Taegu

Coordinates: 35°52′N 128°36′E / 35.867°N 128.6°E / 35.867; 128.6

Daegu 대구
—  Metropolitan City  —
Daegu Metropolitan City
transcription(s)
- Hangul	대구 광역시
- Hanja	大邱廣域市
- Revised Romanization	Daegu-gwangyeoksi
- McCune-Reischauer	Taegu-kwangyŏksi
Cityscape of Daegu
Flag Emblem of Daegu
Map of South Korea with Daegu highlighted
Country	South Korea
Region	Yeongnam
Districts	7
Government
- Mayor	Kim Bum-il
Area
- Total	884.15 km2 (341.4 sq mi)
Population (2009)[1]
- Total	2,512,604
- Density	2,842/km2 (7,360.7/sq mi)
- Dialect	Gyeongsang
Flower	Magnolia
Tree	Fir
Bird	Eagle
Website	daegu.go.kr (English)

Daegu (Korean pronunciation: [tɛɡu]), also spelled Taegu, and officially called the Daegu Metropolitan City, is the center of the third largest metropolitan area, and itself is the fourth-most populous city^[2] in South Korea, with over 2.5 million people.

The city is located in the south-east of Korea, near the Nakdong River and the Geumho River of the Yeongnam (Gyeongsang-do) region. The Daegu basin, where the city lies, is the middle part and the rare plain of that region. It made the city the regional center of politics, economy, and culture.

These days, Daegu forms its metropolitan area with some cities in Gyeongsangbuk-do (Gyeongbuk), the province which surrounds the city. The city is also the capital and the principal city of that province, although it is not legally part of the province. These two areas are often called Daegu-Gyeongbuk, and have a population of over 5 million.

History

Prehistory and early history

Dalseong Park, believed as the site of Dalgubeol

Archaeological investigations in the Greater Daegu area have revealed a large number of settlements and burials of the prehistoric Mumun Pottery Period (c. 1500-300 B.C.). In fact, some of the earliest evidence of Mumun settlement in Gyeongsangdo have been excavated from Siji-dong and Seobyeon-dong.^[3] Dongcheon-dong is one of the substantial Mumun agricultural villages that have been excavated.^[4] The Dongcheon-dong site dates to the Middle Mumun (c. 850-550 B.C.) and contains the remains of many prehistoric pit-houses and agricultural fields. Megalithic burials (dolmens) have also been found in large numbers in Daegu.

Ancient historical texts indicate that during the Proto-Three Kingdoms of Korea period, Daegu was the site of a chiefdom or walled-town polity known in historical records as Dalgubeol. The first mention of Dalgubeol is dated to 261^{[citation needed]}. We know nothing of the earlier history of Dalgubeol, and little of what came later, except that it was absorbed into the kingdom of Silla no later than the fifth century. A number of other chiefdoms are associated with the local area such as Abdok and Abyang.

Silla

Silla defeated the other two kingdoms of the 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.^[5] 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.^[6]

In the late 1990s archaeologists excavated a large scale fortified Silla site in Dongcheon-dong, Buk-gu.^[7] The site at Locality 2 consists of the remains of 39 raised-floor buildings enclosed by a formidable ditch-and-palisade system. The excavators hypothesize that the fortified site was a permanent military encampment or barracks. Archaeologists also uncovered a large Silla village dating to the 6th to 7th centuries AD at Siji-dong.^[3]

The city was given its current name in 757.

Many artifacts of the Silla period are found on Palgongsan around Donghwasa temple in northern Daegu. Donghwasa itself dates from the Silla period, as does the stupa 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 Shin Sung-gyeom. 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.^[8] However, this edition was destroyed when the temple was sacked in 1254, during the Mongol invasions of Korea.^[9]

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.^[10]

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.^[11] 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.^[12]

After Japanese rule

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,^[13] where police attempts to control rioters on October 1 caused the death of three student demonstrators and injuries to many others, sparking a mass counter-attack killing 38 policemen^[14]. It was also the site of major demonstrations on February 28, 1960, prior to the fraudulent presidential election of that year.^[15]

Daegu and all of North Gyeongsang saw heavy guerrilla activity in the late 1940s, as thousands of refugees arrived from the fighting in Jeolla.^[16] In November 1948, a unit in Daegu joined the mutiny which had begun in Yeosu the previous month.^[17]

During the Korean War, much heavy fighting occurred nearby along the Nakdong River. Daegu sat inside the Pusan 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. Daegu is a political base for Korea's ruling Grand National Party.

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. The United States Military also maintains Camp Henry, an Army base in Daegu

Today, Daegu is the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Korea with respect to both population and commerce.

Administrative divisions

The 7 wards and 1 county of Daegu.

