Anyangcheon () is a river in

Gyeonggi Province Gyeonggi Province (, ) is the most populous province in South Korea. Seoul, the nation's largest city and capital, is in the heart of the area but has been separately administered as a provincial-level ''special city'' since 1946. Incheon, ...

and

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, South Korea. Its source is on the slopes of

Gwanggyosan Gwanggyosan () is a 582 m tall mountain in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It lies on the border of Suwon and Yongin, though the wider range extends north and so also borders Uiwang, Gwacheon, Seoul, and Seongnam. The summit offers views across ...

Uiwang Uiwang (; ) is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It is one of many satellite cities that ring Seoul, making up the Seoul Capital Area. Its largest immediate urban neighbor is Anyang. The low peaks of the Gwangju Mountains (including M ...

and flows north, through the city of

Gunpo Gunpo (; ), formerly romanized as Kunp'o, is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It is south of Seoul and in the Seoul National Capital Area. It borders Anyang to the north, Uiwang to the east, and Ansan to the south and west, and is connec ...

, where a major cleanup operation saw several species of birds return to the area in 2005. Here, though, the water table remains depleted. The river then flows through

Anyang City Anyang ( zh, s=安阳, t=安陽; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan, China. Geographical coordinates are 35° 41'~ 36° 21' north latitude and 113° 38'~ 114° 59' east longitude. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the eas ...

, where it is met by its major tributary, the

Hakuicheon Haguicheon () is a river in Uiwang and Anyang, South Korea. It has its source on the slopes of Baekunsan in Uiwang, at the foot of which it forms Baekun Lake, from which it then flows west into Anyang, Gyeonggi, Anyang, where it joins the Anyangch ...

stream. From here, it loops around to the west before continuing north to the border with Gwangmyeong City. As the river passes to the west of Mount Gwanak, it forms the border between Gwangmyeong and

, where it is lined on the Gwangmyeong side with

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person ...

fields and

cherry blossom The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the flower of trees in ''Prunus'' subgenus '' Cerasus''. ''Sakura'' usually refers to flowers of ornamental cherry trees, such as cultivars of ''Prunus serrulata'', not trees grown for their fruit (although ...

trees. After the stream is joined near Guil Station from the west by the Mokgamcheon stream, which forms another border between Gwangmyeong and Seoul, it is then totally within the capital. Here, it is also joined from the east by the

Dorimcheon The Dorimcheon () is a river in Seoul, South Korea. It has its source in the valley between Gwanaksan and Samseongsan in southern Seoul and flows north, past Seoul National University. From Sillim Station to Daerim Station, it is covered by L ...

and passes through a conservation zone for migratory birds which was established after a 2005 cleanup operation, whereafter it joins the Han. Most of the length of the river has a path alongside providing easy access, the only parts without this lying in

City Council has embarked on a programme of exclusive cycle path creation alongside its waterways, including the Anyangcheon, to be completed in 2010.

History

Anyangcheon has had many names throughout history. The part of the Anyangcheon that passes the modern day Geumcheon district was called ''Hannae'' in the book Donggukyeojiseungram, which was transcribed as 大川, meaning 'big river' in chinese. The river was also called ''Gitan'', and the modern day name ''Anyang'' is said to be named after the temple Anyangsa which was near the source of the river. Other names include ''Hogye'', and ''Geomamcheon''.

Wildlife

The Anyangcheon is home to a variety of wildlife. The dominant fish of the river are

Zacco platypus The pale chub (''Zacco platypus''), also known as pale bleak or fresh-water sprat, is one of the most extensively distributed Asiatic cyprinids and is found in Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and most of Southeast China. This species of fish is native to fr ...

(freshwater minnow) and Rhynchocypris oxycephalus in the more upstream areas near the source, and

Carassius auratus The goldfish (''Carassius auratus'') is a freshwater fish in the Family (biology), family Cyprinidae of the Order (biology), order Cypriniformes. It is commonly kept as a pet in indoor aquariums, and is one of the most popular List of fres ...

(goldfish) further downstream, by

Gwangmyeong Gwangmyeong (; ) is a Administrative divisions of South Korea, city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. It borders Seoul to the east, north and northeast, Anyang, Gyeonggi, Anyang to the southeast, Siheung to the southwest, and Bucheon to the nort ...

. The river also houses a number of species of birds, including the egrets, the

grey heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia, and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more norther ...

northern shoveler The northern shoveler (; ''Spatula clypeata''), known simply in Britain as the shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and throughout the Palearctic and across most of North America, and winters in southe ...

common teal The Eurasian teal (''Anas crecca''), common teal, or Eurasian green-winged teal is a common and widespread duck that breeds in temperate Eurosiberia and migrates south in winter. The Eurasian teal is often called simply the teal due to being th ...

and

mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...

. A conservation area has been established close to the confluence with the Han River, where the footpath is set back from the riverside to leave migratory birds a more natural setting.

Gallery

Image:Anyangcheon Source - 2009-04-18.JPG, The source on the slopes of

Image:Anyangcheon Far Upper Reaches by Uiwang IC - 2009-04-18.JPG, The far upper reaches by Uiwang I.C. Image:Upstream along the Anyangcheon in Uiwang - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking upstream in Uiwang Image:Downstream along the Anyangcheon in Uiwang - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking downstream in Uiwang Image:Downstream along the upper Anyangcheon in Gunpo - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking downstream along the upper part in Gunpo Image:Path through bamboo beside the Anyangcheon in Gunpo - 2009-04-18.JPG, A bamboo-lined path beside the stream in Gunpo Image:Upstream along the mid-width Anyangcheon in Uiwang - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking upstream along a mid-width section in Uiwang Image:Downstream along the Anyangcheon above the orbital motorway - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking downstream to the

Capital Region First Ring Expressway The Capital Region First Ring Expressway (Formerly as Seoul Ring Expressway) (Expressway No.100) () is an expressway, circular beltway or ring road around Seoul, South Korea. It connects satellite cities around Seoul, Ilsan, Namyangju, Hana ...

Image:Looking downstream at the Anyangcheon from the Hakuicheon - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking downstream at the Anyangcheon from the end of the Hakuicheon Image:Looking upstream along the Anyangcheon to the point of confluence with the Hakuicheon - 2009-04-18.JPG, Looking upstream to the point of confluence with the

Image:Looking downstream along the Anyangcheon from the Hakuicheon - 2009-04-18.JPG, Downstream from the confluence with the

References

{{coord, 37, 33, N, 126, 53, E, display=title, region:KR_type:river_source:GNS-enwiki Rivers of Seoul Rivers of South Korea

History

Wildlife

Gallery

See also

References