Provinces of Korea - Provinces Since The Division of Korea

Provinces Since The Division of Korea

At the end of World War II in 1945, Korea was divided into American and Soviet zones of occupation. (See Division of Korea for more information.) The peninsula was divided at the 38th parallel, with the Americans controlling the south half of the peninsula and the Soviets controlling the north half. In 1948, the two zones became the independent countries of North and South Korea.

Three provinces—Hwanghae, Gyeonggi, and Gangwon—were divided by the 38th parallel.

• Most of Hwanghae Province belonged to the Soviet (northern) zone. The southern portion became part of Gyeonggi Province in the south.
• Most of Gyeonggi Province belonged to the American (southern) zone. In 1946, the northern portion became part of Kangwŏn Province in the north (see next item).
• Gangwon Province was divided roughly in half, to form modern-day Gangwon Province in South Korea and Kangwon Province in North Korea. The northern province is expanded in 1946 to include the northern portion of Gyeonggi Province and the southern portion of South Hamgyong Province (around the city of Wonsan).

Also in 1946, the cities of Seoul in the south and Pyongyang in the north separated from Gyeonggi and South P'yŏngan Provinces respectively to become Special Cities. Finally, the new provinces of Jeju (in the south, in 1946) and Chagang (in the north, 1949) were formed, from parts of South Jeolla and North P'yŏngan respectively. In 1954, Ryanggang Province split from South Hamgyong.

For more details, see the articles Administrative divisions of South Korea and Administrative divisions of North Korea, as well as the articles on the thirteen provinces of the Korean Empire and the individual articles linked to in this section.