Jeonnam Province corrects Japanese-style place names in Yeosu

Jeonnam Province has announced the correction of three place names in Yeosu that were altered during the Japanese colonial period. The province aims to restore local historical accuracy and identity by reverting to original Korean names.

Seongdu Village, originally recorded in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty as Seongdu (城頭), meaning 'the place where the castle begins at the southernmost point of Dolsan-eup,' was incorrectly written as Seongdu (星斗) during Japanese rule. Seongduchi, a related term, has also been corrected to align with the village's historical context.

Gipo Village, named for the pebbles resembling 'go' stones found on its shores, was previously written with characters meaning 'base' or 'foundation' (基) for unclear reasons. The province has now changed it to reflect its original meaning, using characters for 'go' (碁) and 'bay' (浦).

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Place names are not just location identifiers but important assets that contain the region's history and identity.

In addition to these corrections, Jeonnam Province has also assigned new names to 11 features, including interchanges and bridges, along the Dongmyeon-Suncheon Juam road improvement project. These new names, such as Juritjae Tunnel and Gyeonghyeon Interchange, were chosen based on their connection to surrounding areas and ease of use.

Yun Seong-sik, head of the Jeonnam Province Land Management Division, emphasized the importance of place names as assets containing regional history and identity. He stated, "We will correct incorrectly used place names to protect our nation's precious assets."

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We will correct incorrectly used place names to protect our nation's precious assets.