For most of its history Korea was an independent kingdom, or at least an autonomous kingdom under Chinese influence. This came to an end in 1910 when Japan annexed all of Korea. At the end of World War II in 1945 the 38° parallel was established as the dividing line between U.S. and Soviet zones of occupation, and in 1948 separate civil administrations were established in the two halves of the country. The Korean War (1950-53) ended in a draw with the armistice line falling close to the prewar 38° line. The Republic of Korea (ROK), commonly called South Korea (Daehan Minguk in Korean), occupies the Korean peninsula south of the armistice line. South Korea is divided into nine provinces and eight province-level cities; the provinces are subdivided into counties and cities. This page covers lighthouses of islands lying southwest of Incheon off South Korea's northwest coast, including the three townships of Deokjeok, Jawol, and Yeongheung in Ongjin County. The county is administered as part of Incheon City. Ongjin County has four additional island townships, one close to Incheon and three on remote islands to the west; their lighthouses are described on the Incheon Area page. In 2000 South Korea adopted a Revised Romanization System to replace systems formerly used in the West. In the Revised System, the word for a lighthouse is deungdae (등대); dan (formerly tan) is a cape, seom (som) or do (to) is an island, am or amseog is a rock, man is a bay, and hang is a harbor. Some place names may be more familiar to Westerners in the spellings of older systems. Navigational aids in the ROK are regulated by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF). In this area the lights are maintained by the Incheon Regional Office of Oceans and Fisheries. MOF also operates the major coastal lights but management of harbor lighthouses is in the hands of local port authorities. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. KR numbers, where available, are from the Korean light list. Admiralty numbers are from volume M of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA
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Deokjeok Township Lighthouses
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![]() Mokdeokdo Light, Deokjeok Korean National Lighthouse Museum photo |
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![]() Ungam Light, April 2012 ex-Panoramio photo copyright plumgarden; used by permission |
Jawol Township Lighthouses
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![]() Ijakdo Light, Jawol, August 2009 ex-Panoramio photo copyright Shim JaeHee; permission requested |
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Yeongheung Township Lighthouses
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![]() Budo Light, Yeongheung, June 2013 ex-Daum.net Creative Commons photo by Sanyu Hwa |
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Incheon Area | South: Dangjin and Pyeongtaek
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index | Ratings key
Posted February 4, 2008. Checked and revised July 8, 2024. Lighthouses: 44. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.