Daegu is divided into 7 wards (Gu) and 1 county (Gun).

• Jung-gu (중구, 中區)
• Dong-gu (동구, 東區)
• Seo-gu (서구, 西區)
• Nam-gu (남구, 南區)
• Buk-gu (북구, 北區)
• Suseong-gu (수성구, 壽城區)
• Dalseo-gu (달서구, 達西區)
• Dalseong-gun (달성군, 達城郡)

Geography

Daegu sits in a basin surrounded by low mountains. Palgongsan to the north, Biseulsan to the south, Waryongsan 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.

Climate

Daegu has a humid subtropical climate. The mountains that comprise the basin 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. Data gathered since 1961 indicate that the mean temperature for January, the coldest month in Daegu, is -0.7°C and that for August, the warmest month, is 26.3°C. The City's lowest record temperature was -20.2°C. And the City's highest record temperature was 40.0°C.^[18]

Economy

Dyeing industrial complex in Seo-gu, is known as the biggest dyeing cluster in the world

Daegu Int'l Fashion Fair 2008

Daegu is the city of the manufacturing industry. The major industries are textiles, metals and machinery. The quality of the apples grown around the city is renowned around Korea. Many companies such as Daegu Bank, Korea Delphi and Hwasung corp. are headquatered in this city, and Samsung and Cheil Industries were born here.

The city is the core of the industrial area in Daegu-Gyeongbuk, one of the major industrial areas in Korea, which accounted for as many as 94 percent of Korea's trade surplus in 2006.^[20] The electronics industries in Gumi and the steel industries in Pohang rendered great services to that surplus. The world's remarkable manufacturing factories like Anycall (Samsung Mobile) and POSCO's main factories are near the city. The city and its neighbouring cities were designated for the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone by the central government in 2008. It is specialized in knowledge-based service and manufacturing industries.

Historycally, Daegu has been the commercial center of the southern part of the Korean Peninsula with Seoul (the middle) and Pyeongyang (the north, current North Korea), because of its advantageous location. Many huge markets like Seomun Market are doing a flourishing business.

Fashion industry

Beginning in the late 1990s, the city is actively making efforts to promote fashion industry based on its textile and clothing manufacturing industries under the 'Daegu:Fashion City'. The city set up relationship with Milan, Italy in 1998 and chose the words, 'Colorful Daegu' as the city's slogan in 2006. The city opens many exhibitions related to the fashion and textile industries annually or half-yearly.

This section requires expansion.

Culture and sightseeing

Generally, Daegu is known as the conservative city. People from Daegu are seen as consevative, modest, and patient. As the largest city that does not have the sea, except the national first city (mostly capital), and one of the major metropolitan areas in the nation, The traits of Daegu in Korea are similar to those of Chicago in United States or Lyon in France. Politically, the city is home of the conservatives.

Traditionally, Buddhism was strong; today there are still many temples. Confucianism was popular in Daegu, with a large academy based in the city. Neon cross-topped spires of Christian churches can also be seen in the city.

Sights

The most well-known sight of the city is the stone Buddha on the top of Gwanbong, Palgongsan, called Gatbawi. It is famous for its stone hat. People from all over the country visit the place, because they believe that the Buddha grants whosever one desire at least. Administratively, the site itself is located in the neighboring city, Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk.

Mountains, put around the urban area, keep many traditional and renowned temples like Donghwasa, Pagyesa, and Buinsa ('-sa' means temple). Those temples have played a role of rest places to citizen mentally and physically. As well as the temples, the old villages like the Otgol village (Gyeongju Choi clan's original residence area) and the Inheung village (Nampyeong Mun's) are in the suburbs.

In the urban area, the Joseon Dynasty's administrative or educational buildings including Gyeongsang-gamyeong (경상감영, 慶尙監營) and Daegu-hyanggyo (대구향교, 大邱鄕校) remain. The main gateway of the city in that period called Yeongnam-jeilmun (영남제일문, 嶺南第一門, means the first gateway in Yeongnam) is restored in Mangudang Park, east of Daegu.

Gyesan Cathedral

Westernstyle modern architectures like Gyesan Cathedral and the old building of Jeil Church are preserved in many places of the urban area. Gyesan Cathedral is the third gothic church building in Korea. Several buildings, in the present Keisung high school and the KNU high school, are famous too.

Yangnyeongsi (약령시, 藥令市) in Namseongno (often called Yakjeon-golmok) is the oldest market for Korean medicinal herbs in the country with a history of 350 years. Bongsan-dong, which has some art galleries and studios, is being developed as the artistic center of the city since the 1990's.

