Yeosu

In 1998, the Old Yeosu City, Yeocheon City and Yeocheon County were merged and the current city, Yeosu, was formed. Historically it was known as Yosu, and Reisui during the Japanese rule over the Korean peninsula.

Yeosu 여수시
Municipal city
Korean transcription(s)
• Hangul	여수시
• Hanja	麗水市
• Revised Romanization	Yeosu-si
• McCune–Reischauer	Yŏsu-si
View of the city, centered on Dolsan Bridge (2022)
Flag Emblem of Yeosu
Location in South Korea
Country	South Korea
Region	Honam
Administrative divisions	1 eup, 6 myeon, 20 dong
Government
• Mayor	Jeong Gi-myeong (정기명)
Area
• Total	503.33 km2 (194.34 sq mi)
Population  (November,2022)
• Total	274,917
• Density	550/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
• Dialect	Jeolla
Time zone	UTC+9 (Korea Standard Time)
Area code	+82-61-6xx

The city of Yeosu consists of the Yeosu peninsula as well as 365 islands (48 inhabited, 317 uninhabited). Being midway along the southern coast of South Korea, it is flanked by Namhae County in South Gyeongsang Province to the east with a natural waterway, and the Bay of Suncheon to the west and northwest, the city of Suncheon sprawling along its banks. On 1 April 1998, the cities of Yeosu and Yeocheon, along with Yeocheon County merged to form the unified city of Yeosu.

It has a number of islands in its jurisdiction, including the uninhabited Janggundo, Dolsando, and the park island Jangdo.

•  
  View of Yeosu

 

Wonchon-hyeon/Dolsan-hyeon was the name given to Yeosu in the 16th year of King Seong (538 AD) who was the king of Baekje Kingdom. The name changed to Haeub-hyeon/Yeosan-hyeon in 757 and to Yeosu-hyeon/Dolsan-hyeon in 940. Beginning in 1479, the Joseon Dynasty's Naval Headquarters for eastern sector of Jeolla Province was located there. As such, it was the first base where Admiral Yi Sun-sin's fleet was based during the Imjin War which used the Turtle Ship or 'Kobukseon' which was built in Seon-so.

In 1897, Yeosu was renamed Yeosu-myeon and included in the new county of Yeosu-gun. In 1914, Yeosu-gun merged with Dolsan-gun, further increasing its territory. Yeosu-myeon continued to grow and in 1931, Yeosu-myeon became Yeosu-eup. In 1949, Yeosu became a city. In 1998, Yeosu city merged with Yeochon city and Yeochon-gun, creating the unified city of Yeosu.

Yeosu-si, Yeocheon-si, and Yeocheon-gun were merged into Yeosu-si on April 1, 1998. The former Yeocheon City Hall was divided into two buildings and the former Yeocheon County Office into three buildings.

Yeosu Rebellion

In October 1948, the town of Yeosu was taken by South Korean soldiers who refused to take part in the suppression of the ongoing Jeju Uprising.

Recent history

On December 25, 1920, Yeosu Station started to operate as a railway that connects Yeosu and Gwangju. On October 1, 2011, however, the station was relocated to Deokchung-dong and renamed Yeosu Expo Station, as the venue served for Yeosu World Expo in 2012.

In the 142nd General Assembly of BIE, held in Paris on 26 November 2007, the global community selected Yeosu as the host city for the 2012 World Expo. This was Korea's second World Expo, following Daejeon's 1993 Fair.

Hyangiram Sunrise Festival (여수향일암일출제) is an annual festival that begins on New Year’s Eve. It takes place at Hyangiram Hermitage, a historical building that was built in 644. The word “Hyangiram” itself refers to “a hermitage facing the sun”, in which visitors could view the breathtaking panorama of sunrise over the horizon. The festival consists of other activities and cultural events such as fireworks, folk street music, and lighting of wishes.

 

• Hyangiram Hermitage is a Buddhist temple that was first built by the monk Wonhyo in 644.
• The Yeosu Maritime Cable Car is an aerial tramway that goes between the island Dolsando and the mainland.
• Yeongchwisan is a culturally important mountain in the city. There are two Buddhist Temples on the mountain: Geumseongdae and Dosolam Hermitage, where ritual ceremonies and prayers were held during ancient days. Also known for its azalea flower blossoms, an azalea festival is held annually on the mountain in April during spring.

 

• In the harbour there is a full-size model of one of Admiral Yi's turtle ships, which are timber shelled vessels that were used with great success against the Japanese navy.
• Manseongri Beach near Yeosu has volcanic 'black' sand and is popular with Korean tourists. Recently, the famous Korean band Busker Busker made a song based on Manseongri Beach's night view. This popularised the site with Korean tourists. There are public showers and restrooms as well as on-duty lifeguards. Many restaurants located along the beach have beach-side tables and serve various seafood dishes. It is possible to take ferries to many of the local islands for an authentic taste of rural Korean food.
• Dolsan Bridge has changing lights at night. It is a 450-metre-long (1,480 ft) bridge connecting downtown Yeosu with Dolsan Island.
• A number of parks exist in the city, including Yi Sun-sin Park, Dolsan Park, and Geobukseon Park.
• The island Odongdo has many camellia flowers. There are 70 species of wild flowers there. A small population of local finless porpoises are present here.

 

• Big-O show is a famous show in Yeosu which features an ocean fountain event and a hologram show. The show consists of three parts. The fountain spouts in accordance with classic and jazz music. Unique to this fountain is a large round steel frame at its centre.
• The Ocean Resort is home to Yeosu's only waterpark. It offers condominium-style rooms and other facilities. Located in Soho-dong, the resort overlooks the yacht marina.
• Hanhwa Aqua Planet is a large aquarium.
• Ungcheon Beach Park allows both swimming and camping for much of the year.

Gejang, or marinated raw crab is a representative speciality of Yeosu and a traditional Jeolla cuisine dish.

Yeosu is known for its gat kimchi [ko], which is made from mustard greens, that was developed in the Yeosu town Dolsan.

Yeosu has a population of 282,946 as of May 2019.

Yeosu has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cwa) with very warm summers and cold winters. Rainfall is much heavier in the summer, with June to August recording over 200 millimetres (7.9 in) of rainfall per month. The highest temperature ever recorded is 37.1 °C (98.8 °F) on 20 July 1994 while the lowest temperature ever recorded is −12.6 °C (9.3 °F) on 16 February 1977.

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• List of cities in South Korea
• Korea2012 Yeosu Expo