Baekdusan Listed as 'Changbaishan' on UNESCO... Concerns Over Spread of Chinese Name

Baekdusan Feared to Be Referred to by Chinese Name in International Community
"UNESCO Registration Expected for North Korean Part of Baekdusan as Well"

Baekdusan Cheonji

A portion of Baekdusan, located within Chinese territory, has been registered as a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Global Geopark under the Chinese name "Changbaishan (長白山)."

While it is difficult to object to China registering the part of its own territory as a Global Geopark, concerns have been raised that Baekdusan may increasingly be referred to as Changbaishan in the international community going forward.

According to UNESCO on the 28th, the UNESCO Executive Board certified 18 new candidate sites, including Changbaishan, as new Global Geoparks the day before. As a result, the total number of Global Geoparks increased to 213 sites across 48 countries.

UNESCO described Changbaishan as "an outdoor classroom of volcanic activity located in the southeastern part of Jilin Province," adding, "It is one of the best-preserved volcanoes where the process of volcanic formation can be studied, and the Heaven Lake at the summit, the largest and highest volcanic crater lake in Northeast Asia, offers spectacular scenery."

Currently, one quarter of Baekdusan belongs to North Korea, and three quarters to China. Approximately 54.5% of Heaven Lake is in North Korean territory. Previously, China applied to UNESCO in 2020 to have the portion of Baekdusan within its territory certified as a Global Geopark.

The portion corresponding to North Korean territory also applied to UNESCO, but the process has been delayed, and it has not yet been registered as a Global Geopark.

For this reason, there are concerns that Baekdusan will more likely be referred to by its Chinese name Changbaishan rather than its Korean name in the international community in the future.

In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Korea issued only a principled stance.

At a regular briefing that day, Im Su-seok, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, "This approval was decided according to the relevant procedures based on the geological protection value of Baekdusan," and added, "We will continue to closely monitor related developments."

Park Sang-mi, South Korea’s Ambassador to UNESCO, stated immediately after the Executive Board’s decision, "Baekdusan holds very significant meaning for Koreans," and expressed hope that "the designation of the remaining parts not yet registered as Global Geoparks will be pursued in the future."