North Kyŏngsang

Taegu

North Kyŏngsang, also spelled North Gyeongsang, Korean in full Kyŏngsangpuk-do or Gyeongsangbuk-do, do (province), eastern South Korea. It is bounded to the east by the East Sea (Sea of Japan), to the south by South Kyŏngsang province, to the west by the provinces of North Chŏlla (North Jeolla) and North Ch’ungch’ŏng (North Chungcheong), and to the north by Kangwŏn (Gangwon) province. Taegu (Daegu)—administratively designated a metropolitan city with province-level status—borders North Kyŏngsang to the south. North Kyŏngsang is South Korea’s largest province in area. Andong is the province’s capital, and P’ohang is its largest city.

Surrounded by the T’aebaek and Sobaek mountains and their spurs, it is the hottest province in South Korea during the summer. The Naktong (Nakdong) River, the second longest in Korea, and its tributaries flow toward the south, but the plains beside them are not broad. The province produces rice, barley, beans, and potatoes, but its agricultural specialty product is apples from the vicinity of Taegu. Dairy farming and cattle breeding exist in several districts. Marine products from the seacoast and Ullŭng (Ulleung) Island include seaweed, cuttlefish, and shellfish. Transportation has been well developed, and industries such as the manufacture of iron and steel, textiles, machinery, and chemicals are carried on in the cities of P’ohang and Kumi (Gumi).

Yangdong, South Korea: traditional house

Yangdong village, Andong, South Korea

North Kyŏngsang, the homeland of the Silla kingdom (57 bce–935 ce), is one of the cultural centres of Korea and the site of many historic remains. These are concentrated mainly in the southeast in and around Kyŏngju (Gyeongju), the former Silla capital. The most notable of these artifacts and historic places have been designated UNESCO World Heritage sites: Pulguk (Bulguk) Temple and Sŏkkuram (Seokguram) Grotto (1995); Kyŏngju’s historic areas, encompassing Silla treasures such as Buddhist art, temple remains, and royal burial sites (2000); and the rural historic clan villages of Hahoe and Yangdong (2010). A number of scholars, artists, and political leaders have come from the province, such as the Confucian scholar Yi T’oegye, fiction writer Yi Munyŏl, and Ch’ŏndogyo religious leader Ch’oe Che-u. To the west of Taegu, straddling the border between North and South Kyŏngsang, is Mount Kaya (Mount Gaya) National Park, the location of Haein Temple. Area 7,346 square miles (19,026 square km). Pop. (2015) 2,680,294.