New Port Has No Designation

The new port constructed near Gangseo-gu, Busan, and Jinhae City in South Gyeongsang Province was named “New Port” in Korean without a specific geographical name. But its English name is Busan New Port.

On December 19, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Oh Koe-don said, “It is right to name it the Busan New Port even in Korean because the new port is the sub-harbor of the Port of Busan. Yet the ministry decided to omit the name of the place in order to avoid fueling a regional rivalry between Busan and Jinhae. In the case of the harbor’s English name, it used Busan because the new port has been promoted abroad as the Busan New Port.”

Lee Joo-young, Vice Governor for Political Affairs of South Gyeonsang Province, was not happy with the decision and said the name without the name of the place degraded the pride of the residents of the area. He stated that he would take every measure to overturn the decision.

legman@donga.com