The number of participants in the contest to rename North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province exceeded 1.4 million in its first two weeks.

On January 24, the number of participants surpassed 300,000 and within a week had reached 1.4 million, indicating that interest is growing.

According to Gyeonggi Province on February 1, the number of visitors to the North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province Renaming Contest website (bit.ly/new-name-contest) was 1,147,726 as of 10 a.m., and the total number of new name submissions exceeded 71,188, including pre-event participation.

Gyeonggi Province will run the contest for changing the name of North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province from January 18 to February 19.

The winners will include one grand prize winner of KRW 10 million, two second place winners of KRW 1 million, and seven honorable mention winners of KRW 500,000. The prizes will be paid in cash rather than local currency as this is a nationwide contest, and the winners will also receive certificates.

“Public interest is growing to the point that access to the website has been delayed due to the influx of visitors,” said Kang Hyeon-seok, head of the North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province Bureau. “We ask for continued interest and support not only from Gyeonggi residents, but also from everyone in the Republic of Korea so that North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province can stand tall as a game changer that awakens Korea’s growth potential beyond northern Gyeonggi.”

Those who wish to participate in the naming contest can fill out the “new name” and “meaning” on the contest website (http://bit.ly/새이름공모전) or search for “North Gyeonggi Special Self-Governing Province” for online submission.