Daegu Tower, also called Woobang Tower or Duryu Tower, is sitted on Duryusan, the middle of the urban area. It is the tallest contemporary structure (202 meters high) and the symbol of today Daegu. Moreover, it has the observatory, which commands good views of the city.

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)—. Haeinsa is located in Gayasan National Park of Hapcheon, Gyeongnam. The historic city of Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Silla is located east of Daegu.

Downtown and shopping

Dongseongno

Dongseongno (동성로, 東城路) is the downtown of Daegu in the center of the city, Jung-gu. Like its name which means the street in the east fortress, the east part of Daegu-eupseong (대구읍성, 大邱邑城, means the Daegu fortress) was situated along this street. The fortress had been demolished in the early 20th century. Today, many shops and stores, in this place, form the largest and the broadest downtown area not in the city, but in the whole country except Seoul. In most cases, famous brands open the branch shop first here, out of the Seoul capital area.^[21]

Around the Seongseo Industrial Complex Station in Dalseo-gu, and around Kyungpook National University in Buk-gu, and Deuran-gil (means the street inside the field) in Suseong-gu, etc. are sub-downtowns of Daegu. Each have their own commercial power, but are no match for Dongseongno.

The city has a number of department stores. Many of these belong to national or multinational chains, but the local Daegu Department Store also operates two branches, while another local chain, Donga Department Store operates four in the city proper. The six department stores of those gather at the downtown. Market places such as Seomun Market, Chilseong Market, and Bangchon Market sell all sorts of goods.

Mountains and parks

Palgonsan, Biseulsan, and Apsan is the representative mountains in Daegu ('-san' means mountain). Apsan, just in the south of the city, is the closest mountain from the urban area among the three. It has many trails, Buddhist temples, a Korean War museum, and a gondola ride to the peak. In urban area, Dalseong Park sits inside a 1500-year-old earth fortress. Duryu Park or Duryusan has many sports facilities. It also has Daegu Tower and the largest amusement park out of the capital area. Many small gardens in the heart of the city, such as the National Debt Repayment Movement Memorial Park (Gukchae Bosang Undong Ginyeom Park) and 2·28 Park, are loved by people.

Festivals

Daegu International Musical Festival 2009

Lately, enthusiasm about opera or musical is growing in the city, and the local government is trying to meet its demand. Daegu International Opera Festival (DIOF)^[22], Daegu International Musical Festival (DIMF)^[23], and Daegu International Bodypainting Festival (DIBF)^[24] are one of the most famous festivals on each field in Korea, although those have a short history.

Various festivals in various themes like Colorful Daegu Festival, Dongseongno festival, Palgonsan maple festival, Biseulsan azelea festival.. are held by the city, each ward, or the specific groups, all through the year.

On August 25 through August 31, 2008, Daegu hosted the first ever Asian Bodypainting Festival, a sister event of the World Bodypainting Festival in Seeboden, Austria.

International Daegu

Daegu hosts three American military bases, Camp Walker, Camp Henry and Camp George, the latter which houses Daegu 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 the central business district of Daegu.

Sports

Official emblem of Daegu 2011 was reliesed in july, 2009

On March 27, 2007, the city was selected as the host city for the 2011 World Championships in Athletics. Daegu competed with cities such as Brisbane, Australia and Moscow, Russia to earn the votes of the IAAF Council. This event in 2011 will be the first IAAF World Championships in Athletics held in the Asian mainland, and the city is great concerning about it now. Daegu also hosted the 2003 Summer Universiade and the part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

Daegu Stadium

All the events were held and will be held in Daegu Stadium, the second largest sports complex in South Korea, after Seoul Olympic Stadium, as a seating capacity of 66,422.

Sports teams

Daegu is a home of Samsung Lions, a professional baseball club, which belongs to KBO.

Daegu is home to the KBL Basketball team Daegu Orions.

Daegu is also home to the K-League soccer club Daegu FC, one of the best citizen soccer teams in Korea.^{[citation needed]}

People

Daegu is largely a homogeneous community that includes non-Koreans. However, 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 English schools. The American military bases are also home to several thousand Americans. Recently Chinese students have begun studying Korean at universities in Daegu, and there is an increasing number of graduate and post-graduate students from other Asian countries. As elsewhere in Korea, Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Western food is most common but recently Indian and Russian foods have become available.

Education and institutions

Universities and colleges

Kyungpook National University School of Medicine

There are many universities in Daegu, including Kyungpook National University.^[25] It was founded in 1946 and is one of the most recognized and highly ranked national universities in Korea after Seoul National University. Yeungnam University, located in nearby city, Gyeongsan, is one of the most prestigious private universities in Korea outside of the Seoul along with Keimyung University.^{[citation needed]} Daegu National University of Education is also highly reputed, as a national university of education. There are some smaller post-secondary institutions such as Daegu University, Catholic University of Daegu and many technical and professional colleges.

