Nonsan

Nonsan 논산 論山
—  Municipal City  —
Korean transcription(s)
- Hangul	논산시
- Hanja	論山市
- Revised Romanization	Nonsan-si
- McCune-Reischauer	Nonsan-si
Emblem of Nonsan
Country	South Korea
Region	Hoseo
Administrative divisions	2 eup, 11 myeon, and 2 dong
Government
- Mayor	Lim Sung-kyu
Area
- Total	554.82 km2 (214.2 sq mi)
Population (2003)
- Total	136,356
- Density	246/km2 (637.1/sq mi)
- Dialect	Chungcheong

Banya-San Park.

Nonsan is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It is located at 36°12′N 127°5′E / 36.2°N 127.083°E / 36.2; 127.083. Nonsan is also called Nolmoi, meaning dusk(y) or yellow mountain^{[citation needed]}; "Nonsan" means rice paddies + mountain(s).

History^[1]

During the Samhan period, Nonsan is believed to have been part of Mahan territory. In the Baekje period, the district belonged to Hwangdeungyasan-gun. The crucial battle in which Silla defeated Baekje is thought to have taken place in the general area of Nonsan. Later, in the Silla period, Nonsan was divided into two different towns: Deogeun and Hwangsan.

The modern city of Nonsan was established in 1914, by the merger of the four counties of Yeonsan-gun, Eunjin-gun, Noseong-gun and Seoksung-gun.

Transportation

Nonsan is served by the national railroad system and city, regional and national bus lines. An expressway connects the city to Daejeon and other cities. Many streets have bike paths, sharing pavement with sidewalks. The stream running through the city proper is not navigable, but downstream it joins the Geum River, and an outlying subdivision of the city serves as a significant fishing port.

Economics and industry

Nonsan is an agricultural city, with rice being the most important crop. Other important crops include strawberries, ginseng, napa cabbage,^[2] watermelons, ^[3] and Korean pears. According to The Chosun Ilbo,^[4] the farmers are growing new varieties of strawberry produced in Japan without the producer's permission, while the JoongAng Daily says "Strawberries grown in Nonsan are of various types: seolhyang, maehyang, geumhyang, janghi (akihime) and yukbo (red pearl). The first three were developed in Nonsan while the latter two are from Japan. Janghi is the most commonly grown in Korea. However, seolhyang is the sweetest".^[5] Sesil [pronounced "say -shill"] company is the world's third leading producer of insects for natural pest control. The prominent yoghurt company, Yakult, has its headquarters in Nonsan. Agro-Fisheries Trade Corp. is a regional supplier of food products.^[6]

The greater Nonsan area includes the national army training center.

Education

Higher education

• Konyang University, founded 1991, has its main campus in Nonsan. It has a university hospital with educational programs for medical technicians, nurses and doctors in Daejeon
• Hanmin University, in Yeonsan-myeon
• Geumgang University, a recently founded Buddhist university, in rural Nonsan, near Gyeryongsan
• Korea Bio Polytechnic is a two-year college run by the nation's Department of Labor.

Secondary education

Nonsan has a number of high schools, including a girls' high school, a technical high school, and two private schools which attract students from across the province and beyond.

Tourism

Local attractions include the Eunjin Mireuk, a large standing Buddhist sculpture of the Goryeo period and its accompanying temple, Gwanchoksa,^[7] as well as the Baekje Military Museum.

Other

The city has a concert hall, where various cultural activities such as concerts and lectures are held. Konyang University's auditorium also hosts free cultural activities for the community.

In June 2011, the multipurpose culture hall Sangsang Madang was completed. It is dedicated to "indie art". ^[8]

Administrative divisions

See also: Administrative divisions of South Korea

Nonsan City has jurisdiction over 2 eup, 11 myeon, and 2 dong.

Name	Hangul	Hanja
Ganggeyong-eup	강경읍	江景邑
Yeonmu-eup	연무읍	鍊武邑
Seongdong-myeon	성동면	城東面
Gwangseok-myeon	광석면	光石面
Noseong-myeon	노성면	魯城面
Sangwol-myeon	상월면	上月面
Bujeok-myeon	부적면	夫赤面
Yeonsan-myeon	연산면	連山面
Beolgok-myeon	벌곡면	伐谷面
Yangcheon-myeon	양촌면	陽村面
Gayagok-myeon	가야곡면	可也谷面
Eunjin-myeon	은진면	恩津面
Chae-un-myeon	채운면	彩雲面
Chwiam-dong	취암동	鷲岩洞
Buchang-dong	부창동	富倉洞

Sister cities

• Jinzhou, China
• Seocho-gu, South Korea

Notable people

• Lim Sung-kyu, South Korean Minister of Finance and Economy
• Noh Sang-Kyoon, contemporary artist ^[9]
• Rhee In-je, three-time South Korean presidential candidate, was born in Nonsan.^[10][11]
• Chun Sung-gwan, Head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office (2009)^[12]
• Yeom Hong-chul, Mayor of Daejeon^[13]
• Go Soo, film and television actor was born in Nonsan.
• Park Beom-shin, writer, is from Nonsan.

See also

• List of cities in South Korea
• Geography of South Korea

References

1. ^ 눈산의 어제이야기, Nonsan Moon-hoa ueon: Nonsan Naedong, 2007.
2. ^ http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2937176
3. ^ http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2937176
4. ^ (Japanese) http://japanese.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2005/03/22/20050322000063.html
5. ^ Limb Jae-un "Let Me Take You down to Nonsan," February 16, 2007
6. ^ http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2937176
7. ^ http://english.nonsan.go.kr/nsforeign/english/sub_frame.jsp?menu=03&sub=01&third=
8. ^ http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2937410, http://www.sangsangmadang.com/ssmadang/map/map.asp
9. ^ http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=46980
10. ^ (Korean) "Can Minor Candidates Become Major Leaguers," Korea Times online November 21, 2007: http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/11/113_14066.html^{[dead link]}
11. ^ INSIDE JoongAng Daily
12. ^ JoongAng Daily online, 22 June 2009 http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2906411
13. ^ http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/06/116_66972.html

External links

• Official government website
• WikiCity's Nonsan site: a guide to living in and visiting the city
• Video slide-show