South Korea is located in Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea

Lowest Point: Sea of Japan 0 m 

Highest Point: Halla-san 1,950 m

Capital: Seoul (Seoul Lodging)

Religion: no affiliation 46%, Christian 26%, Buddhist 26%, Confucianist 1%, other 1% 

Languages Spoken: Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school
 

See also: Languages spoken in Asia, Languages of the world

Introduction - Brief History
Korea was an independent kingdom under Chinese suzerainty for most of the past millennium. Following its victory in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, Japan occupied Korea; five years later it formally annexed the entire peninsula. After World War II, a republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a Communist-style government was installed in the north. During the Korean War (1950-53), US and other UN forces intervened to defend South Korea from North Korean attacks supported by the Chinese. An armistice was signed in 1953, splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth with per capita income rising to roughly 14 times the level of North Korea. In 1987, South Korean voters elected ROH Tae-woo to the presidency, ending 26 years of military dictatorships. South Korea today is a fully functioning modern democracy. In June 2000, a historic first North-South summit took place between the South's President KIM Tae-chung and the North's leader KIM Jong Il.