Shinman

Shinman (Zhenian: 신만, meaning 'New Gulf' in Zhenian), officially known as Shinman Metropolitan City (Zhenian: 신만광역시, pronounced Sinman Gwang-yeogsi), is the financial hub and most populous city of the Republic of Shinlim. It is one of the four metropolitan cities and is governed by the Shinman Metropolitan Government. It faces the Gulf of Handeok to the west and is entirely surrounded by Geumcheon Province. The Sinchwan River flws through Shinman before emptying into the Gulf of Handeok in the Ilseon ward of the city around central Shinman. The city is apart of the Greater Shinman Area and is the namesake of this giant amalgamation of urban area in northern Shinlim that accounts for 20% of the nation's population, or 26,137,526 people. This area includes neighboring cities in Geumcheon Province like Geumsan, Uljeong, and Sacheon. The city itself, however, is subdivided into 22 wards and home to over 13.2 million people.

Originally, records show that the area was inhabited by a small Nawkaw settlement of about 10,000 people. There are no known native names to this settlement. Thus, the city truly was considered founded in 1127 AC, close to a century after Chang Handeok discovered Veharia and established the colonial city of Aman. The city was named Shinman and remained a quiet but growing colonial village. It started gaining prominence in the late 1200s when iron and high-quality stones were found for mining, transforming it from a sleepy fishing village. This was further expedited when in 1358, gold was found north of Shinman. Shinman would grow rapidly, serving as a hub for the export of gold during the Shinman Gold Rush. By the mid-15th century, Shinman was one of the most populous cities in the Shinlim at over one million. At the turn of the 16th century, industrialization started to pick up with the national railway system and independence. Shinman was a candidate for the Capital City of Shinlim during the Shinman Conference from March to April 1500, but it was decided Gyeongwon would be a more central location, free of business interests. In 1552, the Shinman Metropolitan Government as it is today was established and administers the 22 wards of the city.

Shinman is the third-largest regional economy in Shinlim by gross domestic product, with its GDP at $501.19 billion, and a per capita GDP for Shinman city residents standing at $37,823.75, higher than the national average. It is part of a highly-developed industrial region that includes the cities of Sacheon, Geumsan, and Uljeong. The city is Shinlim's leading center of business and finance. Shinman's tallest building is the Shinman Tower, standing at 604 m tall, it is the tallest building in Shinlim. Shinman is a hub for many and is also an international center of research and development through several of its major universities and research institutions. Shinman Station is the northern hub for Shinlim's Saeganseon bullet train system, and the city is served by an extensive network of rail and subways. Notable wards of Shinman include Seongjin ward (the site of the Imperial Palace and Castle), Jinyeon ward (the city's administrative center), Daejin ward, Cheonhwa ward, Sinsang ward (three of the most famous commercial, cultural and business hubs), and last but not least, Haeju ward (the financial center of Shinman).

Etymology
Prior to Dan Zhenian settlement, the area was already home to a small Nawkaw settlement, a testament to the favourability of the location to human settlement in Western Veharia. However, the name of this settlement was never recorded, and likely never played a role in the name today. Shinman has kept its name since its founding and has a literal meaning of 'New Gulf' in Zhenian (Zhenian: 신만, pronounced Sin man) with 'Shin' meaning 'New' and 'man' meaning 'Gulf'. It was likely named by the first Shindan colonist who set foot on this part of the Sinchwan River in 1127 AC due to the area being located within the Gulf. Throughout its history, there have been attempts to change its name such as in 1531, when there was a proposal to rename the city Chang Daeho City, in memory of the founding father of Shinman. However, these proposals never got far and the name was kept. Sometime in the 1580s, Shinman got its nickname as the Emerald of the west in reference to it being one of the most valuable and well-developed cities on the western Veharian coast.

