Gyeongsang Province


Gyeongsang was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Gyeongsang was located in the southeast of Korea.
The provincial capital was Daegu. The region was the birthplace of the Kingdom of Silla. The region also has a significant role in modern Korean history, since six previous South Korean presidents, as well as the current president, were born in the Gyeongsang region.
Today, the region is divided into 5 administrative divisions: the three independent cities of Busan, Daegu and Ulsan, and the two provinces of Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gyeongsangnam-do. The largest city in the region is Busan, followed by Daegu. Sub-regionally, the region is also divided into Gyeongbuk and Gyeongnam. Gyeongbuk consists of Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do, while Gyeongnam consists of Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do.

History

The predecessor to Gyeongsang Province was formed during the Goryeo Dynasty, replacing the former provinces of Yeongnam, Sannam and Yeongdong.
Gyeongsang acquired its current name in 1314. The name derives from names of the principal cities of Gyeongju and Sangju.
In 1895, Gyeongsang Province was replaced by the Districts of Andong in the north, Daegu in the centre, Jinju in the southwest, and Dongnae in the southeast.
In 1896, Andong, Daegu, and northern Dongnae Districts were merged to form North Gyeongsang Province, and Jinju and southern Dongnae Districts were merged to form South Gyeongsang Province. North and South Gyeongsang are today part of South Korea.

Language

People of Gyeongsang province use Korean, but their intonation and vocabulary are a little different from Korea's standard Seoul language in several ways. Their language is called 'Yeoungnam Dialect'. Yeongnam dialect is classified into several dialects. For example, Busan dialect is slightly different from Andong dialect and Uljin dialect.
example of different intonation and vocabulary
-difference of vocabulary
Seoul language: 열쇠 yeolsoe
Gyeongsang dialect : 쇳대 soetdae
Seoul language: 모두, 언제나, 항시 modu, eonjena, hangsi
Gyeongsang dialect : 마카 maka
Seoul language: 왜 그래요?, 왜 그러세요? Wae geuraeyo?, Wae geureoseyo?
Gyeongsang dialect : 와 그랑교? Wa geuranggyo?
in Andong, Yecheon, Yeongcheon : 와 그리니껴? Wa geurinikkyeo?

Geography

Gyeongsang Province was bounded on the west by Jeolla and Chungcheong Provinces, on the north by Gangwon Province, on the south by Korea Strait, and on the east by the East Sea or Sea of Japan. The region is ringed by the Taebaek and Sobaek Mountains and is drained by the Nakdong River.
The largest cities in the region are Busan, Daegu, and Ulsan. Other cities of note are Gyeongju, Andong, Yeongju, Sangju, Gimcheon, Miryang, Gimhae, Changwon, Masan, and Jinju.
The Gyeongsang region as a whole is often referred to by the regional and former provincial name of "Yeongnam" .