Ulsan

Sister cities

• Burgas
• Portland
• Chennai
• Montevideo
• Tomsk
• Hualien City
• Hagi
• Kumamoto
• Changchun

History

Stone tools found at the Mugeo-dong Ok-hyeon archaeological site indicate that Ulsan was inhabited by humans at least as early as the Paleolithic era. Other findings indicate human inhabitation in the Neolithic Era. Ulsan also contains a substantial number of settlement remains from the Bronze Age. During the Jinhan confederacy, Ulsan was a site of iron mining and production. In the Later Silla period, Ulsan served as an important port for the economic hub of Gyeongju, and likely saw the import of luxury Persian goods such as silver, glass, and peacock tails. In 1592, the future port-town of Ulsan was the site of a major battle when warrior monks joined citizen soldiers in resisting Japanese invasion. On January 29, 1598, a combined military operation between Korea and China tried to besiege the castle, but failed as reinforcements from Japan came to delay the fighting. Owing to the two World Wars, Ulsan began to grow as an industrial center. During this time it was part of Keishōnan-dō. In 1962, Ulsan was chosen to become a Special Industrial Zone and in the following year, it formally became a city. The Hyundai Group and SK Group began setting up large businesses in Ulsan. Hyundai Heavy Industries established the shipyard in Ulsan and Hyundai Motor Company started there. Later on SK Energy developed an oil refinery and petrochemical hub there. Ulsan soon transformed into a modern metropolitan city. On December 31, 1996, legislation on the promotion of Ulsan to a metropolitan city was declared. Ulsan was promoted to a metropolitan city on July 15, 1997.