Geographic Regions in Korea

G EOGRAPHIC diversity is a reality in Korea. The different parts of the peninsula have different physical characters;' the successive waves of settlement and subsequent local developments resulted in the diverse human geography. Throughout much of Korea's history the central government was weak, and the eight political divisions, usually called do or provinces, had considerable local autonomy.2 In the three decades before 1945 the Japanese modified some of the regionalism in Korea, by building railroad lines and highways and by creating a strong government with centralized political and economic control.3 The 3 8th parallel, demarcating the American and Soviet occupation zones, imposes a new kind of boundary. This arbitrary line cuts across the grain of the country and thus across administration lines, which, developed over a long period of history, usually followed natural features.4 However, in a broad way, there are marked differences between north and south, between the Soviet-backed democratic Republic of and the United Nations-approved and United States-recognized Republic of Korea. The geographic regional divisions of have been treated at some length by Japanese geographers and others.5 Two recent European regional studies merit attention. In his book Korea V. T. Zaichikov stresses that variety is the keynote of Korean geography.6 He attributes this circumstance in part to Korea's transitional position between the continent of Asia and insular Japan. He notes the contrast between the west side of the peninsula, facing the Yellow Sea, and the east side, facing the Japan Sea. The northwest, according to Zaichikov, has been exposed to a profound Chinese influence; the southeast has felt the impact of the Japanese. The mountains, which occupy two-thirds of the area, have in recent times become of importance for their forest, hydroelectric, and mineral resources. The densely populated plains are the granaries; on them are grown three-fourths

Economic geography · Geography · Regional science · China's Ethnic Minorities and Relations · Korean Peninsula Historical and Political Studies

• Reflections on Regional Research in the Geographical Review

  Open Access•Marie D Price, Marie Price•Geographical Review•2010

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• Shannon McCune 1913–1993

  Norton Ginsburg•Annals of the Association of…•1994

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