Suyang

Suyang is the most populous city in Haesan, and one of the largest in the International Democratic Union. The city lies along the coast of its namesake bay, and is split down the middle by the Su River (Sugang). The city is congruous with its namesake province, and its metropolitan government manages all provincial affairs. First named on maps recovered from Haemi archives dated to around 200 BCE, Suyang has been continuously occupied for over two millenia. Suyang served as the capital of Haesan until 1964, including being the seat of government for the classical Dominion of United Haesan as well as serving as the Opthelian government during the colonial period. Suyang was the headquarters of the Haesanite Resistance and was a major base of operations for foreign troops during the Reclamation of Haesan during the Great War. Nowadays, Suyang is noted for its world-class universities and public transit system, its thriving economic scene, its varied demographic and gastronomic landscape, and its rise as a global cultural hub as the epicenter of the Hae-pop industry and as a major location for designer clothing brands.

Suyang-si 수양시
Autonomous City
Skyline at Choejaseong, Prospect Bridge and Suyang Light, Canal Zone, Jangsa, Seollim Sky Dome, Central Station, Suseong College
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  City of Lights, Pearl City
Country	Haesan
Administrative District (Province)	Suyang (autonomous)
Founded	c. 200 BCE
Government
• Mayor	Kim Eun-ji (New Bargain)
Area
• Total	5,310 km2 (2,051 sq mi)
Population  (2015)
• Total	27,172,814
• Density	5,100/km2 (13,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+6 (WHT)
Website	suyangsi.hn

Geography

Suyang lies at the junction of the Sugang River and Suyang Bay, an is considered a port on the Albarine Sea. It is located on terrain gently sloping towards the coast, and is bounded by five large hills: Cheolsan to the west, Jirisan to the northwest, Dasan to the north, Yasan to the northeast, and Taesan to the east. Much of the city's soil is composed of clay, which made it an ideal place for constructing a large settlement. While much of the coastline has been developed, the city of Suyang maintains 21 beach areas on the bayshore, along with numerous parks along the riverbank and canal zone.

The Sugang is the heart of the city, and attempting to control its flow and otherwise regulate it has long been a goal of the city's urban authorities. The river merges with the Jocheon River in the north of the city, and travels roughly 41 kilometres (25 mi) to its mouth, noticeably splitting into two branches downtown to surround Jangsa-seom, although there are 5 other notable islands in the river in this stretch. In order to control the river's annual late fall flooding, the river has been dammed extensively. In the 1990s, the Suyang Canal Zone was built in order to help regulate the flow of the river. While typically water is pumped from a large underground series of cisterns to feed the canals, in moments of high river volume, the direction of the canals can be reversed to help drain the flood. This landmark civil engineering project has greatly reduced the flash flood risk in the city. The Sugang River is currently dammed off from the Albarine Sea, and only small craft are able to travel reliably between the two bodies of water.

Climate

Suyang demonstrates a typical monsoonal Albarine climate, with warm, dry summers, and cold, wet winters. The average July high is 28.1 °C (82.6 °F), and the average January low is −1.4 °C (29.5 °F). Rainy season is typically from October to January, and the city receives 924 millimetres (36.4 in) of precipitation a year on average. In the winter, the weather often is cold enough to generate snowfall due to the Shimo Effect, and it snows 7 days a year on average. Summer months are typically clear, and Suyang receives about 2,800 hours of sunshine every year.

The city has fought a generally successful battle against air and water pollution over the last four decades, spurred on by the national Conservationist movement. Successive waves of national and local governments have enacted pollution restrictions, and waterway cleanup has been a major focal point of local policy since the late 2000s. While in 1993, the city was rated to have some of the worst air pollution in the IDU, cleaner factories, the establishment of numerous parks and green belts, and better emissions standards have made the city about average in air quality as of 2024. A slight haze does remain, particularly noticeable on windless days in the spring, although it has gained some popularity amongst social media users for the vibrant sunsets it creates. The Sugang and Canal Zone have been clean since the early 2010s, and now they act as key social gathering spots in the city.

Government

Suyang is an autonomous city, which means its local government is afforded greater latitude than most Haesanite mayoralties. Suyang is contiguous with its province, Suyang Province, and its mayor additionally serves as the governor of Suyang Province, making the position one of the only three governors to not be appointed by the President. The local government is able to utilize public funds largely at its discretion and is able to use local funds in order to supplement provincially administered projects. The mayor is elected by ranked-choice popular vote and serves five-year terms. Suyang also has a city council, with one representative from each administrative district.

