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Seodaemun District

Coordinates: 37°34′45″N 126°56′12″E / 37.57917°N 126.93667°E / 37.57917; 126.93667
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Seodaemun
서대문구
Autonomous District
서대문구 · 西大門區
A street at night in Sinchon-dong
A street at night in Sinchon-dong
Location of Seodaemun-gu in Seoul
Location of Seodaemun-gu in Seoul
CountrySouth Korea
RegionSudogwon
Special CitySeoul
Administrative dong14
Government
 • MayorMoon Seok-Jin (Democratic United)
 • CouncilSeodaemun District Council
 • Members of the Seoul Metropolitan Council신원철
(Democratic United)
1st Electoral District
박운기
(Democratic United)
2nd Electoral District
김태희
(Democratic United)
3rd Electoral District
조상호
(Democratic United)
4th Electoral District[1]
 • Members of the National AssemblySung Hun Lee
(Saenuri)
Seodaemun-gu Gap district
Doo-Un Chung
(Saenuri)
Seodaemun-gu Eul district[2]
Area
 • Total17.61 km2 (6.80 sq mi)
Population
 (2010[3])
 • Total313,814
 • Density18,000/km2 (46,000/sq mi)
Demonym서대문구민 (Seodaemun gumin)
Time zoneUTC+9 (Korea Standard Time)
FlowerRose
TreePine tree
BirdKorean magpie
WebsiteSeodaemun-gu official website
A sketch of the Seodaemun (Great West Gate) around 1894.

Seodaemun District (Seodaemun-gu) is a gu located in northwestern Seoul, South Korea. The name derives from Seodaemun, meaning literally "Great West Gate", which was once located in the district. Seodaemun was one of the four great gates of the city wall surrounding the Joseon capital of Hanyang (only Dongdaemun and Namdaemun survive intact, though the latter was destroyed by arson in 2008 and only recently rebuilt).

Administrative divisions

Administrative divisions

Seodaemun District consists of 14 "administrative dong"s (haengjeong-dong 행정동).

Infrastructure

  • Total length of roads: 308 km
  • Pavement area: 2,641 km
  • Waterworks system: 589 km
  • Sewerage system: 396 km

Government and infrastructure

At one time the Korean Maritime Safety Tribunal (KMST) had its headquarters in the district.[4]

Education

Seobu District Office of Education under the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education operates public schools in Seodaemun District.[5]

There are also numerous private institutions in Seodaemun District offering education for primary and secondary levels.

Private institutions offering higher education in Seodaemun District are Chugye University for the Arts, Ewha Womans University, Kyonggi University, Methodist Theological University, Myongji College, Myongji University, Seoul School of Integrated Sciences & Technologies, Seoul Women's College of Nursing, and Yonsei University.

Seodaemun District also has a public library called Lee Jin Ah Memorial Library. The construction of the library was made possible through a generous donation by the parents of the namesake Lee. Lee's Parents, after losing Lee in a tragic lethal accident, wanted to commemorate the life of their daughter who enjoyed reading.[6] Since the opening on Lee's anniversary in 2005, the main library now has approximately over 76,000 books.[6]

Facilities

  • Public Institutions - total 84 (1 Seodaemun-gu Office, 21 Dong offices, 1 Korean National Police Agency, 1 police station, 16 police boxes, 4 fire stations, 10 post offices, 30 others)
  • Schools - total 46 (8 universities, 6 high schools, 12 middle schools, 18 elementary schools, 2 foreign schools)
  • Medical Facilities- total 402 (2 General Hospitals, 317 hospitals and clinics including dental clinics, 83 oriental clinics)
  • Official Cultural Assets: total 32 (1 national treasure, 10 treasures, 6 historic sites, 4 important intangible cultural properties, 3 folklore materials, 8 tangible and intangible cultural properties
  • Welfare facilities: total 308 (3 social welfare centers, 173 childcare centers, 86 facilities for the aged, 36 others including study rooms)

Government and infrastructure

The Korean National Police Agency has its headquarters in Migeun-dong, Seodaemun District.[7]

Attractions

The district covers 17.6 square kilometers, approximately 2.9% of the total area of Seoul. Seodaemun District is populated by middle and upper-income families.[citation needed]

Seodaemun District incorporates residential areas and historical areas including Bongwon Temple, Sinchon Railway Station (the oldest train station in Seoul) and Seodaemun Prison History Hall. Also it has a historic culture site "Seodaemun Independence Park." This place located at Dongnimmun station, allows people to learn about history through 3.1 independence memorial statue, Independence Gate and more. This educational park is a major tourist attraction of Seodaemun District that provides a comfortable place of culture and leisure. Seodaemun District is a Rest Place together with nature surrounded by Mt. Ansan, Mt. Baengnyeonsan and Hongjecheon stream in the city. Also known as Mt. Muaksan, Mt. Ansan has many steep slopes, but because it has an altitude of only 295.5m, it is a favorite hiking trail among locals. There are about ten climbing courses where everyone can enjoy a walk in the forests filled with wild flowers, pine trees, cherry blossom trees, etc. At the summit, there is Ansan Beacon Mound, where you can view Mt. Bukhansan, Mt. Inwangsan, Haegjusanseong Fortress and Hangang River. Mt. Ansan is a highly popular tourist attraction of Seodaemun District. Also, on the Mt. Ansan path, the Seodaemun Museum of Natural History, built by the local governing body, exhibits various geological and biological relics and records. Named after Hongjewon, which was where Chinese envoys were greet and entertained, Hongjecheon Stream was where the women who were forcefully taken to the Qing Dynasty cleansed their bodies upon returning home. The once dried stream was restored and today there is a musical fountain, a water mill, a man-made waterfall, hiking trails and more for locals and tourists to enjoy.

There are shopping streets for young, "Walking street" in Sinchon and "Fashion street" near Ewha Womans University. Here, People can enjoy shopping according to their own style from head to toe and still have money left for a cup of coffee.[8] The area has a 66㎡ store of Korean cosmetics brand Skin Food, which has been opened since June 2004 in Changcheon-dong and it also sells Traditional Korean medicine or hanbang.[9]

Sister cities

References

  1. ^ "Members of Council". Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  2. ^ "Assembly Members". Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  3. ^ Korean Statistical Information Service (Korean) > Population and Household > Census Result (2010) > Population by Administrative district, Sex and Age / Alien by Administrative district and Sex, Retrieved 2010-06-02.
  4. ^ "Location." (Archive) Korean Maritime Safety Tribunal. February 9, 2005. Retrieved on January 1, 2014. "139 Chungjeong-No 3, Seodaemun-Gu, Seoul, 120-715, Republic of Korea"
  5. ^ "Educational Institutionas in District".
  6. ^ a b "Overview". Cite error: The named reference "Lee Jin Ah Memorial Library" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  7. ^ Home page. Korean National Police Agency. Retrieved on April 30, 2010. "Korean National Police Agency, Uiju-ro 91 (Migeun-dong 209) Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-704."
  8. ^ "서대문구 (Seodaemun-gu 西大門區)" (in Korean). Doosan Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  9. ^ "Destinations by Region>Seoul>Seodaemun-gu>Skin Food". Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Seodaemun-gu, Seoul.

37°34′45″N 126°56′12″E / 37.57917°N 126.93667°E / 37.57917; 126.93667

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