Samsu County is a
''kun'', or county, in
Ryanggang province,
North Korea. Prior to 1954, it was part of
South Hamgyŏng
South Hamgyong Province (, ''Hamgyŏngnamdo''; ) is a province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the southern half of the former Hamgyong Province, remained a province of Korea until 1945, then became a province of North Kor ...
province.
Geography
On its northern border, Samsu shares the
Yalu River with
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. It also shares a border with the province of
North P'yŏngan
North Pyongan Province (Phyŏnganbukto; , also spelled North P'yŏngan), is a western province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the northern half of the former P'yŏng'an Province, remained a province of Korea until 1945, th ...
. To the south, it occupies the northern tip of the
Kaema Plateau
The Kaema Plateau is a highland in North Korea. It is surrounded by the Rangrim Mountains, the Macheollyeong Mountains and the Bujeollyeong Mountains. Elevation varies between 700 and 2,000 meters and is approximately 40,000 square kilometers. ...
. The southern and western reaches of Samsu abound with mountains. Due to the rugged terrain, transportation is difficult.
The highest peak of Samsu is
Turungbong (두릉봉, 1921 m). The chief streams are the
Changjin
Changjin County is a mountainous county in South Hamgyong Province, North Korea.
Geography
Changjin lies on the Rangrim and Pujŏllyong ranges, and most of the county sits atop the Kaema Plateau. Due to this location, Changjin has a particul ...
,
Chungp'yŏng and Yalu rivers (this is probably the reason for its name, 삼수(三
水), which literally means 'three rivers'). Due to its high inland location, Samsu enjoys bitterly cold winters.
Administrative divisions
Samsu county is divided into 1 ''ŭp'' (town), 1 ''rodongjagu'' (workers' district) and 23 ''ri'' (villages):
Economy
The chief industries in Samsu are logging and farming. Despite the rugged terrain, rice cultivation is widespread; in addition,
slash-and-burn agriculture is practiced in the high fields. Local crops include potatoes, maize, soybeans, oats and rye. The Yalu is used to ship rough logs downstream. There are also local deposits of gold ore.
Transportation
The
Pukbunaeryuk Line
The Pukbunaeryuk Line, also called the Hyesan–Manp'o Ch'ŏngnyŏn Line after the only completed stage of three planned stages, is an electrified standard-gauge secondary trunk line of the Korean State Railway in Chagang and Ryanggang Provinces ...
of the
Korean State Railway serves the county, as do various conventional roads. There are multiple roads going out to Kanggye and Hyesan, but all have checkpoints.
See also
*
Geography of North Korea
*
Administrative divisions of North Korea
The administrative divisions of North Korea are organized into three hierarchical levels. These divisions were created in 2002. Many of the units have equivalents in the system of South Korea. At the highest level are nine provinces and fou ...
*
Ryanggang
External links
*
{{coord missing, North Korea
Counties of Ryanggang