Paektu Mountain orBaekdu Mountain (Korean: 백두산) is anactivestratovolcano on theChinese–North Korean border.[3] In China, it is known asChangbai Mountain (Chinese:长白山). At 2,744 m (9,003 ft), it is the tallest mountain inNorth Korea andNortheast China and the tallest mountain of theBaekdu-daegan andChangbai mountain ranges. The highest peak, called Janggun Peak, belongs to North Korea. The mountain notably has a caldera that contains a largecrater lake calledHeaven Lake, and is also the source of theSonghua,Tumen, andYalu rivers. Korean and Manchu people assign a mythical quality to the mountain and its lake, and consider the mountain to be their ancestral homeland.
The mountain's caldera was formed by aneruption in 946 that released about 100–120 km3 (24–29 cu mi) oftephra. The eruption was among thelargest and most powerful eruptions on Earth in the last 5,000 years. The volcano last erupted in 1903, and is expected to erupt around every hundred years. In the 2010s, concerns over an upcoming eruption prompted several countries to commission research into when the volcano might next erupt.[needs update]
The mountain is considered culturally important to multiple groups in the area, including Korean, Chinese, and Manchu people. The mountain is a major national symbol for both North and South Korea, and is mentioned in both national anthems and depicted on thenational emblem of North Korea. TheManchu people also consider the mountain their ancestral homeland, and the ChineseQing dynasty saw it as a symbol of imperial power and the mountain had been subject to territorial disputes over the past few centuries. In the late 20th century, the states of China and North Korea diplomatically agreed to joint custody.[4]
The mountain was first recorded in the ChineseClassic of Mountains and Seas under the nameBùxiánshān (不鹹山). It is also calledShànshàndàlǐng (單單大嶺) in theBook of the Later Han. In theBook of Wei and theBook of Sui it is also referred to asDutàishān (徒太山), which is also mentioned asCóngtàishān (從太山) in theHistory of the Northern Dynasties, likely as a misspelling ofDutàishān. In theNew Book of Tang, it was calledTàibáishān (太白山).[5] The current Chinese name, Chángbáishān (长白山;長白山; 'ever white mountain'), was first used in theLiao dynasty (916–1125) of theKhitans[6] and then theJin dynasty (1115–1234) of theJurchens.[7] TheLiao Shi recorded that chiefs of 30Jurchen tribes from Mount Changbai paid their tribute to the Liao in AD 985. According to theSong dynasty travelogueSongmo Jiwen, it was named as such because the mountain was "the abode of the white-robedGuanyin" and its birds and beasts were all white.[8] The modernManchu name of the mountain, which isgolmin šanggiyan alin (ᡤᠣᠯᠮᡳᠨ ᡧᠠᠩᡤᡳᠶᠠᠨ ᠠᠯᡳᠨ), also means 'ever white mountain'.[citation needed]
The Korean nameBaekdusan /Paektusan (백두산;白頭山) first appears in literature in the 10th year ofSeongjong of Goryeo (991) in theGoryeosa, compiled at the beginning of the Joseon period.[9] It means 'white-head mountain'. In other records such as theSamguk yusa and theJewang ungi it is also calledTaebaeksan (태백산;太白山), which means 'great-white mountain'.[10] It was also occasionally calledChangbaeksan (長白山) andBaeksan (白山) in theVeritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. An alternative Chinese name,Báitóushān (白头山;白頭山), is the transliteration ofBaekdusan.[11]
TheMongolian name isÖndör Tsagaan Aula (Өндөр Цагаан Уул), which means 'lofty white mountain'. In English, various authors have used nonstandard transliterations.[12]
Mount Baekdu is 2,744 m (9,003 ft) tall, making it the highest mountain in North Korea and Northeast China and the highest mountain of theBaekdu-daegan andChangbai mountain ranges.[13]
Mount Baekdu is astratovolcano whose cone is truncated by a significantcaldera. The central section of the mountain rises about 3 mm (0.12 in) per year due to rising levels ofmagma below the central part of the mountain. Sixteen peaks exceeding 2,500 m (8,200 ft) line the caldera rim surrounding Heaven Lake. The highest peak, called Janggun Peak, is covered in snow about eight months of the year. The slope is relatively gentle until about 1,800 m (5,910 ft). The caldera is about 5 km (3.1 mi) wide and 850 meters (2,790 ft) deep, and is partially filled by the waters ofHeaven Lake.[2]
Heaven Lake has a circumference of 12 to 14 kilometers (7.5 to 8.7 mi), with an average depth of 213 meters (699 ft) and maximum depth of 384 meters (1,260 ft). From mid-October to mid-June, the lake is typically covered with ice. Water flows north out of the lake, and near the outlet there is a 70-meter (230 ft) waterfall. The mountain is the source of the Songhua, Tumen and Yalu rivers. The Tumen and the Yalu form the northern border between North Korea and Russia and China.
