View source for Korea

{{Short description|Region in East Asia}}
{{Redirect|Korean Peninsula|the geographical region|Geography of Korea|other uses|Korea (disambiguation)}}
{{redirect|Koreas|relations between the two countries on this peninsula|North Korea–South Korea relations}}
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{{Use British English|date=March 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Korea
| native_name            = {{nowrap|{{nobold|{{lang|ko|한국}} {{small|([[South Korean standard language|South Korean]])}}<br />{{lang|ko|조선}} {{small|([[North Korean standard language|North Korean]])}}}}}}
| image_flag             = [[File:Unification flag of Korea.svg|border|150px]]<br /><br />[[File:Flag of South Korea.svg|border|100px]] [[File:Flag of North Korea.svg|border|100px]]
| flag_type              = [[Korean Unification Flag]] (top)<br />[[Flag of South Korea]] (bottom left)<br />[[Flag of North Korea]] (bottom right)
| image_coat             = 
| coa_size               = 
| symbol                 = 
| symbol_type            = 
| image_map              = Korea (orthographic projection).svg
| map_caption            = Korea shown in dark green
| national_anthem        = {{unbulleted list|"[[Aegukga]]" ([[South Korea]])|"[[Aegukka]]" ([[North Korea]])}}
| official_languages     = [[Korean language|Korean]]
| languages_type         = Official script
| languages              = [[Korean alphabet|{{hlist|Hangul|Chosŏn'gŭl}}]]
| demonym                = [[Koreans|Korean]]
| capital                = {{unbulleted list|[[Seoul]] ([[South Korea]])|[[Pyongyang]] ([[North Korea]])}}
| largest_city           = Seoul
| government_type        = ''In dispute between [[South Korea]] and [[North Korea]]''
| politics_link          = North Korea–South Korea relations
| legislature            = {{ubl|[[National Assembly (South Korea)|National Assembly]] ([[South Korea]])|[[Supreme People's Assembly]] ([[North Korea]])}}
| area_km2               = 223,172
| area_sq_mi             = 84,610 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
| area_footnote          = {{Sfn|Castello-Cortes|1996|loc=South Korea |p=498 }}{{Sfn|Castello-Cortes|1996|loc=North Korea |p=413 }}
| population_estimate    = 77,000,000
| population_estimate_year = 2017
| population_density_km2 = 349.06
| population_density_sq_mi = 904.09 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]-->
| established_event1     = [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]]
| established_date1      = 2333 BCE ([[Samguk yusa|mythological]])
| established_event2     = [[Wiman Joseon]]
| established_date2      = 194 BCE
| established_event3     = [[Three Kingdoms of Korea|Three Kingdoms]]
| established_date3      = 57 BCE
| established_event4     = [[North-South States Period|Balhae and Silla Kingdoms]]
| established_date4      = 668
| established_event5     = [[Goryeo dynasty]]
| established_date5      = 918
| established_event6     = [[Joseon dynasty]]
| established_date6      = 17 July 1392
| established_event7     = [[Korean Empire]]
| established_date7      = 12 October 1897
| established_event8     = [[Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910|Japanese annexation of Korea]]
| established_date8      = 29 August 1910
| established_event9     = [[Korean Declaration of Independence]]
| established_date9      = 1 March 1919
| established_event10    = Establishment of the [[Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea]]
| established_date10     = 11 April 1919
| established_event11    = [[Surrender of Japan]] and [[division of Korea]]
| established_date11     = 2 September 1945
| established_event12    = Establishment of the [[First Republic of South Korea|Republic of Korea]]
| established_date12     = 15 August 1948
| established_event13    = Establishment of the [[Democratic People's Republic of Korea]]
| established_date13     = 9 September 1948
| established_event14    = [[Korean War]]
| established_date14     = 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953
| established_event15    = Both Koreas admitted to the [[United Nations|UN]]
| established_date15     = 17 September 1991
| time_zone              = [[Korea Standard Time]] and [[Pyongyang Time]]
| utc_offset             = [[UTC+09:00|+09]]
| drives_on              = right
| calling_code           = {{ubl|+82 ([[Telephone numbers in South Korea|South Korea]])|+850 ([[Telephone numbers in North Korea|North Korea]])}}
| cctld                  = {{unbulleted list|[[.kr]] ([[South Korea]])|[[.kp]] ([[North Korea]])}}
| area_rank              = 
| GDP_PPP                = 
| GDP_PPP_year           = 
| HDI                    = 
| HDI_year               = 
| today                  = 
| leader_title1          = [[President of South Korea]]
| leader_name1           = [[Lee Jae Myung]]
| leader_title2          = [[Prime Minister of South Korea]]
| leader_name2           = [[Kim Min-seok (politician)|Kim Min-seok]]
| leader_title3          = [[Supreme Leader (North Korean title)|Supreme Leader of North Korea]]
| leader_name3           = [[Kim Jong Un]]{{Efn|Kim Jong Un holds four concurrent positions: [[General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea]], [[President of the State Affairs of North Korea|President of the State Affairs Commission]], [[Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea|Chairman of the Central Military Commission]] and [[Commander-in-Chief of North Korea|Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces]].}}
| leader_title4          = [[Premier of North Korea]]
| leader_name4           = [[Pak Thae-song]]
| footnotes              = {{notelist}}
}}
{{Infobox Chinese
| title = Korea
| korean_header = South Korean name
| skhangul = 한국
| skhanja = {{linktext|韓國}}
| skrr = Hanguk
| skmr = Han'guk
| northkorea = 
| korean_header2 = North Korean name
| nkhangul = 조선
| nkhanja = {{linktext|朝鮮}}
| nkrr = Joseon
| nkmr = Chosŏn
| northkorea2 = yes
}}

'''Korea'''{{efn|{{Korean/auto|hangul=^한국|rr=yes}} in South Korea, or {{Korean/auto|hangul=^조선|mr=yes}} in North Korea.}} is a [[peninsula]]r region in [[East Asia]] consisting of the '''Korean Peninsula''',{{efn|{{Korean|hangul=한반도|hanja=韓半島|rr=Hanbando}} in South Korea, or {{Korean|hangul=조선반도|hanja=朝鮮半島|mr=Chosŏnbando|labels=no}} in North Korea and among some in the Korean diaspora.}} [[Jeju Island]], and smaller islands. Since the [[end of World War II in Asia]] in 1945, it has been politically [[Division of Korea|divided]] at or near the [[38th parallel north|38th parallel]] between [[North Korea]] (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and [[South Korea]] (Republic of Korea; ROK). Both countries proclaimed independence in 1948, and the two countries fought the [[Korean War]] from 1950 to 1953. The region is bordered by [[China]] to the north and [[Russia]] to the northeast, across the [[Yalu River|Amnok]] (Yalu) and [[Tumen River|Duman]] (Tumen) rivers, and is separated from [[Japan]] to the southeast by the [[Korea Strait]].

Known human habitation of the Korean peninsula dates to 40,000 BC.<ref>Bae, Kidong. 2002  Radiocarbon Dates from Palaeolithic Sites in Korea. ''Radiocarbon'' 44(2): 473–476.</ref> The kingdom of [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]], which according to tradition was founded in 2333 BC, fell to the [[Han dynasty]] in 108 BC. It was followed by the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea|Three Kingdoms]] period, in which Korea was divided into [[Goguryeo]], [[Baekje]], and [[Silla]]. In 668 AD, Silla conquered Baekje and Goguryeo with the aid of the [[Tang dynasty]], forming [[Unified Silla]]; [[Balhae]] succeeded Goguryeo in the north. In the late 9th century, Unified Silla collapsed into three states, beginning the [[Later Three Kingdoms]] period. In 918, Goguryeo was resurrected as [[Goryeo]], which achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians, as it unified both the Later Three Kingdoms and the ruling class of Balhae after its fall.<ref name=":5">{{cite web |script-title=ko:발해 유민 포섭 |url=http://contents.history.go.kr/front/hm/view.do?treeId=010401&tabId=01&levelId=hm_045_0020 |website=우리역사넷 |publisher=[[National Institute of Korean History]] |access-date=13 March 2019 |language=ko |archive-date=27 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327091033/http://contents.history.go.kr/front/hm/view.do?treeId=010401&tabId=01&levelId=hm_045_0020 |url-status=live }}</ref> Goryeo, whose name developed into the modern [[exonym]] "Korea", was highly cultured and saw the invention of the first [[Movable type|metal movable type]]. During the 13th century, [[Goryeo under Mongol rule|Goryeo became a vassal state]] of the [[Mongol Empire]]. Goryeo overthrew Mongol rule before falling to a coup led by General [[Yi Seong-gye]], who established the [[Joseon]] dynasty in 1392. The first 200 years of Joseon were marked by peace; the [[Hangul|Hangul, the Korean alphabet]] was created and [[Confucianism]] became influential. This ended with [[Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598)|Japanese]] and [[Qing invasion of Joseon|Qing invasions]], which brought devastation to Joseon and led to Korean isolationism. After the invasions, an isolated Joseon experienced another nearly 200-year period of peace and prosperity, along with cultural and technological development. In the final years of the 19th century, [[Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876|Japan forced Joseon to open up]] and Joseon experienced turmoil such as the [[Kapsin Coup]], [[Donghak Peasant Revolution]], and the [[assassination of Empress Myeongseong]]. In 1895, Japan defeated [[Qing Dynasty|China]] in the [[First Sino-Japanese War]] and China lost suzerainty over Korea and Korea was placed under further Japanese influence. In 1897, the centuries old Joseon was replaced by the [[Korean Empire]] with the Joseon's last king, [[Gojong of Korea|Gojong]], becoming the Emperor of the Korean Empire. Japan's further victory in the 1904–1905 [[Russo-Japanese War]], expelled Russian influence in Korea and Manchuria. In 1905, [[Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905|the Korean Empire became a protectorate of the Empire of Japan]]. In 1910, [[the Empire of Japan]] [[Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910|officially annexed the Korean peninsula]].

[[Korea under Japanese rule]] was marked by industrialization and modernization, economic exploitation, and brutal suppression of the [[Korean independence movement]], as reflected in the 1919 [[March First Movement]]. The Japanese suppressed Korean culture, and during World War II forcefully mobilized millions of Koreans to support its war effort. In 1945, [[Surrender of Japan|Japan surrendered to the Allies]], and the [[Soviet Union]] and [[United States]] agreed to divide Korea into two military occupation zones divided by the 38th parallel, with the Soviet zone in the north and American zone in the south. The division was meant to be temporary, with plans for Korea to be reunited under a single government. In 1948, the DPRK and ROK were established with the backing of each power, and ongoing tensions led to the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, which came to involve [[United Nations Command|U.S.-led United Nations]] and [[People's Liberation Army|communist Chinese]] forces. The war ended in stalemate in 1953, but without a peace treaty. [[Korean Demilitarized Zone|A demilitarized zone]] was created between the countries, approximating the original partition.

