Seoul South Korea

Description: Seoul, officially Seoul Special City, is the capital of South Korea and the country’s most extensive urban center. The broader Seoul Capital Area, uniting Gyeonggi province and Incheon metropolitan city, emerged as the world’s fourth largest metropolitan economy in 2014, trailing only Tokyo, New York City, and Los Angeles, hosting more than half of South Korea’s population. Although Seoul’s population peaked at slightly over 10 million, it has gradually decreased since 2014, standing at approximately 9.97 million residents as of 2020. Seoul is the seat of the South Korean government.

Population: 9,776,000

Demographics: As of 2016, the number of foreigners living in Seoul was 404,037, 22.9% of the total foreign population in South Korea. As of June 2011, 186,631 foreigners were Chinese citizens of Korean ancestry. This was an 8.84% increase from the end of 2010 and a 12.85% increase from June 2010. The next largest group was Chinese citizens who were not of Korean ethnicity; 29,901 of them resided in Seoul. The next highest group consisted of the 9,999 United States citizens who were not of Korean ancestry. The next highest group were Taiwanese citizens, at 8,717.

History: Settlement of the Han River area, where present-day Seoul is located, began around 4000 BC. Seoul is first recorded as Wiryeseong, the capital of Baekje (founded in 18 BC) in the northeastern area of modern Seoul. In the 11th century Goryeo, which succeeded Unified Silla, built a summer palace in Seoul, which was referred to as the “Southern Capital”. It was only from this period that Seoul became a larger settlement. In the late 19th century, after hundreds of years of isolation, Seoul opened its gates to foreigners and began to modernize. Seoul became the first city in East Asia to introduce electricity in the royal palace, built by the Edison Illuminating Company and a decade later Seoul also implemented electrical street lights. After Gojong’s proclamation of Korea as the Korean Empire in 1897, Seoul was temporarily called Hwangseong (황성; 皇城), literally “the imperial city.” After the annexation treaty in 1910, Japan annexed Korea and renamed the city Gyeongseong (“Kyongsong” in Korean and “Keijō” in Japanese). The city saw significant transformation under Japanese colonial rule. Imperial Japan removed the city walls, paved roads, and built Western-style buildings. In 1945, following the liberation from Japanese colonial rule, the American military assumed control of Korea, including its capital city, then referred to as Kyeongseongbu in line with Japanese nomenclature. The U.S. military government published the Charter of the City of Seoul in the official gazette the following year. The charter declared Seoul as the name of the city and established it as a municipal corporation. Following the war, Seoul began to focus on reconstruction and modernization. As South Korea’s economy started to grow rapidly from the 1960s, urbanization also accelerated and workers began to move to Seoul and other larger cities. In 1963, Seoul went through two major expansions that established the shape and size of the present-day Seoul—barring minor adjustments to the borders later in 1973 and 2000. In August 1963, Seoul annexed parts of Yangju-gun, Gwangju-gun, Siheung-gun, Gimpo-gun, and Bucheon-gun, expanding the northeastern borders of Seoul. In September, Seoul again annexed present-day Gangnam. The two consecutive expansions more than doubled the size of Seoul from approximately 268 km2 (103 sq mi) to 613 km2 (237 sq mi). Until 1972, Seoul was claimed by North Korea as its de jure capital, being specified as such in Article 103 of the 1948 North Korean constitution. South Korea’s 2019 population was estimated at 51.71 million, and according to the 2018 Population and Housing Census, 49.8% of the population resided in the Seoul metropolitan area.

Elevation: 38 m

Climate: Humid subtropical climate. Average annual temperature in Seoul is 11 C (52 F), the average for July is 24 C (75 F), the average for January is -4 C (25 F).

Attractions: Gyeongbonkgung Palace, War Museum Of Korea, N Seoul Tower, National Museum Of Korea, Bukhansan National Park, Insadong, Namsan Park

Airports: Incheon International Airport ICN

Distance To City Centre: 50 km

Commute Length: 60 min

Average Cost: 65 USD

Peak Times: 6am-9am, 4pm-8pm