Hyesan

Area

Around the 1940s, this city included the nearby Paektu Mountains. However, due to several changes, the area of this city was reduced, and now it only includes the nearby Yalu River.

Due to the division between the two Koreas, Hyesan is also claimed by South Korea, following the boundaries of 1940s, not the one used by North Korea. Therefore, according to South Korea, Hyesan still includes the nearby Paektu Mountains.

South Korea has a conflict with the People's Republic of China because of the Paekdu Mountains. The mountain is actually divided in two: the south parts are ruled by North Korea while the north parts are ruled by the PRC. However, South Korea still claims the northern parts. It is not officially claimed, but on maps printed by South Korea, it is de facto claimed. The People's Republic of China claims the entire mountain.

History

Originally a village in Goguryeo, and Balhae, it was lost to the Jurchen (Manchu) tribes after the fall of Balhae in 982. Recaptured in the 3rd year of King Gongmin (1391) of Goryeo from the Jurchens during the anarchy following the fall of Yuan dynasty, its permanent garrison was established by King Sejong of Joseon in 1430s. The Joseon military fortress and settlement named Haesanjin () and is the forerunner of the modern city and its name.

During the Korean war, Hyesan was the northernmost limit of US Army's advance. the 15th Infantry Regiment of the 7th Infantry Division reached the Yalu River at Hyesan on November 21, 1950, before the Chinese intervention.

The city was a main border trafficking town between North Korea and China throughout late 20th century and early 21st century. Kim Jong Un conducted its first full lockdown in November 2020 during the Covid-19 crisis, and has since increased the border security to prevent illegal cross-border traffic between North Korea and China.

Geography

The city is located south of the Paektu Mountains at the border with the People's Republic of China (Jilin province), from which it is separated by the Yalu (Amrok) River. Changbai is the closest Chinese city across the river.

Climate

Hyesan has an elevation-influenced humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dwb). It is located in the coldest area of Korea, which holds a record low temperature of −42 °C in 1915.

| Jan record high C = 6.1 | Feb record high C = 12.1 | Mar record high C = 21.0 | Apr record high C = 30.0 | May record high C = 35.0 | Jun record high C = 34.0 | Jul record high C = 37.1 | Aug record high C = 38.3 | Sep record high C = 31.6 | Oct record high C = 29.5 | Nov record high C = 19.0 | Dec record high C = 8.2 | Jan record low C = -37.2 | Feb record low C = -33.0 | Mar record low C = -27.8 | Apr record low C = -20.0 | May record low C = -4.3 | Jun record low C = -1.7 | Jul record low C = 6.5 | Aug record low C = 1.0 | Sep record low C = -4.3 | Oct record low C = -19.9 | Nov record low C = -26.6 | Dec record low C = -35.0 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129211112/https://data.kma.go.kr/resources/normals/pdf_data/northkorea_pdf_0104.pdf | archive-date = 29 January 2022 | access-date = 23 March 2022 | url-status = live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017195327/ftp://ftp-cdc.dwd.de/pub/CDC/observations_global/CLIMAT/multi_annual/sunshine_duration/1961_1990.txt |archive-date=2017-10-17 |url-status=dead | access-date = 6 November 2016 | access-date = 6 November 2016}}

Administrative divisions

Hyesan City is divided into 25 tong (neighbourhoods) and 4 ri (villages):

Economy

Hyesan has lumber processing mills, paper mills and textile mills. Since the North Korean economic crisis that intensified in the mid-1990s, the city has suffered from economic stagnation, and some factories in the city have closed. Reports and pictures taken from the Chinese side of the river show a "Ghost City": there is almost no movement in the streets, and at night the city is dark and doesn't have electricity. Residents of the city reputedly wash their clothes in the river because homes have no running water.

First explored in the 1960s, Hyesan mine produces 10,000 tons of copper concentrates annually. This area has 80% of North Korea's available copper, and the North had estimated that it will be able to continue mining copper there for the next forty years. When Kapsan Tongjum Mine, explored during the Japanese colonial period, was finally depleted and closed in 1990, Hyesan Mine became the lifeline of the nation's copper production. At that time, the mine flooded because the pumping device stopped operating due to the lack of electricity across the country. Although the workers at the mine did their best to pump the water, they could not stop the water flowing into the mine at a speed of 480m3/hour. In 1996, during the North's 'Arduous March', electricity was not provided to the mine, leading to flooding in the mineshafts in January 1997. Hyesan Mine flooded again, as did other mines throughout the country, and lost all mining facilities. Since 1998, Kim Jong Il budgeted 8.2 million USD to dewater the mine, and the mine was recovered using electricity and equipment provided by China.

Transportation

Hyesan is connected to other cities in North Korea by road, and by the Paektusan Ch'ŏngnyŏn and Pukbunaeryuk lines of the Korean State Railway.

Hyesan allegedly has a trolleybus system, though its actual existence is unknown.

Education

Schools in Hyesan include Hyesan High School and Hyesan Girls' School. Higher education institutions include the Hyesan Medical University, the Hyesan University of Agriculture and Forestry, Kim Jŏng-suk College of Education, the Hyesan College of Light Engineering, and the Hyesan University of Industry.

The countryside near Hyesan has various attractions, including the Kwaegung Pavilion, Naegŏk Hot Spring and Mount Paektu.

Notable people

• Yeonmi Park (b. 1993), activist and defector, escaped North Korea in 2007.
• Lee Hyeon-seo (b. 1980), activist and defector, escaped North Korea in 1997.

Notes

References

References

1. (2009). "2008 Population Census of DPR Korea". Central Bureau of Statistics, DPR Korea.
2. Lee, Michelle Ye Hee. (2025-04-07). "How the few freedoms North Koreans enjoyed have vanished since the pandemic". The Washington Post.
3. (2018-05-21). "발전하는 교통문화⑥ 궤도 전차와 무궤도 전차 (편)".