Rivers of Korea Series (2nd) - January 18, 2008


The beautiful scenery presented by the Seomjin River winding through the foothills of Jiri Mountain and epitomizing the impressions of the southern parts of the Korean Peninsula will be introduced in the second part of the "Rivers of Korea Series."

The small, pristine Demi Fountain can be found at a hillside of the Palgong Mountain located in Baekwoon-myeon, Jinan-gun, Jeollabuk-do province. This is where the Seomjin River originates. The water streams of Seomjin River starts to flow from here to all the corners of Jeollanam-do and Jeollabuk-do provinces, via the Hadong area, the boundary between Jeollanam-do province and Gyeongsangnam-do province, and finally into the South Sea.

The name "Seomjin River" dates back to the era of the Goryeo Dynasty. In the 11th year of the reign of King Woo (1385), when the Japanese invaders intruded around the mouth of the Seomjin River, they made a detour to avoid the bellowing of tens of thousands of toads. From this time on, this river was called Seomjin River, with Seom standing for toad (蟾), and Jin, for ferry point (津). Boasting natural abundance and richness, the Seomjin River has long served as the foundation of the livelihood of the people inhabiting Jeollado and Gyeongsangdo provinces. Meandering 212.3 ㎞ in length and spanning 4,896.5 ㎢ in its basin area, this clean, blue river has long been a habitat to various kinds of flora and fauna including rare creatures and natural treasures such as the osprey, wildcat, kestrel, otter, Fabriciana nerippe, etc.