Early history
The earliest human settlements in the area were native Veharian tribe villages on the northern side of the Sinchwan River. The largest of these settlements had approximately 10,000 people and were of the Nawkaw people. These neolithic settlements appeared in flood plain areas next to the river and practices simple agriculture. Their lifestyle revolved around and the population of the small settlement was said to have been growing steadily until the arrival of disease from either Tarsis or Azora. With this, mass graves in the area that is now Sinsang ward shows that the population of Nawkaw took a severe hit. This was worsened by the arrival of Shindan settlers in the 1100s. In 1127, the native Nawkaw were completely removed from the area and forced into the interior (what is now the periphery of Shinman). In that same year, Shindanese settlers founded the city of Shinman, since it was located within the then-unnamed Gulf, what is now the Gulf of Handeok.

Topography


Shinman is located on the northwestern coast of Shinlim. To its north lies relatively flat hills and plains, which the Sinchwan River flows, relative to Shinman, from the northeast before emptying in the southwest into the Gulf of Handeok at where Shinman lies. Further northeast lies the imposing Taegeun Mountains, from which the Sinchwan originates, and directly north, the Junggan Plateau, where the Taegeun ends and the Hwanggeum Mountains begin. Most of the city’s urban area is located on the alluvial plains of the Sinchwan River, surrounding lesser rivers, and along the coast. Thus, the city itself is relatively flat with an average elevation of around 23 m (75.5 ft), with hills on the peripheries of the city limits.

Bocho Hill, the tallest height of the city, stands at 367.1 m in the Geum-ok ward of Shinman. These hills surrounding the northeastern and western end of Shinman provide green areas for Shinmanites. The city limits are a part of the Sinchwan River’s watershed. There are also several water features, canals, and reservoirs that serve to collect water when it rains with flooding not being a severe issue. These reservoirs, including the Sinchwan river and other lesser rivers, make up the city’s 66.60 km2 of water coverage, which account for around 4.34% of the city’s total area of 1,534.67 km2. About 52.1 km2 of the city is amid sections of the river between 1400 and 1600. The reclaimed land was done for fortifications early on but in the 1500s has been for the expansion of coastal industry and ports. Nowadays, some artificial islands have been repurposed for tourism and leisure.

Cityscape
The urban area of Shinman spreads out in a radial road network with two concentric ring roads within it, along with the main road, the Pyeongan Avenue running parallel to the shoreline east to west of Shinman and connected to the highway and expressway network. The old city of Shinman is located at Seongjin ward atop of a hill for defensive purposes early in history. However, nowadays, the urban center lies in the Daejin ward on the south side, and Haeju ward on the north side. Danhan Avenue and the Daeho Avenue are the two major parallel passing through the city in a North-South direction on the west and eastern side of the Sinchwan river respectively. Despite having an obvious central business district, Shinman's different wards have different functions and are famed for different aspects of the city. Cultural and administrative functions are mainly handled in the Seongjin and Jinyeon wards while there are many different devolved commercial areas, the main ones around Daejin and Haesu, with others further in the periphery of city limits like Minsu ward.

Climate
Shinman's climate is classified as or  (Köppen climate classification Cfb). While during summer months the inland temperatures are significantly higher, Shinman has the cool summers which are typically dry, with an average of only one in five days during July and August receiving precipitation. In contrast, the majority of days from November through March record some type of precipitation. Shinman is also one of the wettest Shinli cities, although this precipitation is varied across the metropolitan area. Annual precipitation as measured at the in Haeju averages at 1,588 mm (62.5 in) compared to Geum-ok ward further inland at 1,381 mm (54.37 in). The daily maximum averages 17 °C (62.6 °F) in July and August, with highs, seldom reaching 25 °C (77 °F).

The highest temperature ever recorded in the city was 29.4 °C (84.92 °F) set on July 30, 1607. Meanwhile, the coldest temperature ever recorded in the city was −19.2 °C (2.56 °F) on January 14, 1534 and again on December 29, 1539. Due to the existence of dense built-up of urban area, the city center is naturally hotter due to the. The city has obstructed the local wind flow from the Gulf of Handeok to the interior of the west Veharian coast. However, these warmer urban temperatures have also made Shinman more hospitable. On average, snow falls on fourteen days per year, with three days receiving 10 cm (3.94 in) or more. The average yearly snowfall is 61.2 cm (24.1 in). It can stay on the ground at least a week after the period of heavy snowfall. Winters in Shinman are relatively cold with its growing season averages 152 days, from May 6th to October 5th.