The weather on the mountain can be very erratic, sometimes severe. The annual average temperature at the peak is −4.9 °C (23.2 °F). During summer, temperatures of about 18 °C (64 °F) or higher can be reached, and during winter temperatures can drop to −48 °C (−54 °F). The lowest record temperature was −51 °C (−60 °F) on 2 January 1997. The average temperature is about −24 °C (−11 °F) in January, and 10 °C (50 °F) in July, remaining below freezing for eight months of the year. The average wind speed is 42 km/h (26 mph), peaking at 63 km/h (39 mph). Therelative humidity averages 74%.[citation needed]
The geological origin of Mount Baekdu remains a mystery. Two leading theories are ahotspot, or an uncharted portion of thePacific Platesinking beneath Mount Baekdu.[14]
Beginning about 5 million years ago, Baekdu Mountain erupted, releasing a series of basaltic lava flows that formed a lava plateau. The construction of the cone of the volcano began approximately 1 million years ago, as the eruptive materials transitioned intotrachytic pyroclastic and lava flows. During the cone-construction stage, majorPlinian-type eruptions occurred 448, 67.6, 85.8 and 24.5 thousand years ago (ka) and deposited ash in theJapan sea.[15] The cone's growth was halted by two widely-recognized major explosive eruptions: Tianwenfeng and Millennium.[15][16][17]
The Tianwenfeng eruption was the formation of a widespread thick layer of grey, yellow pumice preceding the Millennium eruption.[15][16][17][18][19] The exact age of the eruption is uncertain, since different dating techniques have assigned 4, 51, 61, and 74 ka to this deposit.[18][16] This eruption formed large areas covered in yellowpumice andignimbrite.[20] Proximal deposits of pumice fall of the Tianwenfeng are thicker than those of the Millennium eruption. This suggests that the eruption of the Tianwenfeng is significant and maybe of similar magnitude to the Millennium eruption, making the Tianwenfeng eruption also ofVEI 6–7.[16]
The mountain's caldera was created in 946 by the colossal (VEI 6)[21]"Millennium" or "Tianchi" eruption, one of the most powerful eruptions in the last 5,000 years, comparable to the230 CE eruption of Lake Taupō and the1815 eruption of Mount Tambora.[22] The eruption, whosetephra has been found in the southern part ofHokkaidō, Japan, and as far away as Greenland,[23] destroyed much of the volcano's summit, leaving a caldera that today is filled byHeaven Lake.
