VIII. Gyeongsang-do
Geography of Korea: VIII. Gyeongsang-do
VIII. Gyeongsang-do
The name “Gyeongsang” was coined in the early fifteenth century as a combination of the names of the reginon’s two largest cities, Gyeongju and Sangju. As the former capital of the ancient Korean kingdom of Silla (ca. 57 BCE–935 CE), Gyeongju was in effect the national capital for a millennium. Sangju served until the sixteenth century as the headquarters (or gamyeong) of the provincial governor of Gyeongsang-do province. The region of Gyeongsang-do is also called the Yeongnam region, meaning “south of the passes.” Here the “passes” (yeong) are understood to refer to the mountain passes of Joryeong (548m) or Jungnyeong (689m).
As of 2013, the population of the entire Gyeongsang-do region (to mean Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gyeongsangnam-do) was 6.03 million (or 11.8 percent of the national population), the most populous region after Gyeonggi-do. Its total land area is 29,566 sq. km. (29.5 percent of the total national territory), making it the country’s largest region and some sixteen times larger than the country’s smallest province of Jeju-do (1849 sq. km.). Having a large population but also a large territory, the population density of the region average 204 persons/sq. km., higher than Gangwon-do and Jeolla-do but lower than Gyeonggi-do, Jeju-do, and Chungcheong-do.
Gyeongsang-do can largely be divided into the basin region of the Nakdong River and the East Sea coastal region, however the largest portion of the region is formed by the basin of a single river. What’s more, the basin region of the Nakdong River is hemmed in by the Taebaeksanmaek and Sobaeksanmaek Ranges, Korea’s most rugged mountain chain, effectively making the Gyeongsang-do region one giant basin and cutting it off from easy communication with the outside. During the late Joseon period especially the Gyeongsang-do region, linked internally by river transport along the Nakdong, was able to maintain a quasi-independent existence from the outside world. For this reason, the region is home to more unique cultural characteristics and has a stronger feeling of shared language, culture, and history than the Gangwon, Gyeonggi, Chungcheong, or Jeolla regions.
