Homigote
Homigot ( Korean 호미곶 ), also called Janggigot ( 장기곶 ), is the northeasternmost point of an approximately 20 km long peninsula on the southeast coast of South Korea near the city of Pohang . Homigot is known, among other things, for its lighthouse , which is considered the tallest and oldest lighthouse in South Korea, and for the Homigot Sunrise Festival, which takes place annually at the end of the year .
geography
The peninsula belongs administratively to the province of Gyeongsangbuk-do and is located on the northeastern point of the peninsula which extends east of Pohang into the Sea of Japan . The locality belongs to the rural community Daebo- Myeon , which is assigned to Pohang-Namgu ( 포항 남구 ), the southern area of Pohang. The peninsula itself represents the easternmost point of the Korean peninsula .
Origin of name
The name Homigot is said to be composed of the syllables 장 ( ho ) for tiger , 기 ( mi ) for tail and 곶 ( got ) for small harbor .
history
Nam Sa Go ( 南 師 古 ) (1506–1571), astrologer and fortune teller under the reign of King Myeongjong in the 16th century, interpreted the Korean Peninsula as the embodiment of a tiger and the Homigot Peninsula as the associated tail. Around four hundred years later, the scholar Choi Nam Seon ( 최남선 ) (1890–1957) described the shape of the Korean peninsula as a tiger scratching the Paektusan Mountains with its paws in the province of Siberia . It was said at the time that the tiger's tail embodied the strength and wealth of the Koreas . During the period when Korea was a colony of Japan (1910–1945), iron bars were rammed into the ground at the Cape of Homigot at the instigation of the provincial government. To bring about a devaluation of the Korean consciousness, the peninsula was renamed Janggigot ( 장기곶 ), which can roughly be translated as "tail of the hare".
Homigot lighthouse
Not far from Cape Homingot, the 26.4 meter high Homigot lighthouse ( 호미곶 등대 ) was built in 1903 . Planned and executed by French architects in octagonal architecture, the lighthouse is now considered the most beautiful of its kind in South Korea. There it is also the oldest and still the highest lighthouse in the country. The construction work was carried out by a Chinese company.
The lighthouse, which emits a 27 nautical mile long white flash every 12 seconds , was erected after a Japanese ship ran aground on rocks underwater on the coast and sank. The focal plane of the lens used is 31 m and in fog the fog horn sends an acoustic signal every 60 seconds .
The tower has a broad base, strongly tapering towards the top, in brick construction without reinforcing iron elements. The entrance door and the three windows above were designed in the Greek temple style. Inside the building has six floors, with each individual ceiling on each floor being decorated with a pear tree blossom pattern. The pattern symbolized the royal family during the Joseon Dynasty . In the Japanese colonial times, the symbols were covered with metal plates, which showed the chrysanthemum symbol . Furthermore, the lighthouse was renamed the Janggigot lighthouse ( 장기곶 등대 ). After South Korea became independent from Japan, the lighthouse was renamed back to its original name.
National Lighthouse Museum
The National Lighthouse Museum ( 국립 등대 박물관 , Guglib Teungdae Pagmulgwan ) was originally founded on February 7, 1985, not far from the lighthouse of the city of Pohang, at that time still called Yeongil Gun . In 2002 the museum was renovated and reopened as a national museum. The museum currently houses more than 4,200 exhibits in around 320 categories, compiled by lighthouses from across the country. In addition to the exhibits, the life and working conditions of the lighthouse keepers are also illustrated. The museum is the only one of its kind in South Korea and is under the Ministry of Maritime and Fisheries.
Sunrise Festival
Since 1999, the so-called Homigot Sunrise Festival ( 호미곶 해맞이 축제 ) has been celebrated every year on the morning of Seollal on the Cape . Since Homigot is located in the easternmost area of South Korea and the sun can be seen earlier at sunrise than in the rest of the country, countless visitors make the pilgrimage to this coastal strip every year to see the first sun of the new year. The New Year festival attracts around 10,000 visitors every year.
Web links
- Eddie Provencher : Global Pohang . Tigers and Magpies , August 14, 2009, accessed January 19, 2012 (English, photography of the Homigot lighthouse, painting of the tiger depicting the shape of Korea and the hand sculpture).
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Homigot Lighthouse . Life in Korea , accessed January 18, 2012 .
- ^ 12th International Conference on Software Reuse . Postech Software Engineering Lab. , archived from the original on March 7, 2012 ; accessed on February 6, 2016 (English, original website no longer available).
- ^ Russ Rowlett : Lighthouses of South Korea: Pohang Area (North Gyeongsang) . University of North Carolina , accessed January 18, 2012 .
- ↑ Homigot Light . Lighthouse Explorer , accessed January 18, 2012 .
- ↑ a b c 세상 가장 아름다운 시그널 - 등대 이야기 . (PDF 768 kB) Korea Tourism Organization , archived from the original on December 27, 2016 ; Retrieved September 11, 2019 (Korean, original website no longer available).
- ^ History of the Museum . National Lighthouse Museum , accessed April 15, 2018 .
- ^ Museum information . National Lighthouse Museum , accessed January 18, 2012 .
- ^ Homigot Sunrise Festival . Korea.net , accessed January 18, 2012 .
Coordinates: 36 ° 4 ′ 35 ″ N , 129 ° 34 ′ 7 ″ E