Outline of South Korea

The flag of South Korea
The Emblem of South Korea
An enlargeable map of South Korea

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to South Korea:

South Korea – densely populated sovereign presidential republic located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula in East Asia.[1] Also known as the "Land of the Morning Calm". It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east and North Korea to the north. South Korea's capital and largest city is Seoul, the world's second largest metropolitan city.

Korea has a history of 5,000 years,[2] with its foundation dating back to 2333 BC by the legendary Dangun. Following the unification of the Three Korean Kingdoms under Silla in AD 668, Korea went through the Goryeo and Joseon Dynasty as one nation until annexed by Japan in 1910.[3] After Japan's defeat in World War II, Korea was divided, and South Korea was established in 1948. It has since developed a successful democracy, maintaining a strong alliance with the United States.

South Korea has the fourth-largest economy in Asia. It had one of the world's fastest growing economies from the 1960s until 1980 and is now considered a developed[4] economy. It is a G20 and OECD member. In response to tension with North Korea, it has developed the world's sixth largest armed forces and has one of the 10-largest defence budgets in the world.

South Korean industries have a strong focus on science and technology.[5] It has an advanced infrastructure[6] and information technology such as electronics, semiconductors, LCD displays, computers, mobile phones and automotive industry led by Chaebol, a kind of family-owned conglomerate. The economy also has a strong focus on engineering, construction, machinery, textiles, petrochemicals, biotechnology and robotics.

  1. ^ "South Korea". The World Factbook. United States Central Intelligence Agency. July 2, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
  2. ^ Nahm, Andrew, A History of the Korean People: Korea, Tradition & Transformation. Hollym International Corporation, 1988, ISBN 1-56591-070-2
  3. ^ Korean Culture Archived 2008-07-12 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Korea, Republic of Archived 2010-01-01 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ ANNOTATED CHRONOLOGY OF KOREA’S SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (Moo-Young Han, Professor of physics, Duke University / Editor-in-Chief, Society of Korean-American Scholars) Archived 2010-06-01 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Korea, South Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Korea, South