According to the Korean historical recordGoryeosa, in 946 "thunders from heaven's drum" were heard in the city ofKaesong, then the capital of Goryeo, about 450 km (280 mi) south of the volcano.[24] The event reportedly terrifiedKing Jeongjong so much, that convicts were pardoned and set free.[24] According to the Heungboksa Temple's historical records, on 3 November, "white ash rain" fell inNara, Japan, about 1,100 km (680 mi) southeast from the mountain[24] Three months later, on 7 February 947, explosive noises were reported in the city of Kyoto (Japan), about 1,000 km (620 mi) southeast of Paektu.[24]
After these major eruptions, Mount Paektu had at least three smaller eruptions, which occurred in 1668, 1702, and 1903, likely forming the Baguamiaoignimbrite, the Wuhaojie finepumice, and the Liuhaojietuff ring.[17]
Parts of this article (those related to subsection) need to beupdated. The reason given is: Findings of research should be included. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(April 2023)
In 2011, experts in North and South Korea met to discuss the potential for a significant eruption in the near future, as the last eruption was in 1903 and the volcano is expected to erupt around every 100 years.[25][26] The Government of North Korea invited several volcanologists, including James Hammond,Clive Oppenheimer, andKayla Iacovino, to study the mountain for recent volcanic activity.[27][28] This made Iacovino the first foreign female researcher to conduct research in North Korea.[29][30] The researchers began publishing their research in 2016 and in February 2020 formed the Mt. Paektu Research Center.[31]
There are five known species of plants in the lake on the peak, and some 168 have been counted along its shores. The forest on the Chinese side is ancient and almost unaltered by humans.Birch predominates near thetree line, andpine lower down, mixed with other species. There has been extensivedeforestation on the lower slopes on the North Korean side of the mountain.[citation needed]
The mountain has been worshipped by the surrounding peoples throughout history. A considerable percentage of theKoreans andManchus consider it sacred, especially theHeaven Lake in its crater.[34][35]
The mountain has been considered sacred by Koreans throughout history.[35] According toKorean mythology, it was the birthplace ofDangun, the founder ofGojoseon (2333–108 BC), whose parents were said to beHwanung, the Son of Heaven, andUngnyeo, a bear who had been transformed into a woman.[36] Many subsequent kingdoms of Korea, such asBuyeo,Goguryeo,Balhae,Goryeo and Joseon recognized this myth.[37][38]
The Goryeo dynasty (935–1392) first called the mountainBaekdu,[39] recording that theJurchens across the Yalu River were made to live outside of Mount Baekdu. The Joseon dynasty (1392–1910) recorded volcanic eruptions in 1597, 1668, and 1702. In the 15th century,King Sejong strengthened the fortification along the Tumen and Yalu rivers, making the mountain a natural border with the northern peoples.[40] Some Koreans claim that the entire region near Mount Paektu and the Tumen River belongs to Korea and parts of it were illegally given away by Japanese colonialists to China through theGando Convention.[citation needed]
Mount Baekdu is mentioned in the national anthems of both North and South Korea and in the Korean folk song "Arirang".
Dense forest around the mountain provided bases for Korean armed resistance against theJapanese occupation, and later communist guerrillas during theKorean War.Kim Il Sung organized his resistance against the Japanese forces there, and North Korea claims thatKim Jong Il was born there,[41] although records outside of North Korea suggest that he was born in theSoviet Union.[42][43]
The peak has been featured on the stateemblem of North Korea since 1993, as defined in Article 169 of theConstitution, which describes Mt. Paektu as "the sacred mountain of the revolution".[44] The mountain is often referred to in slogans such as: "Let us accomplish the Korean revolution in the revolutionary spirit of Paektu, the spirit of the blizzards of Paektu!"[45]North Korean media celebrates natural phenomena witnessed at the mountain as portentous,[46] andweather forecasts aired by state broadcasterKorean Central Television listPaektusan Secret Camp, claimed birthplace ofKim Jong Il, behind only the capital ofPyongyang.[47] The mountain's name is used for various products, such as thePaektusan rocket, the Paektusan computer, and the Mt Paektu handgun.[48][49][50]
In the 2019 South Koreandisaster filmAshfall, the mountain erupts and causes severe earthquakes in the Korean peninsula.[51]
In the popular strategy gameEuropa Universalis 4 the mountain appears as part of a Korean mission entitled "Access to Mt. Paektu" where the player must obtain the province the mountain occurs in.[52]
Painting from theManchu Veritable Records with the names of Mount Paektu in Manchu, Chinese and Mongolian
Mount Changbai was regarded as the most sacred mountain in theshamanist religion of theManchus, and their ancestorsSushen andJurchens.[53] The Jin dynasty bestowed the title "the King Who Makes the Nation Prosperous and Answers with Miracles" (興國靈應王) on the mountain in 1172 and it was entitled "the Emperor Who Cleared the Sky with Tremendous Sagehood" (開天宏聖帝) in 1193. A temple for the mountain god was constructed on the northern side.[8]
