Gwangju 323128 225368328 2008-07-13T09:17:38Z Sinfonian94 5219553 /* History */ Restored a previous entry that is actually historically accurate {{otheruses4|Gwangju Metropolitan City|the smaller city of the same name near [[Seoul]]|Gwangju, Gyeonggi}} {{Infobox Korean settlement | title = Gwangju Metropolitan City | img = Gwangju View.JPG | imgcaption = Mountain top view of Gwangju. | hangul = 광주 광역시 | hanja = 光州廣域市 | rr = Gwangju Gwangyeoksi | mr = Kwangju Kwangyŏksi | hangulshort = 광주 | rrshort = Gwangju | mrshort = Kwangju | area_km2 = 501.36 | pop = 1415953 | popyear = 2006 | gov = Metropolitan City, former capital of [[South Jeolla]] | divs = 5 districts (Gu) | region = [[Honam]] | dialect = [[Jeolla Dialect|Jeolla]] | map = Gwangju SK.png | mapcaption = Map of South Korea highlighting the city. }} '''Gwangju Metropolitan City''' is the sixth largest city in [[South Korea]]. Gwangju is a designated [[Special cities of Korea|metropolitan city]] under the direct control of the central government's Home Minister. The city was also the capital of [[South Jeolla]] [[Provinces of Korea|Province]] until the provincial office moved to the southern village of [[Namak, South Korea|Namak]], [[Muan County|Muan]] in 2005. Gwang (광,光) means light. Ju (주,州) means province. ==History== {{POV-section|date=July 2008}} The city was established in 57 BC, and has been a major political and economic centre of Korea ever since. It was one of the administrative centres of Baekje during the Three Kingdoms Period. With the construction of a railway to Seoul in 1914, modern industry was established. This includes cotton textiles, rice mills and breweries. Construction of a designated industrial zone in 1967 encouraged marked growth in industry, especially in the sectors linked to the automobile industry. In 1929, during the period of Japanese occupation, a confrontation between Korean and Japanese students in the city turned into a regional demonstration, which culminated in one of the major nationwide uprisings against Japanese rule during the colonial period. In May 1980, civil demonstrations took place in Gwangju against the newly installed military government of Chun Doo-hwan. The demonstrations were suppressed by military forces, including elite units of the Special Operations Command. Most commentators agree that the suppression was characterized by its egregious brutality, including several incidents where military forces fired automatic weapons into crowds of unarmed demonstrators. Gwangju is sometimes called "the shrine of Korean democracy" because of this incident, which is known today as the Gwangju Democratization Movement. After civilian rule was reinstated, a national cemetery was established honoring the victims of the incident. ==Administrative divisions== {{main|Administrative divisions in Gwangju}} Gwangju is divided into 5 districts ("Gu"). {| class=wikitable ! Name ! [[Hangul]] ! [[Hanja]] |- | [[Buk-gu, Gwangju|Buk-gu]] || 북구 || 北區 |- | [[Dong-gu, Gwangju|Dong-gu]] || 동구 || 東區 |- | [[Gwangsan-gu]] || 광산구 || 光山區 |- | [[Nam-gu, Gwangju|Nam-gu]] || 남구 || 南區 |- | [[Seo-gu, Gwangju|Seo-gu]] || 서구 || 西區 |} ==Amenities== [[Chonnam National University]], [[Chosun University]], Honam University and [[Gwangju University]] are the major educational institutions in the city, with several other universities and colleges also located in the region. Areas of exquisite scenery along the outskirts of the city gave birth to ''gasa'', a form of Korean classical poetry. Located in the heart of the agricultural [[Jeolla]] region, the city is also famous for its rich and diverse [[Korean cuisine|cuisine]]. ==Transportation== Gwangju has [[Gwangju Subway Line 1|one subway line]]. An extension to the line is under construction. There are also two [[KTX]] stations in the city: [[Gwangju Station]] and [[Songjeong-ri Station]]. Neither of these is yet connected to the [[Gwangju Subway|subway network]], though there are plans to extend include [[Songjeong-ri Station|Songjeong-ri]] in the extension. [[Gwangju Airport]] and [[Muan International Airport]] serve Gwangju. ==People== Actress [[Moon Geun Young]] is one of the notable contemporaries from Gwangju. The city boasts three [[Major League Baseball]] players: [[Hee-Seop Choi|Choi Hee Seop]], [[Byung-Hyun Kim|Kim Byung Hyun]] and [[Jae Weong Seo|Seo Jae Weong]], who also came from the same high school. Although former president [[Kim Dae-jung]] is not a native of the city, he is so widely honoured throughout the city that a convention center was named after him. Jung Yun Ho a member of popular South Korean boy group [[Dong Bang Shin Ki]] and model Kim Eun mi. [[Big Bang (group)]] member, Seungri, is also a notable from Gwangju. Bass guitarist [[Trish Doan]] from the Canadian all-female metal band [[Kittie]] was born in and adopted from Gwangju. The first Korean astronaut, [[Yi So-yeon]], was born in Gwangju. Kim Yoobin of popular group, [[Wonder Girls]] is from Gwang ju. ==Education== * [[Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology]] ==Sister cities== *{{flagicon|China}} [[Guangzhou]], [[China]] *{{flagicon|United States}} [[San Antonio, Texas|San Antonio]], [[Texas]], [[United States]] <ref>[http://www.sanantonio.gov/iad/Gwangju.asp]</ref> *{{flagicon|Japan}} [[Sendai]], [[Japan]] <ref>[http://www.city.sendai.jp/soumu/kouhou/press/02-06-19/gwangju-e.html]</ref> *{{flagicon|ROC}} [[Tainan City]], [[Taiwan]] *{{flagicon|Indonesia}} [[Medan]], [[North Sumatra]], [[Indonesia]] <ref>[http://www.kotamedan.com/main/medan.htm]</ref> ==See also== *[[Gwangju Biennale]] *[[Gwangju National Museum]] *[[List of Korea-related topics]] *[[List of cities in South Korea]] {{commonscat|Gwangju}} ==External links== *[http://eng.gjcity.net/main.jsp Official website of Gwangju] *[http://www.cafegwangju.com Cafe Gwangju Information Guide to Gwangju City] *[http://www.518.org/ The May 18 Memorial Foundation] *[http://dmoz.org/Regional/Asia/South_Korea/Gwangju Open Directory list of sites related to Gwangju] {{regions and administrative divisions of South Korea}} {{coor title dm|35|10|N|126|55|E|region:KR_type:city(1,400,000)}} [[Category:Cities in South Korea]] [[Category:Gwangju]] [[Category:57 BC establishments]] [[bg:Куанджу]] [[da:Gwangju]] [[de:Gwangju]] [[et:Gwangju]] [[es:Gwangju]] [[eo:Gŭangĝu]] [[fa:گوانگجو]] [[fr:Gwangju]] [[zh-classical:光州]] [[ko:광주광역시]] [[io:Gwangju]] [[id:Gwangju]] [[it:Gwangju]] [[lt:Kvandžu]] [[mr:गॉन्गजु]] [[nl:Gwangju]] [[ja:光州広域市]] [[no:Gwangju]] [[pl:Kwangju (metropolia w Korei Południowej)]] [[pt:Gwangju]] [[ru:Кванджу (город прямого подчинения)]] [[fi:Gwangju]] [[vi:Gwangju]] [[vo:Gwangju]] [[zh-yue:光州]] [[zh:光州廣域市]]