This status contributes to the high tensions that divide the peninsula, and both states claim to be the sole legitimate government of Korea. South Korea is a [[regional power]] and a [[developed country]], with its [[Economy of South Korea|economy]] ranked as the world's [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|fourteenth-largest by GDP (PPP)]]. Its [[Republic of Korea Armed Forces|armed forces]] are one of the world's strongest militaries, with the world's second-largest standing army by [[List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel|military and paramilitary personnel]]. South Korea has been renowned for its globally influential pop culture, particularly in music ([[K-pop]]) and [[Cinema of South Korea|cinema]], a phenomenon referred to as the [[Korean Wave]]. North Korea follows ''[[Songun]]'', a "[[Militarism|military first]]" policy which prioritizes the [[Korean People's Army]] in state affairs and resources. It [[North Korea and weapons of mass destruction|possesses nuclear weapons]], and is the country with the [[List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel|highest number of military personnel]], with a total of 7.8 million [[Active duty|active]], [[Military reserve force|reserve]], and [[paramilitary]] personnel, or approximately {{Percentage|7769000|{{UN_Population|Dem. People's Republic of Korea}}}} of its population. Its active duty army of 1.3 million soldiers is the fourth-largest in the world, consisting of {{Percentage|1280000|{{UN_Population|Dem. People's Republic of Korea}}|1}} of its population. North Korea is widely considered to have the worst [[Human rights in North Korea|human rights record]] in the world.

==Etymology==
{{Main|Names of Korea}}
{{See also|Korean romanization}}

"Korea" is the modern spelling of "Corea", a name attested in English as early as 1614.<ref name=oed>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary|url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/104363|title=Korean|access-date=20 December 2013|archive-date=7 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211007013815/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/104363|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=youtube on 'Korea? Corea?'|website = [[YouTube]]| date=12 January 2016 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuc3qigGDpc| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/tuc3qigGDpc| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}</ref> "Corea" is derived from the name of the ancient kingdom of [[Goryeo]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}} Korea was [[Romanization of Chinese|transliterated]] as ''Cauli'' in ''[[The Travels of Marco Polo]]'',<ref>{{cite book|last=Haw|first=Stephen G.|title=Marco Polo's China: A Venetian in the Realm of Khubilai Khan|date=2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781134275427|pages=4–5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DSfvfr8VQSEC&pg=PA4|access-date=29 September 2017|language=en}}</ref> of the [[Chinese language|Chinese]] {{lang|zh|高麗}} (<small>[[Middle Chinese|MC]]</small>: ''Kawlej'',<ref name=baxsag>Baxter, William & al. "[http://crlao.ehess.fr/docannexe.php?id=1207 Baxter–Sagart Old Chinese Reconstruction] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927141238/http://crlao.ehess.fr/docannexe.php?id=1207 |date=27 September 2013 }}", pp. 43, 58 & 80. 20 February 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2013.</ref> <small>[[Standard Mandarin|mod.]]</small> ''Gāolì''). This was the [[Hanja]] for the Korean kingdom of [[Goryeo]] ({{Korean|hangul=고려|mr=Koryŏ}}), which ruled most of the Korean peninsula during the 12th century. Korea's introduction to the West resulted from trade and contact with merchants from Arabic lands,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Till|first1=Geoffrey|last2=Bratton|first2=Patrick|title=Sea Power and the Asia-Pacific: The Triumph of Neptune?|date=2012|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136627248|page=145|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RxOpAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA145|access-date=29 September 2017|language=en}}</ref> with some records dating back as far as the 9th century.<ref>{{cite book|last=Seung-Yong|first=Yunn|title=Religious culture in Korea|date=1996|publisher=Hollym|page=99|isbn=9781565910843|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tvcQAQAAIAAJ|access-date=29 September 2017|language=en}}</ref> Goryeo's name was a continuation of [[Goguryeo]] (Koguryŏ) the northernmost of the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]], which was officially known as Goryeo beginning in the 5th century.<ref>{{cite web|script-title=ko:디지털 삼국유사 사전, 박물지 시범개발|url=https://www.culturecontent.com/content/contentView.do?search_div=CP_THE&search_div_id=CP_THE004&cp_code=rp0703&index_id=rp07032340&content_id=rp070309330002&print=Y|website=문화콘텐츠닷컴|publisher=Korea Creative Content Agency|access-date=6 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119100108/https://www.culturecontent.com/content/contentView.do?search_div=CP_THE&search_div_id=CP_THE004&cp_code=rp0703&index_id=rp07032340&content_id=rp070309330002&print=Y|archive-date=19 November 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> The original name was a combination of the adjectives "high" and "lofty" with the name of a local [[Yemaek]] tribe, whose original name is thought to have been either "''Guru"'' ({{langx|ko|溝樓|lit=Walled City|label=none}}, inferred from some toponyms in Chinese historical documents) or "''Gauri"'' ({{langx|ko|가우리|lit=Center|label=none}}). With expanding British and American trade following the [[opening of Korea]] in the late 19th century, the spelling "Korea" appeared and gradually grew in popularity.<ref name=oed/> The name Korea is now commonly used in English contexts by both North and South Korea.

In South Korea, Korea as a whole is referred to as {{transliteration|ko|Hanguk}} ({{Korean|hangul=한국|labels=no|lit=country of the ''[[Samhan|Han]]''}}, {{IPA|ko|haːnɡuk|}}). The name references ''[[Samhan]]'', referring to the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]], not the ancient confederacies in the southern Korean Peninsula.<ref>{{cite web |last1=이기환 |script-title=ko:[이기환의 흔적의 역사]국호논쟁의 전말{{nbsp}}... 대한민국이냐 고려공화국이냐 |url=http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=201708300913001&code=960100&www |website=[[Kyunghyang Shinmun]] |access-date=2 July 2018 |language=ko |date=30 August 2017 |archive-date=12 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812154305/http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=201708300913001&code=960100&www |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Lee |first=Deok-il |script-title=ko:[이덕일 사랑] 대~한민국 |url=http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/08/14/2008081401512.html |work=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |access-date=2 July 2018 |language=ko |archive-date=19 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119100109/http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/08/14/2008081401512.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Although written in Hanja as {{lang|zh|韓}}, {{lang|zh|幹}}, or {{lang|zh|刊}}, this ''Han'' has no relation to the Chinese place names or peoples who used those characters but was a [[transcription into Chinese|phonetic transcription]] (<small>[[Old Chinese|OC]]</small>: [[reconstruction of Old Chinese|*]]''Gar'', <small>[[Middle Chinese|MC]]</small>: ''Han''<ref name=baxsag/> or ''Gan'') of a native Korean word that seems to have had the meaning "big" or "great", particularly in reference to leaders. It has been tentatively linked with the title ''[[khan (title)|khan]]'' used by the nomads of [[Manchuria]] and [[Central Asia]].

In North Korea, Korea as a whole is referred to as {{transliteration|ko|Joseon}} ({{Korean|hangul=조선|labels=no|lit=[land of the] Morning Calm}}, {{IPA|ko|tɕosʰʌn|}}). {{transliteration|ko|Joseon}} is the modern Korean pronunciation of the Hanja {{lang|ko|朝鮮}}, which is also the basis of the word for Korea as a whole in [[Japan]] ({{Langx|ja|朝鮮|translit=Chōsen|label=none}}), [[China]] ({{Lang-zh|t=朝鮮|p=Cháoxiǎn|labels=no}}), and [[Vietnam]] ({{lang|vi|Triều Tiên}}). "Great [[Joseon]]" was the name of the kingdom ruled by the [[House of Yi|Joseon dynasty]] from 1392 until their declaration of the short-lived [[Great Korean Empire]] in 1897. [[Taejo of Joseon|King Taejo]] had named them for the earlier [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] ({{lang|ko|고조선}}), who ruled northern Korea from its legendary [[prehistory of Korea|prehistory]] until their conquest in 108 BCE by China's [[Han Empire]]. The ''Go-'' in Gojoseon is the Hanja word {{lang|ko|古}} and simply means "ancient" or "old"; it is a modern usage to distinguish the ancient Joseon from the later dynasty. It is unclear whether {{transliteration|ko|Joseon}} was a [[transcription into Chinese|transcription]] of a native Korean name (<small>[[Old Chinese|OC]]</small> [[reconstruction of Old Chinese|*]]''T[r]awser'', <small>[[Middle Chinese|MC]]</small> ''Trjewsjen'')<ref name=baxsag/> or a partial translation into Chinese of the Korean capital [[Asadal]] ({{lang|ko|아사달}}),{{refn|First attested in the 13th-century ''[[Samguk yusa]]'' as {{lang|zh|阿斯達}} (<small>[[middle Chinese|MC]] ''Asjedat''</small><ref name=baxsag/>). The name is credited to the 6th-century ''[[Book of Wei]]'' but does not appear in surviving passages.}} whose meaning has been reconstructed as "Morning Land" or "Mountain".

==History==
{{Main|History of Korea}}
{{For timeline|Timeline of Korean history}}
<!--Note: this is a short summary. Do not add details here: please expand content in the main article (History of Korea) -->
{{History of Korea}}

===Prehistory===
{{Main|Prehistoric Korea}}
The Korean Academy claimed ancient hominid fossils originating from about 100,000 BCE in the lava at a stone city site in Korea. Fluorescent and high-magnetic analyses indicate the volcanic fossils may be from as early as 300,000 BCE.<ref>{{cite web | last = Li | first = Jie | url = http://www.pureinsight.org/node/1065 | title = Some Discoveries of Fossils and Relics of Prehistoric Civilizations From Around the World | publisher = Pureinsight | date = 21 August 2002 | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 12 October 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081012164208/http://www.pureinsight.org/node/1065 | url-status = live }}</ref> The best preserved Korean pottery goes back to the [[Paleolithic]] times around 10,000 BCE and the [[Neolithic]] period begins around 6000 BCE.

Beginning around 300 BC, the [[Japonic]]-speaking [[Yayoi people]] from the Korean Peninsula entered the Japanese islands and displaced or intermingled with the original [[Jōmon people|Jōmon]] inhabitants.<ref>{{cite book | surname = Vovin | given = Alexander | author-link = Alexander Vovin | chapter = Origins of the Japanese Language | doi = 10.1093/acrefore/9780199384655.013.277 | doi-access = free | title = Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Linguistics | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 2017 | isbn = 978-0-19-938465-5}}</ref> The linguistic homeland of Proto-[[Koreans]] is located somewhere in Southern Siberia / Manchuria, such as the [[Liao river]] area or the Amur region. Proto-Koreans arrived in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula at around 300 BC, replacing and assimilating Japonic-speakers and likely causing the [[Yayoi culture|Yayoi]] migration.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Janhunen|first=Juha|date=2010|title=RReconstructing the Language Map of Prehistorical Northeast Asia|journal=Studia Orientalia|quote=... there are strong indications that the neighbouring Baekje state (in the southwest) was predominantly Japonic-speaking until it was linguistically Koreanized.|number=108}}</ref>

===Gojoseon===
{{Main|Gojoseon}}
According to Korean legend, [[Dangun]], a descendant of [[Heaven]], established [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] in 2333 BCE. In 108 BCE, the [[Han dynasty]] defeated Gojoseon and installed [[Four Commanderies of Han|four commanderies]] in the northern Korean peninsula. Three of the commanderies fell or retreated westward within a few decades, but the [[Lelang Commandery]] remained as a center of cultural and economic exchange with successive Chinese dynasties for four centuries. By 313, [[Goguryeo]] annexed all of the Chinese commanderies.

