which had begun in Yeosu the previous month.[11]
During the Korean War, much heavy fighting occurred nearby along the Nakdong River. Daegu sat inside the Busan Perimeter, however, and therefore remained in South Korean hands throughout the war. As in many other areas during the Korean War, political killings of dissenters were widespread.
In the second half of the twentieth century, the city underwent explosive growth, and the population has increased more than tenfold since the end of the Korean War. The city was heavily politically favored during the long military dictatorship of Park Chung-hee, when it and the surrounding area served as his political base. Conservative political movements remain powerful in Daegu today.
In the 1980s, Daegu became a separately administered provincial-level Directly Governed City (Jikhalsi), and was redesignated as a Metropolitan City (Gwangyeoksi) in 1995.
On February 18, 2003, a mentally ill man set fire to a train of the Daegu Metropolitan Subway stopped at Jungangno station. The resulting blaze killed nearly 200 people, making the Daegu subway fire one of the worst disasters in South Korea since the end of the Korean War.
Today, Daegu is the 4th largest metropolitan area in Korea with respect to both population and commerce.
Climate and geography
Daegu sits in a basin surrounded by low mountains. Palgong-san to the north, Biseul-san to the south, the foothills of Gaya-san to the west, and a series of smaller hills in the east.
The Geumho River flows along the northern and eastern edges of the city, emptying in the Nakdong River west of the city.
Because it is in a basin, Daegu is hotter than the rest of Korea during the summer. The mountains trap hot and humid air. Similarly, in winter, cold air lies in the basin. The area receives little precipitation except during the rainy season of summer, and is sunny throughout much of the year.
Politics and Economy
Daegu is a conservative city. In the 2004 parliamentary election, Daegu voted in members of the conservative Grand National Party for every seat in the city as Gwangju did for Uri Party.
The major industries of Daegu are textiles, metals and machineries. The quality of the apples grown around Daegu is renowned around East Asia.[citation needed]
Culture
Traditionally, people from Daegu have been seen as conservative, modest, hard working, and patient. The women are known as particularly strong willed and beautiful.
Daegu is known as the home of Korean baseball. Before the advent of the professional leagues, its high school teams were avidly followed. The city was a co-host of the 2002 World Cup soccer game. A new football stadium was built for the event.
Traditionally Buddhism was strong, today there are still lots of temples. Confucianism was popular in Daegu, with a large academy based in the city. Christianity has gained its ground, and churches make up one of its cityscapes today.
Because of the city's rapid growth, the architecture is generally functional and uniform. Some exceptions do exist in older buildings, and in some of the newest, such as Dongdaegu Station, and the Exco building.
People
Daegu's population is quite homogeneous with few immigrants. A number of immigrants from South and Southeast Asia work in automotive-parts factories on the city's west side. In addition, there is a small group of English-speaking Westerners working in the many English schools. The American military bases are also home to several thousand Americans. As elsewhere in Korea, Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Western food is most common but recently Indian/Pakistani and Russian foods have become available.
Points of interest
The most popular parks in Daegu are Apsan, a mountain with trails, Buddhist temples, a Korean War museum, and a gondola ride to the peak; Palgongsan, which houses many historic Buddhist temples including Pagyesa and Donghwasa; Dalseong Park, which sits inside a 1500-year-old earth fortress; and Duryu Park, which has many walking trails as well as a large amusement park.
Nearby tourist attractions include Haeinsa—a Buddhist temple that houses the Tripitaka Koreana (a woodblock edition of the Tripitaka and one of the world's oldest extant complete collections of the Buddhist scriptures)—and the historic city of Gyeongju, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Silla.
There are five universities in Daegu, including Kyungpook National University ([12], founded in 1946), Yeungnam University, and Keimyung University. There are also some colleges.
Daegu has three American military bases, Camp Walker, Camp Henry and Camp George, the latter which houses Taegu American School (primarily for children of military personnel). Although non-military families can enroll their children at the school, most either home-school their children or send them to a small Christian private school which teaches about 25 children near downtown Daegu.
Daegu is also home to the K-League soccer club Daegu FC.
Shopping is centered in the downtown. There is main shopping district which is called Dongseongno. There are also a number of department stores. Many of these belong to national or multinational chains, but the local Debec department store also operates two branches.
Transportation
There are two types of buses which are local and limited express. Limited express bus have more seats. As of 2005, Local bus costs 900 won, Limited express bus costs 1300 won. Bus route numbers are made up with 3 digits, each number indicates the area that bus serves. For example, number 407 bus runs from zone four, to zone zero, and then to zone seven. But, these are not always reliable, because some buses don't follow the rule.
Also, there are two subway lines. Fare is 800 to 900 won on distance.
Traffic is very heavy in downtown and some areas are also heavy many times on the day. However, Daegu's major boulevards handle fairly high volumes of traffic without too much trouble.
Daegu is served by Daegu Airport (international/domestic) located in northeastern Daegu, and also by the KTX highspeed train at Dongdaegu Station, which was opened in 2004.
Famous residents
Famous people born in Daegu include former president Roh Tae-woo, Daewoo Group founder Kim Woo Joong, and actresses Son Ye-jin and Lee Jung-hyun. For many years in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, most winners of the Miss Korea beauty pageant came from Daegu.
Administrative divisions
Daegu is divided into 7 wards ("Gu") and 1 county ("Gun").
| Name | Hangeul | Hanja |
| Buk-gu | 북구 | 北區 |
| Dalseo-gu | 달서구 | 達西區 |
| Dong-gu | 동구 | 東區 |
| Jung-gu | 중구 | 中區 |
| Nam-gu | 남구 | 南區 |
| Seo-gu | 서구 | 西區 |
| Suseong-gu | 수성구 | 壽城區 |
| Dalseong-gun | 달성군 | 達城郡 |
Sister cities
- Atlanta, Georgia, USA
- Almaty, Kazakhstan
- Qingdao, Shandong, PRC
- Minas Gerais, Brazil
- Hiroshima, Japan
- Saint Petersburg, Russia
Notes
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 76 and Shin (1999).
- ^ Lee (1984) and Shin (1999) both make this assumption.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 131.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 149.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 294.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 302.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 343.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 377.
- ^ Lee (1984), p. 384.
- ^ Cumings (1997), pp. 243-244.
- ^ Nahm (1996), p. 379.
References
- Cumings, Bruce. Korea's place in the sun: A modern history. New York: W.W.Norton. ISBN 0-393-31681-5.
- Daegu-Gyeongbuk Historical Society (대구-경북역사연구회). 역사 속의 대구, 대구사람들 (Yeoksa sok-ui Daegu, Daegu saramdeul) (Daegu and its people in history). Seoul: Jungsim. ISBN 89-89524-09-1.
- Lee, Ki-baik (1984). A new history of Korea, rev. ed. Tr. by E.W. Wagner and E.J. Shultz. Seoul: Ilchogak. ISBN 89-337-0204-0.
- Nahm, Andrew C. (1996). Korea: A history of the Korean people, 2nd ed. Seoul: Hollym. ISBN 1-56591-070-2.
- Shin, Hyeong-seok (신형석). (1999). 통일신라의 새로운 수도가 될 뻔했던 대구 (Tongilsilla-ui saeroun sudo-ga doel ppeonhaetteon Daegu) (Daegu, which almost became the new capital of Unified Silla). In Daegu-Gyeongbuk Historical Society, ed., pp. 78-91.
See also
External links
