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Diocese of Jeonju

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Diocese of Jeonju
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The Jeonju diocesan territory covers 8,053 square kilometers and includes Jeollabuk-do province.

Jeonju diocese was erected as apostolic prefecture and carved out of Daegu archdiocese on April 13, 1937. It was elevated as apostolic vicariate on Jan. 21, 1957, and then became a diocese on March 10, 1962. Jeonju diocese belongs to the ecclesiastical province of Kwangju which comprises Kwangju archdiocese and Cheju diocese.

It is the first diocese in the Korean Church to be managed by native clergy since its inception.

Jeonju Catholics take great pride in the fact that in 1931, before being established as a prefecture, it was made an episcopal vicariate by the bishop of what would become Daegu archdiocese, then under the pastoral care of the Paris Foreign Mission Society. Jeonju diocese was totally under the control of Korean priests, who could implement personnel management independently.

Martyrs' Mountain in Jeonju is where Augustine Yu Hang-gom(1756-1801) and six of his family members were martyred and buried together during religious persecution in 1801. Augustine Yu is considered the apostle of Honam, the Korean peninsula's southwestern region.

In 2007, Jeonju diocese celebrated its 70th anniversary. The diocese built a complex at the foot of the mountain and relocated the diocesan office there.

Population

The population within Jeonju diocesan territory was 1,869,711 at the end of 2016, accounting for 3.7 percent of the country's population of 51 million. Most residents are ethnic Koreans.

Language

The standard Korean is in use. English, a mandatory subject in schools, can be spoken and understood in business and tourist areas. All the traffic signs are in English and Korean.

Climate

Jeonju diocese falls within the temperate zone and has the four distinctive seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. The yearly average temperature of Jeonju is 13 degrees Celsius. The annual precipitation in the region averages 1,286.6 millimeters. The western plain area has small climate range compared to the inland and lower precipitation compared to the mountain area. On the other hand, inland area has a large climate condition from the east to the west side. Most of the rainfall is concentrated in the rainy months (monsoon period) of June through September.

Topography

The diocese of Jeonju is located at the southwest of the Korean peninsula and borders dioceses of Daejeon, Cheongju, Daegu, Masan and Kwangju. The region is relatively flat, containing broad stretches of rice paddies, and its jagged coastline creates many small harbors. It is a fertile and warm region sheltered by high mountains on the east and north and calm seas and many islands on the west.

Jeonju is famous for its traditional mixed vegetable rice dish, bibimbap, and for Hanji, traditional mulberry paper.

Also it is a home place of Sori (traditional music) that is a reflection of its country's culture.

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