===Proto–Three Kingdoms===
{{Main|Proto–Three Kingdoms of Korea}}
{{unreferenced section|date=November 2022}}
The Proto–Three Kingdoms period, sometimes called the Multiple States Period, is the earlier part of what is commonly called the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea|Three Kingdoms Period]], following the fall of [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] but before [[Goguryeo]], [[Baekje]], and [[Silla]] fully developed into kingdoms.

This time period saw numerous states spring up from the former territories of Gojoseon, which encompassed northern Korea and southern [[Manchuria]]. With the fall of Gojoseon, southern Korea entered the [[Samhan]] period.

Located in the southern part of Korea, Samhan referred to the three confederacies of [[Mahan confederacy|Mahan]], [[Jinhan confederacy|Jinhan]], and [[Byeonhan confederacy|Byeonhan]]. Mahan was the largest and consisted of 54 states. [[Byeonhan]] and [[Jinhan]] both consisted of twelve states, bringing a total of 78 states within the [[Samhan]]. These three confederacies eventually developed into [[Baekje]], [[Silla]], and [[Gaya confederacy|Gaya]].

===Three Kingdoms===
{{Main|Three Kingdoms of Korea|Baekje|Goguryeo|Silla}}
{{Self-published|section|date=November 2022}}
[[File:7th century painting of Koreans.png|thumb|7th century Tang dynasty painting of envoys from the Three Kingdoms of Korea: Baekje, Goguryeo, and Silla]]
The [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]] consisted of [[Goguryeo]], [[Silla]], and [[Baekje]]. Silla and Baekje controlled the southern half of the [[Korean Peninsula]], maintaining the former [[Samhan]] territories, while Goguryeo controlled the northern half of the Korean Peninsula, Manchuria and the [[Liaodong Peninsula]], uniting [[Buyeo]], [[Okjeo]], [[Eastern Ye|Dongye]] and other states in the former [[Old Chosŏn|Gojoseon]] territories.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history.htm |title=Korea |publisher=Asian info |access-date=3 November 2009 |archive-date=4 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204050220/http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Goguryeo]] was a highly militaristic state,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Ki-baek|title=A New History of Korea|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674615762|pages=23–24|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA23|access-date=21 November 2016|language=en|year=1984}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Walker|first1=Hugh Dyson|title=East Asia: A New History|publisher=AuthorHouse|isbn=9781477265161|page=104|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3Z3a0NU4RHMC|language=en|date=2012|access-date=21 November 2016|archive-date=18 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818181135/https://books.google.com/books?id=3Z3a0NU4RHMC|url-status=live}}{{self-published source|date=September 2020}}</ref> and a large empire in East Asia,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Roberts|first1=John Morris|last2=Westad|first2=Odd Arne|title=The History of the World|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9780199936762|page=443|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A2cfZkU5aQgC&q=koguryo+powerful+empire|access-date=15 July 2016|language=en|year=2013|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234403/https://books.google.com/books?id=A2cfZkU5aQgC&q=koguryo+powerful+empire|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Gardner|first=Hall|title=Averting Global War: Regional Challenges, Overextension, and Options for American Strategy|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=9780230608733|pages=158–159|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=acvGAAAAQBAJ&q=great+powers|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417203941/https://books.google.com/books?id=acvGAAAAQBAJ&q=great+powers|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 April 2021|access-date=15 July 2016|language=en|date=27 November 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=de Laet|first=Sigfried J.|title=History of Humanity: From the seventh to the sixteenth century|publisher=UNESCO|isbn=9789231028137|page=1133|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PvlthkbFU1UC&pg=PA1133|access-date=10 October 2016|language=en|year=1994|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234404/https://books.google.com/books?id=PvlthkbFU1UC&pg=PA1133|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Walker">{{cite book|last=Walker|first=Hugh Dyson|title=East Asia: A New History|publisher=AuthorHouse|isbn=9781477265178|pages=6–7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GBvRs-za0CIC&pg=PA6|access-date=18 November 2016|language=en|date=20 November 2012}}{{self-published source|date=September 2020}}</ref> reaching its zenith in the 5th century when its territories expanded to encompass most of Manchuria to the north, parts of [[Inner Mongolia]] to the west,<ref>{{cite book|last=Tudor|first=Daniel|title=Korea: The Impossible Country: The Impossible Country|publisher=Tuttle Publishing|isbn=9781462910229|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BA_QAgAAQBAJ&q=Inner+Mongolia|access-date=15 July 2016|language=en|date=10 November 2012|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234917/https://books.google.com/books?id=BA_QAgAAQBAJ&q=Inner+Mongolia|url-status=live}}</ref> parts of Russia to the east,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kotkin|first1=Stephen|last2=Wolff|first2=David|title=Rediscovering Russia in Asia: Siberia and the Russian Far East: Siberia and the Russian Far East|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317461296|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t_DqBgAAQBAJ&q=Koguryo+Siberia+Russia%27s|access-date=15 July 2016|language=en|date=4 March 2015}}</ref> and the Seoul region to the south.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kim|first=Jinwung|title=A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict|date=2012|publisher=Indiana University Press|location=Bloomington, Indiana|isbn=978-0253000781|page=35|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFPsi3IK8gcC&pg=PA35|access-date=15 July 2016|language=en|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234408/https://books.google.com/books?id=QFPsi3IK8gcC&pg=PA35|url-status=live}}</ref> Goguryeo experienced a golden age under [[Gwanggaeto the Great]] and his son [[Jangsu of Goguryeo|Jangsu]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Hyŏn-hŭi|last2=Pak|first2=Sŏng-su|last3=Yun|first3=Nae-hyŏn|title=New history of Korea|publisher=Jimoondang|isbn=9788988095850|page=201|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KO8MAQAAMAAJ|language=en|year=2005|access-date=29 July 2016|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234407/https://books.google.com/books?id=KO8MAQAAMAAJ|url-status=live}} "He launched a military expedition to expand his territory, opening the golden age of Goguryeo."</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Hall|first=John Whitney|title=The Cambridge History of Japan|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521223522|page=362|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A3_6lp8IOK8C|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=1988}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Embree|first=Ainslie Thomas|title=Encyclopedia of Asian history|publisher=Scribner|isbn=9780684188997|page=324|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LtwpAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Nevertheless%2C+the+reigns+of+Kwanggaet%27o+and+his+successor+Changsu+%28413-491%29+constituted+the+golden+age+of+Koguryo.%22|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=1988|archive-date=28 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328145304/https://books.google.com/books?id=LtwpAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Nevertheless%2C+the+reigns+of+Kwanggaet%27o+and+his+successor+Changsu+%28413-491%29+constituted+the+golden+age+of+Koguryo.%22|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Cohen|first=Warren I.|title=East Asia at the Center: Four Thousand Years of Engagement with the World|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231502511|page=50|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Okjd2rDwb8IC&q=%22Koguryo%27s+Golden+Age%22|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=20 December 2000|archive-date=4 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161204041023/https://books.google.com/books?id=Okjd2rDwb8IC&q=%22Koguryo%27s+Golden+Age%22|url-status=live}}</ref> who both subdued Baekje and Silla during their times, achieving a brief unification of the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]] and becoming the most dominant power on the Korean Peninsula.<ref name="Jinwung">{{cite book|last=Kim|first=Jinwung|title=A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0253000781|page=35|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFPsi3IK8gcC&pg=PA35|access-date=11 October 2016|language=en|date=5 November 2012|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234408/https://books.google.com/books?id=QFPsi3IK8gcC&pg=PA35|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Kings and Queens of Korea|url=http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/archive/program/program_dynasty.htm?no=10039827|website=KBS World Radio|publisher=Korea Communications Commission|access-date=26 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828051916/http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/archive/program/program_dynasty.htm?no=10039827|archive-date=28 August 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> In addition to contesting for control of the Korean Peninsula, Goguryeo had many [[Military history of Goguryeo|military conflicts]] with various Chinese dynasties,<ref>{{cite book|last=Walker|first=Hugh Dyson|title=East Asia: A New History|publisher=AuthorHouse|isbn=9781477265178|page=161|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GBvRs-za0CIC&pg=PA161|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|date=20 November 2012}}{{self-published source|date=September 2020}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=June 2020}} most notably the [[Goguryeo–Sui War]], in which Goguryeo defeated a huge force said to number over a million men.<ref>{{cite book|last1=White|first1=Matthew|title=Atrocities: The 100 Deadliest Episodes in Human History|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|isbn=9780393081923|page=78|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0-fQHlaIpR4C&pg=PA78|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|date=7 November 2011|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234918/https://books.google.com/books?id=0-fQHlaIpR4C&pg=PA78|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Grant|first1=Reg G.|title=1001 Battles That Changed the Course of World History|publisher=Universe Pub.|isbn=9780789322333|page=104|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s4njwZGrZg4C&pg=PA104|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|year=2011|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005647/https://books.google.com/books?id=s4njwZGrZg4C&pg=PA104|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Bedeski|first1=Robert|title=Human Security and the Chinese State: Historical Transformations and the Modern Quest for Sovereignty|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781134125975|page=90|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iNl9AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA90|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|date=12 March 2007|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234920/https://books.google.com/books?id=iNl9AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA90|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Ki-baek|title=A New History of Korea|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674615762|page=47|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA47|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=1984|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234931/https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA47|url-status=live}} "Koguryŏ was the first to open hostilities, with a bold assault across the Liao River against Liao-hsi, in 598. The Sui emperor, Wen Ti, launched a retaliatory attack on Koguryŏ but met with reverses and turned back in mid-course. Yang Ti, the next Sui emperor, proceeded in 612 to mount an invasion of unprecedented magnitude, marshalling a huge force said to number over a million men. And when his armies failed to take Liao-tung Fortress (modern Liao-yang), the anchor of Koguryŏ's first line of defense, he had a nearly a third of his forces, some 300,000 strong, break off the battle there and strike directly at the Koguryŏ capital of P'yŏngyang. But the Sui army was lured into a trap by the famed Koguryŏ commander Ŭlchi Mundŏk, and suffered a calamitous defeat at the Salsu (Ch'ŏngch'ŏn) River. It is said that only 2,700 of the 300,000 Sui soldiers who had crossed the Yalu survived to find their way back, and the Sui emperor now lifted the siege of Liao-tung Fortress and withdrew his forces to China proper. Yang Ti continued to send his armies against Koguryŏ but again without success, and before long his war-weakened empire crumbled."</ref><ref name="Nahm">{{cite book|last1=Nahm|first1=Andrew C.|title=A Panorama of 5000 Years: Korean History|date=2005|publisher=Hollym International Corporation|location=Seoul|isbn=978-0930878689|page=[https://archive.org/details/panoramaof5000ye0000nahm/page/18 18]|edition=Second revised|url=https://archive.org/details/panoramaof5000ye0000nahm/page/18}} "China, which had been split into many states since the early 3rd century, was reunified by the Sui dynasty at the end of the 6th century. Soon afterward, Sui China mobilized its army and invaded Koguryŏ. However, the people of Koguryŏ were united and able to repel the Chinese invasion. In 612, Sui troops invaded Korea again, but Koguryŏ forces fought bravely and destroyed Sui troops everywhere. General Ŭlchi Mundŏk of Koguryŏ completely wiped out some 300,000 Sui troops which came across the Yalu River in the battles near the Salsu River (now Ch'ŏngch'ŏn River) with his ingenious military tactics. Only 2,700 Sui troops were able to flee from Korea. The Sui dynasty, which wasted so much energy and manpower in aggressive wars against Koguryŏ, fell in 618."</ref> In 642, the powerful general [[Yŏn Kaesomun]] led a coup and gained complete control over Goguryeo. In response, Emperor [[Tang Taizong]] of China led a [[First conflict of the Goguryeo–Tang War|campaign against Goguryeo]], in which the Gorguryeo forces were decimated by the Tang at the [[Battle of Mount Jupil]]. Taizong was later defeated at the [[Battle of Ansi]] and withdrew his forces from Goguryeo.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Tucker|first1=Spencer C.|title=A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781851096725|page=406|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5_tSnygvbIC|language=en|date=23 December 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Walker|first1=Hugh Dyson|title=East Asia: A New History|publisher=AuthorHouse|isbn=9781477265178|page=161|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GBvRs-za0CIC&pg=PA161|access-date=4 November 2016|language=en|date=20 November 2012}}{{self-published source|date=September 2020}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=June 2020}} After the death of Tang Taizong, his son Emperor [[Tang Gaozong]] allied with the Korean kingdom of Silla and invaded Goguryeo again, but were forced to withdraw in 662.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ring|first1=Trudy|last2=Watson|first2=Noelle|last3=Schellinger|first3=Paul|title=Asia and Oceania: International Dictionary of Historic Places|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136639791|page=486|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=voerPYsAB5wC&q=stalwart+defenses|access-date=16 July 2016|language=en|date=12 November 2012|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234935/https://books.google.com/books?id=voerPYsAB5wC&q=stalwart+defenses|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Maps">{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Injae|last2=Miller|first2=Owen|last3=Park|first3=Jinhoon|last4=Yi|first4=Hyun-Hae|title=Korean History in Maps|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781107098466|page=29|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=46OTBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA29|access-date=17 July 2016|language=en|date=15 December 2014|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234923/https://books.google.com/books?id=46OTBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA29|url-status=live}}</ref> However, Yŏn Kaesomun died of a natural cause in 666 and Goguryeo was thrown into chaos and weakened by a succession struggle among his sons and younger brother, with his eldest son defecting to [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] and his younger brother defecting to Silla.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Ki-baek|title=A New History of Korea|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674615762|page=67|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA67|access-date=2 August 2016|language=en|year=1984|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234925/https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA67|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea, 2nd Edition|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781610695824|page=49|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IgxvBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA49|access-date=17 July 2016|language=en|date=30 May 2014}}</ref> The Tang-Silla alliance conquered Goguryeo in 668. After the collapse of Goguryeo, Tang and Silla ended their alliance and fought over control of the Korean Peninsula. Silla succeeded in gaining control over most of the Korean Peninsula, while Tang gained control over Goguryeo's northern territories. However, 30 years after the fall of Goguryeo, a Goguryeo general by the name of [[Dae Joyeong]] founded the Korean-Mohe state of [[Balhae]] and successfully expelled the Tang presence from much of the former Goguryeo territories.

