Nowon-gu (노원구; 蘆原區) is a district in Seoul.

[edit] Geography :

Nowon (35.44 km²) is located in the Northest part of the city. Its main frontiers are :
- to the West, the Jungnangcheon. Part of the district (Wolgye-dong) lies on the other side of this confluent of the Han river which also separates Nowon from Dobong-gu.
- to the East, Buramsan and Suraksan mountains (and beyond, the city of Namyangju)
- to the North, the city of Uijongbu
- to the South, the district of Jungnang-gu (plus Seongbuk-gu for Wolgye-dong).

Nowon has 24 dong between its 5 major areas :
- Sanggye-dong - North
- Junggye-dong - Center East
- Hagye-dong - Center South
- Wolgye-dong - South West
- Gongneung-dong - South East

[edit] Demography :

Around 620,000 people live in Nowon in 2007.

[edit] History :

Nowon was created in 1988. Formerly the Eastern half of Dobong-gu, the area was meant as a bed town for the booming population. This flat valley with its few villages and empty fields looked ideal for a massive development, and from the start tens of blocks of 5 to 15 storey appartment buildings were erected, mostly small appartments for families that could afford more central areas.

From a cheap bed town, and only thanks to its strong internal / demographical dynamics, Nowon has grown into a major hub with Nowon station at its heart :
- transports : the crossroads of subway lines 4 and 7 will also welcome a major city air terminal bound to serve the North of Seoul and the neighboring cities. The old train terminal will be relocated in Namyangju and the Dobong driving center in a more remote area of the district).
- commerce : all commerces including a Lotte Department Store born a medium range Midopa Department Store in 1992 and now the most luxurious store in North East Seoul. The city air terminal will host a major commercial center.
- business : the city hall, major corporations' local branches, plus all the district's motels are near the station
- cultural : the baby boomers turned teenagers and the Dept Store's movie theaters are quite successful. Sanggye's central area is also getting greener. Closer thant the old mountain's regional parks : the Jungnangcheon's riverside park, the future central park, restoration of a smaller stream...

Nowon was meant as a popular district, as in popular for the people. Traditionnaly spared by the real estate bubble, Nowon is now getting popular for investors as well, and many Gangnam-gu speculators have recently contributed to a dramatic rise in housing prices.