The Manchu clanAisin Gioro, which founded theQing dynasty of China, claimed their progenitorBukūri Yongšon was conceived near Paektu Mountain. In 1682, 1698, 1733, 1754 and 1805, Qing emperors visited Jilin and paid homage to the mountain. The rites at Mount Changbai were heavily influenced by the ancientFeng Shan ceremonies, in which Chinese emperors offered sacrifices to heaven and earth atMount Tai. TheKangxi Emperor claimed that Mount Tai and Changbai belong to the same mountain range, which runs from northeast to southwest but is partially submerged under the sea before reachingShandong. The geography andfeng shui of Mount Changbai thus provided legitimacy to the Aisin Gioro clan's rule over China.[53]
Baishan Heishui, "white mountain and black river", referring to Mount Changbai and theHeilongjiang, has been a traditional name forNortheast China since theJin dynasty.[54]
According toAnnals of the Joseon Dynasty, theYalu andTumen Rivers were set as the borders in the era of the founder of Joseon Dynasty,Taejo of Joseon (1335–1408).[55] Because of the continuous entry of Korean people into Gando, a region inManchuria that lay north of the Tumen, Manchu and Korean officials surveyed the area and negotiated a border agreement in 1712. To mark the agreement, they built a monument describing the boundary at a watershed, near the south of the crater lake at the mountain peak.Volume 8 of the Annals of King Taejo, 2nd article of Gyemyo, 14 December, 4th year of King Taejo, 1395, 28th year of Ming HongwuSince the 19th century, interpretations of the inscription have been relevant in some territorial disputes.[citation needed]
In 1962 and 1964, China and North Korea negotiated two treaties in secret that outlined their modern borders. Both treaties especially focused on the sovereignty of Paektu and Heaven Lake. As a result of the treaties, North Korea received 280 km2 (110 sq mi)[57] of land on and around Paektu, 9 out of 16 peaks, and 54.5% of Heaven Lake.[58][59][56] Neither treaty is recognized by the governments of Taiwan or South Korea.[56]
As of 2013[update], South Korea formally claimed the caldera lake and the inside part of the ridge.[60] However, some South Korean groups argue that recent activities conducted on the Chinese side of the border, such as economic development, cultural festivals, infrastructure development, promotion of the tourism industry, attempts at registration as aWorld Heritage Site, and bids for a Winter Olympic Games, constitute attempts to claim the mountain as Chinese territory.[61][62] These groups object to China's use of the nameMount Changbai.[7] Some groups also regard the entire mountain as Korean territory that was given away by North Korea in theKorean War.[62]
During the2007 Asian Winter Games, which were held inChangchun, China, a group of South Korean athletes held up signs during the award ceremony which stated "Mount Paektu is our territory". Chinese sports officials delivered a letter of protest on the grounds that political activities violated the spirit of the Olympics and were banned in the charter of theInternational Olympic Committee and theOlympic Council of Asia. Officials from the South Korean athletic team apologized to China.[63][64][65]
Most Chinese, Russian, South Korean and international visitors climb the mountain from the Chinese side. The North Korean side of the mountain is also popular among visitors to North Korea.[citation needed] The Chinese tourism area is classified as aAAAAA scenic area by theChina National Tourism Administration.[66]
There are a number of monuments on the North Korean side of the mountain. Paektu Spa is a natural spring and is used for bottled water.[citation needed] Pegae Hill is a camp site of theKorean People's Revolutionary Army [ko] allegedly led byKim Il Sung during their struggle againstJapanese colonial rule.[citation needed] Secret camps are also now open to the public. There are several waterfalls, including the Hyongje Falls which splits into two about a third of the way from the top.[citation needed] In 1992, on the occasion of the 80th birthday of Kim Il Sung, a large sign with the words "Holy mountain of the revolution" written in metal letters was erected on the side of the mountain.[citation needed] North Koreans[who?] claim that there are 216 steps leading to the top of the mountain, symbolizingKim Jong Il's 16 February birth date, but this claim is disputed.[67] On the North Korean side of the mountain, there is a funicular system with two cars.[68] This was updated with new funicular cars built by theKim Chong-t'ae Electric Locomotive Works, with the new cars successfully running on the funicular from 30 October 2020.[69][70]
^Shen, Zhihua; Xia, Yafeng (1 November 2018).A Misunderstood friendship: Mao Zedong, Kim Il-sung, and Sino-North Korean relations, 1949–1976. Studies of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University. New York: Columbia University Press.ISBN978-0-231-18826-5.