[[File:Seokguram Buddha.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Seokguram Grotto]] from the [[Silla]] era, a [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]]]]
The southwestern Korean kingdom of [[Baekje]] was founded around modern-day [[Seoul]] by a [[Onjo of Baekje|Goguryeo prince]], a son of the [[Dongmyeong of Goguryeo|founder of Goguryeo]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Pratt|first1=Chairman Department of East Asian Studies Keith|last2=Pratt|first2=Keith|last3=Rutt|first3=Richard|title=Korea: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136793936|page=135|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r15cAgAAQBAJ&q=%22prince+of+Koguryo%22|access-date=22 July 2016|language=en|date=16 December 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Yu|first1=Chai-Shin|title=The New History of Korean Civilization|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=9781462055593|page=27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TYKNdiDCGLAC&pg=PA27|access-date=22 July 2016|language=en|year=2012|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005648/https://books.google.com/books?id=TYKNdiDCGLAC&pg=PA27|url-status=live}}{{self-published source|date=September 2020}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=June 2020}}<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Jinwung|title=A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0253000781|page=28|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFPsi3IK8gcC&q=%22son+of+Chumong%22|access-date=22 July 2016|language=en|date=5 November 2012}}</ref> Baekje absorbed all of the [[Mahan confederacy|Mahan]] states and subjugated most of the western Korean peninsula (including the modern provinces of [[Gyeonggi]], [[Chungcheong-do|Chungcheong]], and [[Jeolla]], as well as parts of [[Hwanghae]] and [[Gangwon-do (South Korea)|Gangwon]]) to a centralised government; during the expansion of its territory, Baekje acquired Chinese culture and technology through maritime contacts with the [[Southern Dynasties]]. Baekje was a great maritime power;<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ebrey|first1=Patricia Buckley|last2=Walthall|first2=Anne|last3=Palais|first3=James B.|title=East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|isbn=9780618133840|page=123|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0entAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Paekche+was+probably+the+most+important+maritime+nation+in+the+late+fourth+century%22|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|year=2006|archive-date=28 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328145155/https://books.google.com/books?id=0entAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Paekche+was+probably+the+most+important+maritime+nation+in+the+late+fourth+century%22|url-status=live}}</ref> its nautical skill, which made it the [[Phoenicia]] of East Asia, was instrumental in the dissemination of Buddhism throughout East Asia and continental culture to Japan.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kitagawa|first1=Joseph|title=The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136875908|page=348|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9fyzAAAAQBAJ|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=5 September 2013|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703151449/https://books.google.com/books?id=9fyzAAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Ebrey|first1=Patricia Buckley|last2=Walthall|first2=Anne|last3=Palais|first3=James B.|title=East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History, Volume I: To 1800|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1111808150|page=104|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CWE8AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA104|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|year=2013|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005701/https://books.google.com/books?id=CWE8AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA104|url-status=live}}</ref> Historic evidence suggests that Japanese culture, art, and language were influenced by the kingdom of Baekje and Korea itself;<ref name="Walker" /><ref>{{cite book|last1=Griffis|first1=William Elliot|title=Corea, Without and Within: Chapters on Corean History, Manners and Religion|year=1885|publisher=Presbyterian Board of Publication|url=https://archive.org/details/coreawithoutwith00grif_0|page=[https://archive.org/details/coreawithoutwith00grif_0/page/251 251]|quote=Corea was not only the road by which the art of China reached Japan, but it is the original home of many of the art-ideas which the world believes to be purely Japanese..|access-date=25 September 2016|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Citation | publisher = [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] | title = Yayo | date = October 2002 | url = http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/yayo/hd_yayo.htm | quote = Metallurgy was also introduced from the Asian mainland during this time. Bronze and iron were used to make weapons, armor, tools, and ritual implements such as bells (dotaku) | access-date = 17 July 2011 | archive-date = 4 January 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200104161858/https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/yayo/hd_yayo.htm | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | newspaper = [[Choson Sinbo]]| publisher = Korea NP  | title = Kitora Tomb Originates in Koguryo Murals | place = [[Japan|JP]] | last = Chon | first = Ho Chon | url = http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/035th_issue/98032502.htm | issue = 35 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120226023335/http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/035th_issue/98032502.htm | archive-date = 26 February 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|url=http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/japan/yayoi/yayoi.html |publisher=MNSU |title=eMuseum |contribution=Yayoi |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110226121349/http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/japan/yayoi/yayoi.html |archive-date=26 February 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2131.html | title = Japanese history: Jomon, Yayoi, Kofun | publisher = Japan guide | date = 9 June 2002 | access-date = 21 May 2012 | archive-date = 19 November 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181119100114/https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2131.html | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.asiasocietymuseum.com/ |title=Asia Society: The Collection in Context |publisher=Asia society museum |access-date=21 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090919042244/http://www.asiasocietymuseum.com/ |archive-date=19 September 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Pottery – MSN Encarta |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761568150_4/Pottery.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091029161656/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761568150_4/Pottery.html |archive-date=29 October 2009 |url-status=dead}} "The pottery of the Yayoi culture ({{c.|lk=no|300}} BCE – CE {{c.|lk=no|250}}), made by a Mongol people who came from Korea to Kyūshū, has been found throughout Japan. "</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2046.html |title=Kanji |publisher=Japan guide |date=25 November 2010 |access-date=21 May 2012 |archive-date=10 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510085157/http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2046.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last = Noma| first = Seiroku| title = The Arts of Japan: Late Medieval to Modern| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hhOj8JrLQBMC&pg=PA218| access-date = 21 May 2012| year = 2003| publisher = Kodansha International| isbn = 978-4-7700-2978-2| archive-date = 15 February 2023| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230215234434/https://books.google.com/books?id=hhOj8JrLQBMC&pg=PA218| url-status = live}}</ref><ref name = "www2.kenyon.edu">{{cite web | url= http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln275/Jap-Kor-art.htm | title= Japanese Art and Its Korean Secret | publisher= Kenyon | date= 6 April 2003 | access-date= 21 May 2012 | archive-date= 9 July 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110709082157/http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln275/Jap-Kor-art.htm | url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080428-ancient-tomb.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501083556/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080428-ancient-tomb.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=1 May 2008 |title = Japanese Royal Tomb Opened to Scholars for First Time |publisher= National geographic |date= 28 October 2010 | access-date = 21 May 2012}}</ref>{{Excessive citations inline|date=November 2022}} Baekje also played an important role in transmitting advanced Chinese culture to the Japanese archipelago. Baekje was once a great military power on the Korean Peninsula, most notably in the 4th century during the rule of [[Geunchogo of Baekje|Geunchogo]] when its influence extended across the sea to [[Liaoxi]] and [[Shandong]] in China, taking advantage of the weakened state of [[Former Qin]], and [[Kyushu]] in the Japanese archipelago;<ref>{{cite book|title=A Brief History of Korea|publisher=Ewha Womans University Press|isbn=9788973006199|pages=29–30|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o-WlUd3cjh0C&pg=PT29|access-date=21 November 2016|language=en|date=1 January 2005}}</ref> however, Baekje was critically defeated by Gwanggaeto the Great and declined.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Yu|first1=Chai-Shin|title=The New History of Korean Civilization|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=9781462055593|page=27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TYKNdiDCGLAC&pg=PA27|access-date=21 November 2016|language=en|year=2012|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005648/https://books.google.com/books?id=TYKNdiDCGLAC&pg=PA27|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Three Kingdoms of Korea Map.png|thumb|The [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]], at the end of the 5th century]]
Although later records claim that [[Silla]] was the oldest of the [[Three Kingdoms of Korea]], it is now believed to have been the last kingdom to develop. By the 2nd century, Silla existed as a large state in the southeast, occupying and influencing its neighbouring city-states. In 562, Silla annexed the [[Gaya confederacy]], which was located between Baekje and Silla. The Three Kingdoms of Korea often warred with each other and Silla was often dominated by Baekje and Goguryeo. Silla was the smallest and weakest of the three, but it used cunning diplomatic means to make opportunistic pacts and alliances with the more powerful Korean kingdoms, and eventually Tang China, to its great advantage.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Jinwung|title=A History of Korea: From "Land of the Morning Calm" to States in Conflict|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0253000248|pages=44–45|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s2EVi-MpnUsC&pg=PA44|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|year=2012|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005648/https://books.google.com/books?id=s2EVi-MpnUsC&pg=PA44|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Wells|first1=Kenneth M.|title=Korea: Outline of a Civilisation|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789004300057|pages=18–19|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6zoLCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA18|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|date=3 July 2015|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005648/https://books.google.com/books?id=6zoLCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA18|url-status=live}}</ref> In 660, King [[Muyeol of Silla|Muyeol]] ordered his armies to attack [[Baekje]]. General [[Kim Yu-shin]], aided by [[Tang dynasty|Tang]] forces, conquered Baekje after defeating General [[Gyebaek]] at the [[Battle of Hwangsanbeol]]. In 661, Silla and Tang attacked Goguryeo but were repelled. King [[Munmu of Silla|Munmu]], son of Muyeol and nephew of General Kim Yu-shin, launched another campaign in 667 and Goguryeo fell in the following year.<!--Note: this is a short summary.  Do not add details here: please expand content on the main article (History of Korea) -->

