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Jeju is the largest island and smallest province in South Korea, and the name of island's largest city and provincial capital (see Jeju City). Jeju Island is located in the Korean Strait southwest of South Jeolla Province, to which it belonged until it became a separate province in 1946.
In Korean the island and province are both called "Jeju-do," as the word do in Korean means both "island" and "province" (although it represents 2 different Chinese characters). The table below details the various names.
| English Name | Korean Name | Hangul | Hanja |
| Jeju Island | Jeju-do | 제주도 | 濟州島 |
| Jeju Province | Jeju-do | 제주도 | 濟州道 |
| Jeju City | Jeju-si | 제주시 | 濟州市 |
It had been called by different names from time to time including Doi(도이,島夷), Dongyeongju(동영주,東瀛州) Juho(주호,州胡) Tammora(탐모라,耽牟羅), Seopra(섭라,涉羅), Takra(탁라,竣羅) and Tamra(탐라,耽羅).
Jeju Island—formerly known to Europeans as Quelpart—is a volcanic island, dominated by Halla-san, a volcano 1,950 m high, tallest mountain in South Korea.
The island was created entirely from volcanic eruptions beginning hundreds of millions of years ago, and consists chiefly of basalt and lava. The climate is subtropical, warmer than the rest of Korea yet with four distinct seasons. Half the summer is rainy; winter is fairly dry.
Jeju had been an independent country called Tamra(耽羅) until it became a protectorate of Silla in 662. As Silla fell, Tamra became a protectorate of Goryeo in 938. Tamra lost its autonomy in 1105 and became a province of Goryeo. King Euijing of Goryeo changed her name to Jeju.
In 1271, Jeju became the base of Sambyeolcho, who rebelled against Mongol. After Sambyeolcho being defeated, Mongols put Jeju under direct rule in 1273, and it became Goryeo territory again in 1367.
It has been a part of Jeolla since then until 1946, it became a province of its own.
In their relative isolation over the ages, the people of Jeju Island have developed a culture unique from Koreans on the mainland. There are literally thousands of local legends, and perhaps the most distinct cultural artifact is the ubiquitous harubang "stone grandfather," carved of a block of lava.
Jeju Province is divided into two cities ("Si" or "Shi") and two counties ("Gun"). The two cities are further divided into 31 neighbourhoods ("Dong"), while the two counties are divided into seven towns ("Eup") and five districts ("Myeon"). The seven towns and five districts are in turn divided 551 villages ("Ri").
Listed below are the English, Hangul, and Hanja names of the province's two cities and two counties.
Jeju's international sister provinces are also islands: Hainan Province (China), Hawaii (US), Sakhalin (Russia), and Bali (Indonesia).
| Administrative divisions of South Korea | |
|---|---|
| Special City Seoul | |
| Metropolitan Cities Busan | Daegu | Daejeon | Gwangju | Incheon | Ulsan | |
| Provinces North Chungcheong | South Chungcheong | Gangwon | Gyeonggi | North Gyeongsang | South Gyeongsang | Jeju | North Jeolla | South Jeolla | |
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