Cheju

Cheju, also spelled Jeju, city and provincial capital, Cheju do (province), on the northern coast of Cheju Island, off the southern coast of South Korea. It is the island’s largest city and has its only airport, which handles both domestic and international flights. The political, commercial, and cultural centre of the island since it was an independent kingdom in ancient times, it developed as a seaport after 1913. Port facilities were rapidly constructed after 1946. Industries include canning and the manufacture of marine products, spirits, and starch (from sweet potatoes). Cheju National University (1955) is located there. Among the city’s historical sites is Samsŏng-hyŏl (Samseong-hyeol; “Caves of the Three Clans”), the legendary cradle of three old families (Ko [or Go], Yang, and Bu) whose progenitors were said to have emerged from the ground to found the ancient kingdom of T’amna, which existed independently until its absorption by the Koryŏ dynasty in 938. Pop. (2010) 401,192.