===North–South States Period===
{{Main|North–South States Period|Later Silla|Balhae}}
Beginning in the 6th century, [[Silla]]'s power gradually extended across the Korean Peninsula. Silla first annexed the adjacent [[Gaya confederacy]] in 562. By the 640s, Silla formed an alliance with the [[Tang dynasty]] of China to conquer [[Baekje]] and later [[Goguryeo]]. After conquering Baekje and Goguryeo, Silla repulsed Tang China from the Korean peninsula in 676. Even though Silla unified most of the Korean Peninsula, most of the Goguryeo territories to the north of the Korean Peninsula were ruled by [[Balhae]]. Former Goguryeo general<ref>''Old records of Silla'' 新羅古記({{ill|Silla gogi|ko|신라고기}}): ...{{nbsp}}高麗舊將祚榮</ref><ref>''Rhymed Chronicles of Sovereigns'' 帝王韻紀([[Jewang ungi]]): ...{{nbsp}}前麗舊將大祚榮</ref> or chief of Sumo Mohe<ref>''Solitary Cloud'' 孤雲集(Gounjib): ...{{nbsp}}渤海之源流也句驪未滅之時本爲疣贅部落靺羯之屬寔繁有徒是名栗末小蕃甞逐句驪, 內徙其首領乞四羽及大祚榮等至武后臨朝之際自營州作孼而逃輒據荒丘始稱振國時有句驪遺燼勿吉雜流梟音則嘯聚白山鴟義則喧張黑姶與契丹濟惡旋於突厥通謀萬里耨苗累拒渡遼之轍十年食葚晚陳降漢之旗.</ref><ref>''Solitary Cloud'' 孤雲集(Gounjip): ...{{nbsp}}其酋長大祚榮, 始受臣藩第五品大阿餐之秩</ref><ref>''Comprehensive Institutions'' 通典([[Tongdian]]): ...{{nbsp}}渤海夲栗末靺鞨至其酋祚榮立國自號震旦, 先天中 玄宗王子始去靺鞨號專稱渤海</ref> [[Dae Jo-yeong]] led a group of Goguryeo and [[Mohe people|Mohe]] refugees to the [[Jilin]] and founded the kingdom of [[Balhae]], 30 years after the collapse of Goguryeo, as the successor to Goguryeo. At its height, Balhae's territories extended from southern [[Manchuria]] down to the northern Korean peninsula. Balhae was called the "Prosperous Country in the East".<ref>{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Injae|last2=Miller|first2=Owen|last3=Park|first3=Jinhoon|last4=Yi|first4=Hyun-Hae|title=Korean History in Maps|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1107098466|pages=64–65|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=46OTBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA64|access-date=24 February 2017|language=en|date=15 December 2014|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124005648/https://books.google.com/books?id=46OTBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA64|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Unified Silla and Balhae (8th Century) (4261052261).jpg|thumb|[[Unified Silla]] and [[Balhae]] in the 8th century CE]]
[[Later Silla]] carried on the maritime prowess of [[Baekje]], which acted like the [[Phoenicia]] of medieval [[East Asia]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kitagawa|first1=Joseph|title=The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1136875908|page=348|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9fyzAAAAQBAJ|language=en|date=5 September 2013|access-date=21 July 2016|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703151449/https://books.google.com/books?id=9fyzAAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> and during the 8th and 9th centuries dominated the seas of East Asia and the trade between China, Korea and Japan, most notably during the time of [[Chang Pogo]]; in addition, Silla people made overseas communities in China on the [[Shandong Peninsula]] and the mouth of the [[Yangtze River]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gernet|first1=Jacques|title=A History of Chinese Civilization|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0521497817|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofchinese00gern/page/291 291]|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofchinese00gern|url-access=registration|quote=Korea held a dominant position in the north-eastern seas.|access-date=21 July 2016|language=en|date=31 May 1996}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Reischauer|first1=Edwin Oldfather|title=Ennins Travels in Tang China|publisher=John Wiley & Sons Canada, Limited|isbn=978-0471070535|pages=276–283|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HXqEAAAACAAJ|access-date=21 July 2016|language=en|date=1955|archive-date=28 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328145156/https://books.google.com/books?id=HXqEAAAACAAJ|url-status=live}} "From what Ennin tells us, it seems that commerce between East China, Korea and Japan was, for the most part, in the hands of men from Silla. Here in the relatively dangerous waters on the eastern fringes of the world, they performed the same functions as did the traders of the placid Mediterranean on the western fringes. This is a historical fact of considerable significance but one which has received virtually no attention in the standard historical compilations of that period or in the modern books based on these sources. . . . While there were limits to the influence of the Koreans along the eastern coast of China, there can be no doubt of their dominance over the waters off these shores. . . . The days of Korean maritime dominance in the Far East actually were numbered, but in Ennin's time the men of Silla were still the masters of the seas in their part of the world."</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea, 2nd Edition|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1610695824|page=3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IgxvBAAAQBAJ|language=en|date=30 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Seth|first1=Michael J.|title=A Concise History of Korea: From the Neolithic Period Through the Nineteenth Century|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-0742540057|page=65|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qe4PoOd89XIC|access-date=21 July 2016|language=en|year=2006}}</ref> Later Silla was a prosperous and wealthy country,<ref>{{cite book|last1=MacGregor|first1=Neil|title=A History of the World in 100 Objects|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=978-0141966830|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r3mUtaSxCncC&pg=PT408|access-date=30 September 2016|language=en|year=2011}}</ref> and its metropolitan capital of [[Gyeongju]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Chŏng|first1=Yang-mo|last2=Smith|first2=Judith G.|last3=Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.)|title=Arts of Korea|publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art|isbn=978-0870998508|page=230|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DnaiYKYmQegC&pg=PA230|access-date=30 September 2016|language=en|year=1998}}</ref> was the fourth largest city in the world.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Adams|first=Edward B.|title=The Legacy of Kyongju|magazine=The Rotarian|publisher=Rotary International|issn=0035-838X|volume=154|issue=4|page=28|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HjIEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA28|access-date=19 December 2018|language=en|year=1989}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Ross|first1=Alan|title=After Pusan|publisher=Faber & Faber|isbn=978-0571299355|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bur02Vwn9jgC&pg=PT20|access-date=30 September 2016|language=en|date=17 January 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Mason|first1=David A.|title=Gyeongju, Korea's treasure house|url=http://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Column/view?articleId=109953|website=[[Korea.net]]|publisher=[[Korean Culture and Information Service]]|access-date=30 September 2016|archive-date=3 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161003092928/http://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Column/view?articleId=109953|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Adams|first1=Edward Ben|title=Koreaʾs Pottery Heritage|publisher=Seoul International Pub. House|volume=1|page=53|oclc=1014620947|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=riLrAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Kyongju+City+became+one+of+the+most+influential+centers+of+Asia+and+fourth+largest+city+in+the+ancient+world+during+this+period%22|access-date=19 December 2018|language=en|year=1990|isbn=9788985113069|archive-date=28 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328145304/https://books.google.com/books?id=riLrAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Kyongju+City+became+one+of+the+most+influential+centers+of+Asia+and+fourth+largest+city+in+the+ancient+world+during+this+period%22|url-status=live}}</ref> Later Silla experienced a golden age of art and culture,<ref>{{cite book|last1=DuBois|first1=Jill|title=Korea|publisher=Marshall Cavendish|isbn=978-0761417866|page=[https://archive.org/details/koreadubo00dubo/page/22 22]|url=https://archive.org/details/koreadubo00dubo|url-access=registration|quote=golden age of art and culture.|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=2004}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Randel|first1=Don Michael|title=The Harvard Dictionary of Music|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0674011632|page=273|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=02rFSecPhEsC|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=28 November 2003|archive-date=29 November 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231129221530/https://books.google.com/books?id=02rFSecPhEsC|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Hopfner|first1=Jonathan|title=Moon Living Abroad in South Korea|publisher=Avalon Travel|isbn=978-1612386324|page=21|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MhwXBQAAQBAJ|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=10 September 2013|archive-date=11 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111025306/https://books.google.com/books?id=MhwXBQAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0313038532|page=47|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ci_iGuAAqmsC&pg=PA47|access-date=30 September 2016|language=en|date=30 January 2005}}</ref> as evidenced by the [[Hwangnyongsa]], [[Seokguram]], and [[Emille Bell]]. Buddhism flourished during this time, and many Korean Buddhists gained great fame among Chinese Buddhists<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mun|first1=Chanju|last2=Green|first2=Ronald S.|title=Buddhist Exploration of Peace and Justice|publisher=Blue Pine Books|isbn=978-0977755301|page=147|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=au1oD1kKv94C|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=2006|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801022101/https://books.google.com/books?id=au1oD1kKv94C|url-status=live}}</ref> and contributed to Chinese Buddhism,<ref>{{cite book|last1=McIntire|first1=Suzanne|last2=Burns|first2=William E.|title=Speeches in World History|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=978-1438126807|page=87|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L-6ghsWDMTAC|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=25 June 2010|archive-date=11 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111025336/https://books.google.com/books?id=L-6ghsWDMTAC|url-status=live}}</ref> including: [[Woncheuk]], [[Wonhyo]], [[Uisang]], [[Kim Hwasang|Musang]],<ref>{{cite book|last1=Buswell|first1=Robert E. Jr.|last2=Lopez|first2=Donald S. Jr.|title=The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1400848058|page=187|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXN2AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA187|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=24 November 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Poceski|first1=Mario|title=Ordinary Mind as the Way: The Hongzhou School and the Growth of Chan Buddhism|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0198043201|page=24|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5fwRXrVPh-cC&pg=PA24|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=13 April 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Wu|first1=Jiang|last2=Chia|first2=Lucille|title=Spreading Buddha's Word in East Asia: The Formation and Transformation of the Chinese Buddhist Canon|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0231540193|page=155|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IX7ICgAAQBAJ&pg=PA155|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=15 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Wright|first1=Dale S.|title=The Zen Canon: Understanding the Classic Texts|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0199882182|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JfHQCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT124|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=25 March 2004}}</ref> and [[Kim Gyo-gak]], a Silla prince whose influence made [[Mount Jiuhua]] one of the Four [[Sacred Mountains of China|Sacred Mountains]] of Chinese Buddhism.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Jeong|first1=Su-il|title=The Silk Road Encyclopedia|publisher=Seoul Selection|isbn=978-1624120763|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UgOwDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT668|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=18 July 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Nikaido|first1=Yoshihiro|title=Asian Folk Religion and Cultural Interaction|publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht|isbn=978-3847004851|page=137|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TozUCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA137|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=28 October 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Leffman|first1=David|last2=Lewis|first2=Simon|last3=Atiyah|first3=Jeremy|title=China|publisher=Rough Guides|isbn=978-1843530190|page=519|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dA_QbQiZkB4C&pg=PA519|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|year=2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Leffman|first1=David|title=The Rough Guide to China|publisher=Penguin|isbn=978-0241010372|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FjqJAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT509|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=2 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: China|publisher=Penguin|isbn=978-1465455673|page=240|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rm7XCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA240|access-date=29 July 2016|language=en|date=21 June 2016}}</ref>

