Province-level cities are one of the
first-level administrative divisions within South Korea. There are three types: special, metropolitan, and special self-governing.
Position in hierarchy and types
Province-level cities have equal status to
provinces
A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
in the South Korean administrative scheme, and are among the highest-ranked administrative divisions of South Korea. There are three kinds of first-level city in South Korea.
* Seoul was designated a "special free city" (''teukbyeol jayusi''; ; ) separate from
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, ...
on August 15, 1946; it became a "special metropolitan city" on August 15, 1949.
* Metropolitan cities were called "direct control (meaning directly-administered) city" (''jikhalsi''; ; ) before 1995.
Administration
In South Korean special metropolitan city and metropolitan cities, the mayor is the highest-ranking official in charge. The mayor is directly elected by the people registered in the city for a duration of four years (e.g., the
mayor of Seoul
The mayor of Seoul () is the chief executive of Seoul Metropolitan Government, Seoul being the capital and largest city of South Korea.
The position is historically one of the most powerful in the country, charged with managing an annual budg ...
).
Metropolitan functions such as water supply and public transport are integrated into the sole prefecture other than scattered to each municipality.
List of provincial-level cities
Notes: There are no Hanja for "Seoul"; in
Chinese, it is written as / (), a transcription based on the pronunciation of "Seoul". As a suffix, the character ''Gyeong'' () is used, which means "capital".
See also
*
Administrative divisions of South Korea
South Korea is made up of 22 first-tier administrative divisions: 6 List of special cities of South Korea#Position in hierarchy and types, metropolitan cities (''gwangyeoksi'' ), 1 List of special cities of South Korea, special city (''teukbyeo ...
*
Cities of South Korea
The largest cities of South Korea have an autonomous status equivalent to that of provinces. Seoul, the largest city and capital, is classified as a ''teukbyeolsi'' (List of special cities of South Korea#Position in hierarchy and types, Special ...
*
List of cities in South Korea
The largest cities of South Korea have an autonomous status equivalent to that of provinces. Seoul, the largest city and capital, is classified as a ''teukbyeolsi'' (List of special cities of South Korea#Position in hierarchy and types, Special ...
*
Provinces of South Korea
Provinces are one of the Administrative divisions of South Korea, first-level divisions within South Korea. There are 9 provinces in South Korea: North Chungcheong Province, North Chungcheong, South Chungcheong Province, South Chungcheong, Gang ...
*
Special cities of North Korea
Special cities are one of the first-level administrative divisions within North Korea. There are four special cities in North Korea.
Position in hierarchy and types
Special cities are the higher-ranked administrative divisions in North Korea. ...
References
{{Articles on first-level administrative divisions of Asian countries
Special