Abstract

This paper explores the changing social identities and development trajectory within a gyochon village through the human geographical concept of perirural agency. Gyochon villages, pockets of rural space located on the outskirts of metropolitan areas, are classified as peri-rural spaces due to their unique spatial, socio-economic, and legislative characteristics. Peri-rural agency refers to the capacity of village business owners to adapt to socio-economic changes balancing local opportunities and constraints and metropolitan demands. Using grounded theory approach in a case study village in Namyangju City, the research identifies three stages of peri-ruralization: revitalization, diversification, and trendification. The study highlights the strengthening of rural agency of returnees in agritourism and leisure businesses, along with café investors, who successfully leveraged their urban social and financial capital, forming a crafted social identity which predicts and utilizes modern urban needs and consequentially commodifies the gyochon. A gap in rural geography within Korean studies is addressed, and the need for a collaborative response to the increasing vulnerabilities of elderly farmers and rural restaurant owners is emphasized.