Later Silla fell apart in the late 9th century, giving way to the tumultuous [[Later Three Kingdoms period]] (892–935), and Balhae was destroyed by the [[Khitan people|Khitan]]s in 926. [[Goryeo]] unified the Later Three Kingdoms and received the [[Dae Gwang-hyeon|last crown prince]] and much of the ruling class of Balhae, thus bringing about a unification of the two successor nations of [[Goguryeo]].<ref name="Balhae">{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Ki-Baik|title=A New History of Korea|date=1984|publisher=Harvard University Press|location=Cambridge, Massachusetts|isbn=978-0674615762|page=103|quote=When Parhae perished at the hands of the Khitan around this same time, much of its ruling class, who were of Koguryŏ descent, fled to Koryŏ. Wang Kŏn warmly welcomed them and generously gave them land. Along with bestowing the name Wang Kye ("Successor of the Royal Wang") on the Parhae crown prince, Tae Kwang-hyŏn, Wang Kŏn entered his name in the royal household register, thus clearly conveying the idea that they belonged to the same lineage, and also had rituals performed in honor of his progenitor. Thus Koryŏ achieved a true national unification that embraced not only the Later Three Kingdoms but even survivors of Koguryŏ lineage from the Parhae kingdom.}}</ref>

===Goryeo dynasty===
{{Main|Goryeo}}
[[Goryeo]] was founded in 918 and replaced Silla as the ruling dynasty of Korea. Goryeo's land was at first what is now South Korea and about 1/3 of North Korea, but later on managed to recover most of the Korean peninsula. Momentarily, Goryeo advanced to parts of [[Jiandao]] while conquering the [[Jurchen people|Jurchens]], but returned the territories due to the harsh climate and difficulties in defending them. The name "Goryeo" (高麗) is a short form of "[[Goguryeo]]" (高句麗) and was first used during the time of King [[Jangsu of Goguryeo|Jangsu]]. Goryeo regarded itself as the successor of Goguryeo, hence its name and efforts to recover the former territories of Goguryeo.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Rossabi|first1=Morris|title=China Among Equals: The Middle Kingdom and Its Neighbors, 10th–14th Centuries|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=9780520045620|page=323|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sNpD5UKmkswC|access-date=1 August 2016|language=en|date=20 May 1983}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Ki-baek|title=A New History of Korea|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674615762|page=103|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA103|access-date=20 October 2016|language=en|year=1984|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234927/https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC&pg=PA103|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9780313038532|page=57|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ci_iGuAAqmsC&pg=PA57|access-date=20 October 2016|language=en|date=30 January 2005|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234927/https://books.google.com/books?id=ci_iGuAAqmsC&pg=PA57|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Grayson|first1=James H.|title=Korea – A Religious History|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136869259|page=79|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LU78AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA79|access-date=20 October 2016|language=en|date=5 November 2013|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234958/https://books.google.com/books?id=LU78AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA79|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Wang Geon]], the founder of Goryeo, was of Goguryeo descent and traced his ancestry to a noble Goguryeo clan.<ref>{{cite book|last1=박|first1=종기|script-title=ko:고려사의 재발견: 한반도 역사상 가장 개방적이고 역동적인 500년 고려 역사를 만나다|publisher=휴머니스트|isbn=9788958629023|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qn6TCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT59|access-date=27 October 2016|language=ko|date=24 August 2015|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114234928/https://books.google.com/books?id=Qn6TCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT59|url-status=live}}</ref> He made [[Kaesong]], his hometown, the capital.

During this period, laws were codified and a civil service system was introduced. [[Buddhism]] flourished and spread throughout the peninsula. The development of [[Goryeo ware|celadon]] industries flourished in the 12th and 13th centuries. The publication of the [[Tripitaka Koreana]] onto more than 80,000 wooden blocks and the invention of the world's first metal [[movable type]] in the 13th century attest to Goryeo's cultural achievements.<ref name="print_a">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Korean Metal Movable Type |encyclopedia=World Treasures: Beginnings |publisher=Library of Congress |url=https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/world/world-record.html#obj152 |access-date=19 December 2018 |date=29 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160829232346/http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/world/world-record.html#obj152 |archive-date=29 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="print_b">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2007 |title=Korean Classics |encyclopedia=Library of Congress Asian Collections: 2007 Illustrated Guide |publisher=Library of Congress |url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/asian/guide2007/guide-korean.html |access-date=19 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118063653/http://www.loc.gov/rr/asian/guide2007/guide-korean.html |archive-date=18 November 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="print_c">{{cite web |title=Gutenberg Bible |url=http://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item100565.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025033159/http://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item100565.html |archive-date=25 October 2016 |access-date=19 August 2016 |website=British Library |publisher=The British Library Board}}</ref><ref name="print_d">{{cite web |title=Korea, 1000–1400 A.D. {{!}} Chronology {{!}} Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History {{!}} The Metropolitan Museum of Art |url=http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/07/eak.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818174906/http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/07/eak.html |archive-date=18 August 2016 |access-date=19 August 2016 |website=The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History |publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art}}</ref><ref name="print_e">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Movable type |encyclopedia=Oxford Reference |publisher=Oxford University Press |url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100213284 |access-date=19 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026154750/http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100213284 |archive-date=26 October 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="print_f">{{cite book |last1=Ebrey |first1=Patricia Buckley |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QfkWAAAAQBAJ |title=East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History |last2=Walthall |first2=Anne |date=1 January 2013 |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1285528670 |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:History of Korea-1374.png|thumb|Goryeo in 1374]]
Goryeo had to defend frequently against attacks by nomadic empires, especially the [[Khitan people|Khitans]] and the [[Mongols]]. Goryeo had a hostile relationship with the Khitans, because the [[Khitan Empire]] had destroyed [[Balhae]], also a successor state of Goguryeo. In 993, the Khitans, who had established the [[Liao dynasty]] in 907, [[First conflict in the Goryeo–Khitan War|invaded Goryeo]], demanding that it make amity with them. Goryeo sent the diplomat [[Sŏ Hŭi]] to negotiate, who successfully persuaded the Khitans to let Goryeo expand to the banks of the [[Yalu River|Amnok (Yalu) River]], citing that in the past the land belonged to Goguryeo, the predecessor of Goryeo.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea, 2nd Edition|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781610695824|page=66|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IgxvBAAAQBAJ|access-date=3 October 2016|language=en|date=30 May 2014}}</ref> During the [[Goryeo–Khitan War]], the Khitan Empire invaded Korea twice more in [[Second conflict in the Goryeo–Khitan War|1009]] and [[Third conflict in the Goryeo–Khitan War|1018]], but was defeated.

After defeating the Khitan Empire, which was the most powerful empire of its time,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bulliet|first1=Richard|last2=Crossley|first2=Pamela|last3=Headrick|first3=Daniel|last4=Hirsch|first4=Steven|last5=Johnson|first5=Lyman|title=The Earth and Its Peoples, Brief: A Global History|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=9781285445519|page=264|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E9sbCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA264|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|date=1 January 2014|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010152/https://books.google.com/books?id=E9sbCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA264|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Cohen|first1=Warren I.|title=East Asia at the Center: Four Thousand Years of Engagement with the World|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231502511|page=107|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Okjd2rDwb8IC&pg=PA107|access-date=12 September 2016|language=en|date=20 December 2000|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010157/https://books.google.com/books?id=Okjd2rDwb8IC&pg=PA107|url-status=live}}</ref> Goryeo experienced a golden age that lasted a century, during which the [[Tripitaka Koreana]] was completed, and there were great developments in printing and publishing, promoting learning and dispersing knowledge on philosophy, literature, religion, and science; by 1100, there were 12 universities that produced famous scholars and scientists.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Kenneth B.|title=Korea and East Asia: The Story of a Phoenix|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780275958237|page=61|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA61|access-date=28 July 2016|language=en|year=1997|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010152/https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA61|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Bowman|first1=John|title=Columbia Chronologies of Asian History and Culture|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231500043|page=[https://archive.org/details/columbiachronolo00john/page/202 202]|url=https://archive.org/details/columbiachronolo00john|url-access=registration|quote=The Mongolian-Khitan invasions of the late tenth century challenge the stability of the Koryo government, but a period of prosperity follows the defeat of the Khitan in 1018..|access-date=1 August 2016|language=en|date=5 September 2000}}</ref>

Goryeo was [[Mongol invasions of Korea|invaded by the Mongols]] in seven major campaigns from the 1230s until the 1270s, but was never conquered.<ref name="Mongols">{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Kenneth B.|title=Korea and East Asia: The Story of a Phoenix|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780275958237|page=72|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA72|access-date=28 July 2016|language=en|year=1997|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010152/https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA72|url-status=live}}</ref> Exhausted after decades of fighting, Goryeo sent its [[Wonjong of Goryeo|crown prince]] to the [[Yuan dynasty|Yuan]] capital to swear allegiance to the Mongols; [[Kublai Khan]] accepted, and married one of his daughters to the Korean crown prince,<ref name="Mongols" /> and the dynastic line of Goryeo continued to survive [[Korea under Yuan rule|under the overlordship]] of the Mongol Yuan dynasty as a semi-autonomous vassal state and compulsory ally. The two nations became intertwined for 80 years as all subsequent Korean kings married Mongol princesses,<ref name="Mongols" /> and the [[Empress Gi|last empress]] of the Yuan dynasty was a Korean princess.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Koon |first1=Wee Kek |title=Opinion {{!}} The tale of a Korean empress of China, an imperial K-drama |url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3108600/tale-empress-gi-korean-china-whose-imperial |work=South China Morning Post |date=6 November 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

In the 1350s, [[Gongmin of Goryeo|King Gongmin]] was free at last to reform the Goryeo government when the Yuan dynasty began to crumble. Gongmin had various problems that needed to be dealt with, which included the removal of pro-Mongol aristocrats and military officials, the question of land holding, and quelling the growing animosity between the Buddhists and [[Confucian]] scholars. During this tumultuous period, Goryeo momentarily conquered [[Liaoyang]] in 1356, repulsed two large [[Red Turban invasions of Goryeo|invasions by the Red Turbans]] in 1359 and 1360, and defeated the final attempt by the Yuan to dominate Goryeo when General [[Ch'oe Yŏng]] defeated a Mongol [[Tumen (unit)|tumen]] in 1364. During the 1380s, Goryeo turned its attention to the [[Wokou]] threat and used [[Naval history of Korea|naval artillery]] created by [[Ch'oe Mu-sŏn]] to annihilate hundreds of pirate ships.