Administrative Districts

See also: List of districts of Suyang

Suyang is divided into 26 administrative districts (gu), each of which elects their own district government. Those districts are further divided into neighborhoods (dong) of which there are roughly 500 in the city. Each neighborhood is divided into roughly ten blocks according to the Block Administration System, each of which has a civic responsibility to improve the social integration of the members within it. The districts of Suyang are particularly notable for their stark architectural, cultural, and ideological differences, even amongst neighboring districts.

Demographics

Suyang is a large, cosmopolitan city, and although an overwhelming majority of its residents identify as Haean, it is believed that members of over 100 ethnic groups from around the IDU call Suyang home. The Seohae University Center for Demographic Research estimates that about one in every ten people in Suyang is of a non-traditionally Haesanite ethnicity. Haean is the most common language in spoken conversation in Suyang, although English is the primary language of business. Many other languages are spoken within the context of ethnic enclaves, such as Farsi in "Little Jezaire" in the Mebella neighborhood of East Suyang. Due to Haesan's unique immigration laws, very few foreigners in the country are non-naturalized, and over 99% of Suyang's population at any given time are Haesanite citizens.

Ethnicity in Suyang

Ethnicity	%	# (thousands)
Haean	79.8	21,683
Opthelian	5.6	1,522
Arrivee	4.7	1,277
Ren	2.5	679
Lehvantine	1.8	489
Andhran	1.3	353
Sarene	1.1	299
Other	3.5	951

Religion

About half of Suyang residents practice Celestialism, although only about two-thirds of them practice regularly. Celestine temples are common in Suyang, with an estimated tally of over 1,000 temples in the city's limits, although the practice and traditions of those various temples often varies widely. A quarter of Suyangites are non-religious, a number which has steadily increased since the 1990s and is expected to trend upwards. Most of the remainder practice some form of Christianity, with Catholicism slightly more popular overall. The majority of Catholics are a member of the Sanctarian Catholic Church, although many Arrivee in the city still practice Roman Catholicism. Protestantism has been gaining popularity in Suyang in recent years, drawing large numbers of immigrants who are pressured to adopt a Haesanite way of life and helping their integration with their new society. This pressure is most commonly felt for immigrants from Muslim countries, very few of which opt to continue to practice Islam by the time they complete their naturalization process two years after their arrival. This trend is common throughout Haesan, but for migrants to Suyang, it is the most significantly pronounced. The Opthelian Church also maintains a large following, and its parish at Saint Clair's Cathedral in downtown Suyang is one of its largest globally.

Religion in Suyang

Religion	%	# (thousands)
Celestialism	50.1	13,613
No Religion	25.3	6,875
Catholicism	11.9	3,233
Protestantism	9.5	2,581
Neo-Minjian	2.1	571
Other	1.2	326

Culture

Sport

Suyang has a long sporting heritage, starting in Classical times where it hosted the National Games, a sports competition meant to test the prowess of warriors in the Imperial Army. Those games have since been revived, and are held biennially in the city. Suyang is home two of the top association football clubs in Hesperida, AFC Seorin, and Suyang City FC, both of which regularly represent Haesan in international club competitions. The city has three teams representing it in the Haesanite National League in baseball, the Seollim Sol, Suyang Pearls, and HS Light. The Sol and Pearls both play in the Seollim Sky Dome, currently the largest indoor baseball stadium by capacity in the IDU. The Suri HI Suyang Steamers are the city's lone representative in the Haesanite Basketball League, playing at Hwajeong Arena, although the Jeongmi Jumbos have also recently played in the top flight, albeit they currently are in the HBL2.

The Suyang Yacht Club is one of the oldest of its type in Hesperida, and has often hosted international sailing competitions. The National Aquatics Center in Choejaseong was the largest facility of its type in Hesperida upon its completion, but it since has been surpassed by the Nakano Center in Seimei. The Terraces at Solesly Gardens is a historic tennis facility which has hosted the Haesan Open (Suyang 250) annually since 1981. The city has historically hosted the Suyang Grand Prix, a formula street race, but it has not been held since 2008 in favor of an annual event at Yeosan Circuit in Hyangsan; however, the route is still used today in the Namseon/Yeongsu Prix, an annual university engineering challenge and race.