(^42) About South Korea (Please refer to your favourite travel guidebook or the
internet for a more in-depth overview)
Capital City
The city of Seoul is the capital city of South Korea. It is said that half of SouthKoreans live in the Seoul Capital Area.
Currency
The currency in South Korea is the South Korean won. The symbol is ₩, and the code
is KRW. The won is divided into 100 jeon.
Language
The official language in Korea is Korean. It doesn’t share many similarities with
Western languages, so even learning to pronounce a few keywords and phrases canbe tricky. Written Korean is also unique, using a phonetic system called hangul.
Religion
Most South Koreans (56.1%) have no formal affiliation with a religion. However,
Buddhism and Confucianism have been more influential than any other in the life of
the Korean people, and over half of the country’s listed cultural heritage is related to
these two religions.
Location and size
Occupying the southern 45% of the Korean Peninsula in East Asia, the Republic of
Korea (ROK), also known as South Korea, has an area of 98,480 sq km, extending
642 km NNE–SSW and 436 km ESE–WNW. Bounded on the N by the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), on the E by the Sea of Japan (known in Korea asthe East Sea), on the S by the Korean Strait, and on the W by the Yellow Sea, the
ROK has a total coastline of 2,413 km. A demilitarised zone (DMZ), 4,000 m wide,
covering 1,262 sq km and located north and south of the 38th parallel, separates the
ROK from the DPRK, which comprises the northern part of the Korean Peninsula.
Over 3,000 islands, most of the southern and western coasts belonging to the ROK,
add another 8,600 km of coastline.
Population
The current population of South Korea is 51 300 000, giving it a population density of
527 per Km2.
Internet coverage
Internet services are also widely available, particularly in town areas.
leana
(Leana)
#1