===Joseon dynasty===
{{Main|Joseon}}
[[File:경복궁 전경.jpg|thumb|[[Gyeongbokgung]] Palace]]
[[File:Donggwol-do.jpg|thumb|''[[Donggwoldo]]'']]
In 1392, the general [[Taejo of Joseon|Yi Seong-gye]] overthrew the [[Goryeo]] dynasty after he staged a coup and defeated General [[Ch'oe Yŏng]]. Yi Seong-gye named his new dynasty [[Joseon]] and moved the capital from [[Kaesong]] to [[Hanseong]] (formerly Hanyang; modern-day [[Seoul]]) and built the [[Gyeongbokgung]] palace.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Yi|first1=Ki-baek|title=A New History of Korea|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674615762|oclc=470671149|page=165|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g2mdVwXpMzwC|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|year=1984}}</ref> In 1394, he adopted [[Confucianism]] as the country's official ideology, resulting in much loss of power and wealth by the [[Korean Buddhism|Buddhists]]. The prevailing philosophy of the Joseon dynasty was [[Korean Confucianism|Neo-Confucianism]], which was epitomized by the [[seonbi]] class, scholars who passed up positions of wealth and power to lead lives of study and integrity.

Joseon was a nominal tributary state of [[China]] but exercised full sovereignty,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Em|first1=Henry|title=The Great Enterprise: Sovereignty and Historiography in Modern Korea|publisher=Duke University Press|isbn=978-0822353720|page=23|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DxAd2Aw_jP0C|access-date=28 July 2016|language=en|date=25 March 2013|archive-date=7 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407111632/https://books.google.com/books?id=DxAd2Aw_jP0C|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Seokwoo|last2=Lee|first2=Hee Eun|title=The Making of International Law in Korea: From Colony to Asian Power|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789004315754|oclc=1006718121|page=21|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bCoiDAAAQBAJ|access-date=28 July 2016|language=en|date=12 May 2016|archive-date=26 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126050937/https://books.google.com/books?id=bCoiDAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> and maintained the highest position among China's tributary states,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Wang|first1=Yuan-kang|title=Harmony and War: Confucian Culture and Chinese Power Politics|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231522403|oclc=774509438|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gxVfTuKsaJQC&q=seating+arrangement+highest|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|date=15 December 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Seth |first1=Michael J. |title=A History of Korea: From Antiquity to the Present |title-link=A History of Korea: From Antiquity to the Present |date=16 October 2010 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |isbn=9780742567177 |page=144 |language=en |oclc=644646716}}</ref> which also included countries such as the [[Ryukyu Kingdom]], Vietnam, Burma, Brunei, Laos, Thailand,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gambe|first1=Annabelle R.|title=Overseas Chinese Entrepreneurship and Capitalist Development in Southeast Asia|publisher=LIT Verlag Münster|isbn=9783825843861|page=99|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZUfNRG8IR44C|access-date=19 July 2016|language=en|year=2000|archive-date=7 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407111628/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZUfNRG8IR44C|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Chinvanno|first1=Anuson|title=Thailand's Policies towards China, 1949–54|publisher=Springer|isbn=9781349124305|page=24|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0vywCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA24|access-date=19 July 2016|language=en|date=18 June 1992|archive-date=7 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407111657/https://books.google.com/books?id=0vywCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA24|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Leonard|first1=Jane Kate|title=Wei Yuan and China's Rediscovery of the Maritime World|publisher=Harvard Univ Asia Center|isbn=9780674948556|pages=137–138|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wQCm-bequYgC&pg=PA137|access-date=19 July 2016|language=en|year=1984|archive-date=7 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407111553/https://books.google.com/books?id=wQCm-bequYgC&pg=PA137|url-status=live}}</ref> and the Philippines, among others.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Tsai|first1=Shih-shan Henry|title=The Eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=9780791426876|pages=119–120|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ka6jNJcX_ygC&pg=PA119|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|date=January 1996}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Eisemann|first1=Joshua|last2=Heginbotham|first2=Eric|last3=Mitchell|first3=Derek|title=China and the Developing World: Beijing's Strategy for the Twenty-first Century|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317282945|page=23|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nM5mCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA23|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|date=20 August 2015}}</ref> In addition, Joseon received tribute from Jurchens and Japanese until the 17th century,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Lewis|first1=James B.|title=Frontier Contact Between Choson Korea and Tokugawa Japan|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781135795986|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z2SQAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT139|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|date=2 November 2005}} "Tribute trade was the oldest and most important component of the trade structure, not for its volume or content, but for its symbolism. Japanese brought items to "offer" to Korea and received in exchange "gifts" of higher value, since Korea was a greater land receiving supplicants. Koreans viewed tribute trade as a "burden" and a favor extended to needy islanders; the significance was diplomatic not economic."</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kang|first1=David C.|title=East Asia Before the West: Five Centuries of Trade and Tribute|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231153195|page=122|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jgk0buCaLJ0C&pg=PT138|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|year=2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kayoko|first1=Fujita|last2=Momoki|first2=Shiro|last3=Reid|first3=Anthony|title=Offshore Asia: Maritime Interactions in Eastern Asia Before Steamships|publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies|isbn=9789814311779|page=198|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lcT3AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA198|access-date=20 July 2016|language=en|year=2013}}</ref> and had a small enclave in the Ryukyu Kingdom that engaged in trade with Siam and Java.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Chun-gil|title=The History of Korea|year=2005|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780313332968|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofkorea0000kimc/page/77 77]|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofkorea0000kimc|url-access=registration|access-date=28 July 2016|language=en}}</ref>

During the 15th and 16th centuries, Joseon enjoyed many benevolent rulers who promoted education and science.<ref name="JoseonGold">{{cite book|last1=Lee|first1=Kenneth B.|title=Korea and East Asia: The Story of a Phoenix|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780275958237|page=86|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA86|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|year=1997|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010158/https://books.google.com/books?id=XrZQs-6KswMC&pg=PA86|url-status=live}}</ref> Most notable among them was [[Sejong the Great]] (r. 1418–50), who personally created and promulgated [[Hangul]], the Korean alphabet.<ref>{{cite web|script-title=ko:알고 싶은 한글|url=http://www.korean.go.kr/hangeul/setting/002.html|website=[[National Institute of Korean Language]]|access-date=4 December 2017|archive-date=18 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218134258/https://www.korean.go.kr/hangeul/setting/002.html|url-status=live}}</ref> This golden age<ref name="JoseonGold" /> saw great cultural and scientific advancements,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Haralambous|first1=Yannis|last2=Horne|first2=P. Scott|title=Fonts & Encodings|publisher="O'Reilly Media, Inc."|isbn=9780596102425|page=155|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qrElYgVLDwYC&pg=PA155|access-date=8 October 2016|language=en|date=26 September 2007|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010158/https://books.google.com/books?id=qrElYgVLDwYC&pg=PA155|url-status=live}}</ref> including in printing, [[rain gauge|meteorological observation]], astronomy, calendar science, [[Korean pottery and porcelain|ceramics]], military technology, geography, cartography, medicine, and agricultural technology, some of which were unrivaled elsewhere.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Selin|first1=Helaine|title=Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=9789401714167|pages=505–506|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GzjpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA505|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|date=11 November 2013|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010157/https://books.google.com/books?id=GzjpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA505|url-status=live}}</ref> Joseon implemented a class system that consisted of ''[[yangban]]'' the noble class, ''jungin'' the middle class, ''yangin'' the common class, and ''cheonin'' the lowest class, which included occupations such as butchers, tanners, shamans, entertainers, and ''[[nobi]]'', the equivalent of slaves, bondservants, or [[serfs]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kim|first1=Djun Kil|title=The History of Korea, 2nd Edition|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=9781610695824|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IgxvBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA113|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|date=30 May 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Campbell|first1=Gwyn|title=Structure of Slavery in Indian Ocean Africa and Asia|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781135759179|pages=153–157|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J0iRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA153|access-date=14 February 2017|language=en|date=23 November 2004}}</ref>
[[File:남산 정상에서 바라본 서울 풍경 (1884).jpg|thumb|Seoul taken from [[Namsan]] (1884)-[[George Clayton Foulk]]. The photo shows [[Gwanghwamun Plaza]] and [[Namdaemunno]].]]
In 1592 and again in 1597, the [[Imjin War|Japanese invaded Korea]]; the Korean military at the time was unprepared and untrained, due to two centuries of peace on the [[Korean Peninsula]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kang|first1=David C.|title=East Asia Before the West: Five Centuries of Trade and Tribute|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=9780231153195|pages=93–94|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jgk0buCaLJ0C|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|year=2012|archive-date=5 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210105000940/https://books.google.com/books?id=Jgk0buCaLJ0C|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]] intended to conquer China and India<ref>{{cite book|last1=Black|first1=Jeremy|title=War in the World: A Comparative History, 1450–1600|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=9780230345515|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kv0mBQAAQBAJ|access-date=27 July 2016|language=en|date=28 September 2011}}{{Dead link|date=June 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> through the Korean Peninsula, but was defeated by strong resistance from the [[Righteous Army]], the naval superiority of Admiral [[Yi Sun-sin]] and his [[turtle ship]]s, and assistance from [[Wanli Emperor]] of [[Ming dynasty|Ming China]]. However, Joseon experienced great destruction, including a tremendous loss of cultural sites such as temples and palaces to Japanese pillaging, and the Japanese brought back to Japan an estimated 100,000–200,000 [[Nose tomb|noses]] cut from Korean victims.<ref>{{cite book| last = Kiernan| first = Ben| title = Blood and soil : a world history of genocide and extermination from Sparta to Darfur| url = https://archive.org/details/bloodan_kie_2007_00_0326| url-access = registration| year = 2007| publisher = Yale University Press| isbn = 978-0-300-10098-3 }}</ref> Less than 30 years after the Japanese invasions, the [[Manchus]] took advantage of Joseon's war-weakened state and [[Manchu invasion of Korea|invaded]] in 1627 and 1637, and then went on to [[Qing conquest of the Ming|conquer]] the destabilized Ming dynasty.