^Second Canonical Book of the Tang Dynasty.《新唐書.北狄渤海傳》:"契丹盡忠殺營州都督趙翽反，有舍利乞乞仲象者，與靺鞨酋乞四比羽及高麗餘種東走，度遼水，保太白山之東北，阻奧婁河，樹壁自固。" (English translation:Khitan general Li Jinzhong killed Zhao Hui, the commanding officer ofYin Zhou. OfficerDae Jung-sang, withMohe chieftainQisi Piyu andGoguryeo remnants, escaped to the east, crossed Liao River, guarded the northeast part of the Grand Old White Mountain, blocked Oulou River, built walls to protect themselves.)
^"Records ofKhitan Empire". 《契丹國志》："長白山在冷山東南千餘里......禽獸皆白。"(English translation: "Changbai Mountain is a thousand miles to the southeast of Cold Mountain...Birds and animals there are all white.")
^ab"Canonical History Records of the Jurchen Jin Dynasty".《金史.卷第三十五》："長白山在興王之地，禮合尊崇，議封爵，建廟宇。""厥惟長白，載我金德，仰止其高，實惟我舊邦之鎮。" (English translation: "Changbai Mountain is in old Jurchen land, highly respectful, suitable for building temples. Only the Changbai Mountain can carry Jin Dynasty's spirit; It is so high; It is a part of our old land.")
^Ehlers, Jürgen; Gibbard, Philip (2004).Quaternary Glaciations: South America, Asia, Africa, Australasia, Antarctica. Elsevier.The Changbai Mountain is the highest (2570 m a.s.l.) in north-eastern China (42°N, 128°E) on the border between China and Korea.
^Fravel, M. Taylor (1 October 2005). "Regime Insecurity and International Cooperation: Explaining China's Compromises in Territorial Disputes".International Security.30 (2):46–83.doi:10.1162/016228805775124534.ISSN0162-2889.S2CID56347789.
^Lee, Oe-moo (29 December 1984)."baegdusancheonji"백두산천지 [Baekdu Mountain Heaven and Earth].Kyunghyang Shinmun (in Korean). Retrieved27 December 2013 – via Newslibrary.naver.com.
^Bärtås, Magnus; Ekman, Fredrik (2014).Hirviöidenkin on kuoltava: Ryhmämatka Pohjois-Koreaan [All Monsters Must Die: An Excursion to North Korea] (in Finnish). Translated by Eskelinen, Heikki. Helsinki: Tammi. pp. 82–86.ISBN978-951-31-7727-0.
Hetland, E. A.; Wu, F. T.; Song, J. L. (2004). "Crustal structure in the Changbaishan volcanic area, China, determined by modeling receiver functions".Tectonophysics.386 (3–4):157–175.Bibcode:2004Tectp.386..157H.doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2004.06.001.
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