List of universities in Daegu and its satellite towns in Gyeongbuk

• Kyungpook National University (at Buk-gu and Jung-gu)
• Yeungnam University (at Gyeongsan and Nam-gu)
• Keimyung University (at Dalseo-gu, Nam-gu and Jung-gu)
• Daegu National University of Education (at Nam-gu)
• Catholic University of Daegu (at Gyeongsan, Nam-gu and Jung-gu)
• Daegu University (at Gyeongsan and Nam-gu)
• Daegu Haany University (at Gyeongsan and Suseong-gu)

Other uninversities and colleges include

• Daegu Arts University (at Chilgok)
• Daegu Cyber University (at Gyeongsan)
• Daegu Health College (at Buk-gu)
• Daegu Mirae College (at Gyeongsan)
• Daegu Polytechnic College (at all parts of Daegu and Gyeongbuk)
• Daegu Technical College (at Dalseo-gu)
• Daegu University of Foreign Studies (at Gyeongsan)
• Kyongbuk College of Science (at Chilgok)
• Kyongbuk University of Foreign Studies (at Buk-gu)
• Kyungil University (at Gyeongsan)
• Taekyeung College (at Gyeongsan)
• Taeshin Christian University (at Gyeongsan)
• Yeungjin College (at Buk-gu)
• Youngnam Theological College and Seminary (at Gyeongsan)

Medical institutions

The medical industries in Daegu are somewhat developed, considering that the city is located out of the national capital area. The Kyungpook National University Hospital, founded as Daegu-dongin-uiwon in 1907, is the representative medicine institution in the city. The Dongsan Medical Center (attached to Keimyung University), founded as Jejungwon in 1899, is one of the oldest western medicine institutions in Korea. In 2009, the city was chosen for Cheomdan-uiryo-bokhap-danji (means the high-tech medical complex of Korea) with Pohang, and will be supported by the Korean government.

List of the major medicine institutions in Daegu

• Kyungpook National University Hospital (at Jung-gu)
• Keimyung University Dongsan Medical Center (at Jung-gu)
• Yeungnam University Medical Center (at Nam-gu)
• Daegu Catholic University Medical Center (at Nam-gu)
• Daegu Fatima Hospital (at Dong-gu)

Transportation

Daegu Subway Station at Sawol

There are two types of buses which are local and limited express. Limited express buses have more seats, but often passengers are required to stand. As of 2008, Local bus costs 1100 won, Limited express bus costs 1500 won. Discounted fare is available with a prepaid card. For the local bus is available at 950 won and for the limited express at 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. Other routes, usually circular, are named for the districts they serve and numbered 1 through 3.

Also, there are two subway lines, and the third line is under construction. Fare is 1100 won on distance and 950 won with a prepaid card. There is a free interchange scheme between the metro and bus within an hour of first use for the prepaid card users.

Traffic is sometimes heavy. However, the major thoroughfares 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 re-opened in 2004 after extensive renovations.

Saemaul and Mugunghwa trains depart from Daegu Station, an all-new building with cinemas, restaurants and a Lotte Department Store, located near the city centre.

Famous residents

Former president and first lady Roh Tae-woo and Kim Ok-sook, politician Park Geun-hye, Daewoo Group founder Kim Woo Joong, Samsung Group former chairman Lee Kun-hee, actress Son Ye-jin were all born in Daegu.

Many entertainers such as Shinee's Key and 2PM's Kim Junsu were also born in this city.

Sister cities

• Atlanta, United States (1981)
• Almaty, Kazakhstan (1990)
• Qingdao, China (1993)
• Minas Gerais, Brazil (1994)
• Hiroshima, Japan (1997)
• Saint Petersburg, Russia (1997)
• Milan, Italy (1998)
• Plovdiv, Bulgaria (2002)

Big cities of South Korea

• Seoul
• Busan
• Daegu
• Incheon
• Gwangju
• Daejeon
• Ulsan

See also

• List of Korea-related topics
• List of cities in South Korea
• History of Daegu
• Gyeongsang

Notes

Further reading

• 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.*
• Lee, Jungwoong (이정웅) (1993). 팔공산을 아십니까 (About Mt. Palgong). Daegu: 그루. ISBN 2000752000813. 
• Lee, Jungwoong (이정웅) (2000). 대구가 자랑스러운 12가지 이유. Seoul: 북랜드. ISBN 89-7787-158-1. 
• Lee, Jungwoong (이정웅) (2006). 푸른 대구 이야기. Daegu: 그루. ISBN 89-8069-138-6. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Daegu

• City website (English)
• Daegu : Official Site of Korea Tourism Org
• City Bus Schedule and Routes

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