Pyeongchang County

Not to be confused with Pyongyang or Pyonggang County.
"Pyeongchang" redirects here. For other uses, see Pyeongchang (disambiguation).
Pyeongchang
평창군
County
Korean transcription(s)
 • Hangul평창군
 • Hanja平昌郡
 • Revised RomanizationPyeongchang-gun
 • McCune-ReischauerP'yŏngch'ang-gun[1]
Alpensia Resort and a wind farm in Pyeongchang
Alpensia Resort and a wind farm in Pyeongchang
Flag of Pyeongchang
Flag
Official logo of Pyeongchang
Emblem of Pyeongchang
Etymology: 平 "peaceful" or "flatland", 昌 "prosperity" or "flourishing"
Location in Gangwon Province, South Korea
Location in Gangwon Province, South Korea
CountrySouth Korea
ProvinceGangwon-do
Administrative divisions1 eup, 7 myeon
Area
 • Total
1,463.65 km2 (565.12 sq mi)
Population
 (September 2024[2])
 • Total
40,448
 • Density30/km2 (80/sq mi)
 • Dialect
Gangwon
Time zoneUTC+9

Pyeongchang (English: /ˌpjʌŋˈtʃɑːŋ/ pyung-CHAHNG,[3] Korean: [pʰjʌŋtɕʰaŋ]; in full, Pyeongchang-gun [pʰjʌŋtɕʰaŋɡun]) is a county in the province of Gangwon-do, South Korea, located in the Taebaek Mountains region. It is home to several Buddhist temples, including Woljeongsa. It is about 180 km (110 mi) east southeast of Seoul, the capital of South Korea, and connected by expressways and high-speed passenger railways. Pyeongchang's slogan, "Happy 700 Pyeongchang", is taken from its average elevation of approximately 700 metres (2,300 ft).

Pyeongchang hosted the 2018 Winter Olympics and the 2018 Winter Paralympics.[4] It was officially rebranded as "PyeongChang" (with a capital 'C') for the purposes of the 2018 Games, in order to avoid confusion with Pyongyang in North Korea.[5][6]

  1. ^ "P'yŏngch'ang-gun: South Korea - name, geographic coordinates, administrative division, and map". Geographical Names. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  2. ^ "Population statistics". Korea Ministry of the Interior and Safety. 2024.
  3. ^ "AAJA MediaWatch on Pyeongchang Pronunciation". Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  4. ^ "S. Korean city to host 2018 Winter Olympics". CNN. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  5. ^ Swalec, Andrea (28 November 2017). "Pyeongchang? Pyongyang? Olympic Host City Location Is Easily Mistaken". NBC4 Washington. Washington. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  6. ^ Keating, Josh. "Pyongchang vs. PyeongChang vs. Pyeongchang". Slate. Retrieved 23 February 2018.