After normalising relations with the new [[Qing dynasty]], Joseon experienced a nearly 200-year period of peace. Kings [[Yeongjo of Joseon|Yeongjo]] and [[Jeongjo of Joseon|Jeongjo]] led a new renaissance of the Joseon dynasty during the 18th century.<ref>{{cite book|last1=신형식|title=A Brief History of Korea|publisher=Ewha Womans University Press|isbn=9788973006199|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o-WlUd3cjh0C&pg=PT98|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|date=1 January 2005|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010158/https://books.google.com/books?id=o-WlUd3cjh0C&pg=PT98|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Beirne|first1=Paul|title=Su-un and His World of Symbols: The Founder of Korea's First Indigenous Religion|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317047490|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8OPeCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT38|access-date=8 November 2016|language=en|date=1 April 2016|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124010159/https://books.google.com/books?id=8OPeCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT38|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the 19th century, the royal in-law families gained control of the government, leading to mass corruption and weakening of the state, with severe poverty and peasant rebellions spreading throughout the country. Furthermore, the Joseon government adopted a strict isolationist policy, earning the nickname "the [[hermit kingdom]]", but ultimately failed to protect itself against [[imperialism]] and was forced to open its borders, beginning an era leading into [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese imperial rule]].<!--Note: this is a short summary. Do not add details here: please expand content on the main article (History of Korea) -->

===Korean Empire===
{{Main|Korean Empire}}
[[File:Flag of Korea 1882.svg|thumb|The earliest surviving depiction of the Korean flag was printed in a US Navy book ''Flags of Maritime Nations'' in July 1889.]]
Beginning in 1871, [[Empire of Japan|Japan]] began to exert more influence in Korea, forcing it out of China's traditional sphere of influence. As a result of the [[First Sino-Japanese War]] (1894–95), the [[Qing dynasty]] had to give up such a position according to Article 1 of the [[Treaty of Shimonoseki]], which was concluded between China and Japan in 1895. That same year, [[Empress Myeongseong]] of Korea was assassinated by Japanese agents.<ref name="autogenerated3">{{Citation|title=Japan rape |year=2002 |publisher=Kim soft |url=http://www.kimsoft.com/2002/jp-rape.htm |contribution=Murder of Empress Myeongseong |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041009171355/http://www.kimsoft.com/2002/jp-rape.htm |archive-date= 9 October 2004 }}</ref>

In 1897, the [[Joseon dynasty]] proclaimed the [[Korean Empire]] (1897–1910). [[Gojong of the Korean Empire|King Gojong]] became emperor. During this brief period, Korea had some success in modernising the military, economy, real property laws, education system, and various industries. [[Russian Empire|Russia]], Japan, [[French Third Republic|France]], and the United States all invested in the country and sought to influence it politically.

The Russians were pushed out of the fight for Korea following the conclusion of the [[Russo-Japanese War]] (1904–1905). Korea became a [[protectorate]] of Japan shortly afterwards. In [[Manchuria]] on 26 October 1909, [[An Jung-geun]] assassinated the former [[Governor-General of Korea|Resident-General of Korea]], [[Itō Hirobumi]], for his role in trying to force Korea into occupation.

===Japanese annexation and occupation of Korea===
{{Main|Korea under Japanese rule}}
{{See also|Japanese war crimes}}
[[File:March 1st movement.jpg|thumb|The memorial tablet for the [[March First Movement]] in Pagoda Park, Seoul]]
In 1910, an already militarily occupied Korea was a forced party to the [[Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty]]. The treaty was signed by [[Lee Wan-Yong]], who was given the General Power of Attorney by the Emperor. However, the Emperor is said to have not actually ratified the treaty according to Yi Tae-jin.<ref>{{Citation | script-title=ko:서울대이태진교수의동경대생들에게들려준한국사 : 메이지일본의한국침략사 | last = Yi | first = Tae-jin | year = 2005 | publisher = 태학사 | isbn = 978-89-7626-999-7}}</ref> There is a long dispute whether this treaty was legal or illegal due to its signing under duress, threat of force and bribes.

Korean resistance to the brutal Japanese occupation<ref>{{Cite book|title=Encyclopedia of World History: Ancient, Medieval, and Modern|editor-last=Stearns|editor-first=Peter N.|url=http://www.bartleby.com/67/2488.html |edition=6th |year=2001 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |location=Boston |at=VI(H)(4) |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304202716/http://www.bartleby.com/67/2488.html |archive-date=4 March 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Korea |publisher=Microsoft Corporation |encyclopedia=Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia |year=2009 |page=2 |url=http://uk.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761557519_2/Korea.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090519033254/http://uk.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761557519_2/Korea.html |archive-date= 19 May 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Takahashi |first1=Kosuke |title=History Overshadows Japan-South Korea Rapprochement |journal=The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus |date=March 28, 2005 |volume=3 |issue=3 |url=https://apjjf.org/-Kosuke-Takahashi/2067/article.html |id= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050404192039/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/GC10Dh01.html |archive-date=4 April 2005 |access-date=3 November 2009 }} NOTE: First published 10 March 2005 under the title "Roh reopens Japan's war wounds" in, and Copyright 2005,  [https://asiatimes.com/2005/05/we-are-a-banana-republic/ ''Asia Times Online''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223124608/https://asiatimes.com/2005/05/we-are-a-banana-republic/ |date=23 February 2023 }} Ltd. This is a slightly abbreviated version of the article, posted at Japan Focus 16 March 2005. Archived copy is of full article text from ''Asia Times''.</ref> was manifested in the nonviolent [[March First Movement]] of 1919, during which 7,000 demonstrators were killed by Japanese police and military.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url= https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9050797?query=march%20first%20movement&ct= |title= March 1st Movement |encyclopedia= Encyclopædia Britannica. |date= 1 March 1919 |access-date= 3 November 2009 |archive-date= 11 December 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071211125737/http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9050797?query=march |url-status= live }}</ref> The [[Korean independence movement|Korean liberation movement]] also spread to neighbouring [[Manchuria]] and [[Siberia]].

Over five million Koreans were conscripted for labour beginning in 1939,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP3.HTM |title=Statistics of Japanese Genocide And Mass Murder |publisher=Hawaii |access-date=3 November 2009 |archive-date=23 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323044733/http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP3.HTM |url-status=live }}</ref> and tens of thousands of men were forced into Japan's military.<ref>{{Citation | last = 山脇 Yamawaki | first = 啓造 Keizo | title = 近代日本と外国人労働者―1890年代後半と1920年代前半における中国人・朝鮮人労働者問題 |trans-title=Modern Japan and Foreign Laborers: Chinese and Korean Labourers in the late 1890s and early 1920s | publisher = 明石書店 Akashi-shoten | year = 1994 | others = et al. | isbn = 978-4-7503-0568-4}}</ref> Nearly 400,000 Korean labourers died.<ref>{{cite book| last = Gruhl| first = Werner| title = Imperial Japan's World War Two: 1931–1945| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=zNN6M97vYMEC&pg=PA111| year = 2007| publisher = Transaction Publishers| isbn = 978-1-4128-0926-9| oclc = 1099050288| page = 111| access-date = 21 September 2020| archive-date = 26 January 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210126050942/https://books.google.com/books?id=zNN6M97vYMEC&pg=PA111| url-status = live}}</ref> Approximately 200,000 girls and women,<ref>{{Citation | first = Yoshimi | last = Yoshiaki | title = Comfort Women: Sexual Slavery in the Japanese Military During World War II | others = O'Brien, Suzanne transl | publisher = Columbia University Press | year = 2001 | isbn = 978-0-231-12032-6 | orig-year = 岩波書店, 1995 | url = https://archive.org/details/comfortwomen00yosh }}</ref> mostly from China and Korea, were forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/east/03/29/japan.comfort.women.02/ |title=Japanese comfort women ruling overturned |date=29 March 2001 |work=CNN|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216122655/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/east/03/29/japan.comfort.women.02/ |archive-date=16 December 2008 }}</ref> In 1993, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary [[Yohei Kono]] acknowledged the terrible injustices faced by these euphemistically named "[[comfort women]]".<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.comfort-women.org/ | title = Comfort Women | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091103220622/http://www.comfort-women.org/ | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Yohei |last=Kono |url=http://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/women/fund/state9308.html |title=Statement by the Chief Cabinet Secretary on the result of the study on the issue of 'comfort women' |publisher=MOFA |date=4 August 1993 |access-date=3 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140709022903/http://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/women/fund/state9308.html |archive-date= 9 July 2014 }}</ref>

During the Japanese annexation, the Korean language was suppressed in an effort to eradicate indigenous Korean national identity. Koreans were forced to take Japanese surnames, known as [[Sōshi-kaimei]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.han.org/a/fukuoka96a.html |title = Koreans in Japan: Past and Present |publisher = HAN |access-date = 3 November 2009 |archive-date = 6 June 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190606063047/http://www.han.org/a/fukuoka96a.html |url-status = dead }}</ref> Traditional [[Korean culture]] suffered heavy losses, as numerous Korean cultural artefacts were destroyed<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lifeinkorea.com/Travel2/66 |title=Gyeongbok Palace |work=Seoul City |location=South Korea |publisher=Life in Korea |access-date=3 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090926031534/http://www.lifeinkorea.com/Travel2/66 |archive-date=26 September 2009 }}</ref> or taken to Japan.<ref name="Newsweek">{{cite magazine | url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/48765/output/print |title=Korea: A tussle over treasures&nbsp;— Who rightfully owns Korean artifacts looted by Japan? |magazine= [[Newsweek]] |access-date= 6 June 2008 | first1 = Kay | last1 = Itoi | first2 =BJ | last2 = Lee |date=17 October 2007}}</ref> One such artefact is rumored to be a sacred [[Korean mask|Korean mask (tal)]], still up on display in a Japanese museum. To this day, valuable Korean artefacts can often be found in Japanese museums or among private collections.<ref>{{Citation|newspaper=Newsweek |publisher=MSNBC |url=http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6919593/site/newsweek/ |title=Who rightfully owns Korean artifacts looted by Japan? |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100925094845/http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6919593/site/newsweek/ |archive-date=25 September 2010 }}</ref> One investigation by the South Korean government identified 75,311 cultural assets that were taken from Korea, 34,369 in Japan and 17,803 in the United States. However, experts estimate that over 100,000 artefacts actually remain in Japan.<ref name="Newsweek" /><ref name="naver">{{Citation | url = http://news.naver.com/news/read.php?mode=LSD&office_id=001&article_id=0001429084 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130723101422/http://news.naver.com/news/read.php?mode=LSD&office_id=001&article_id=0001429084 | url-status = dead | archive-date = 23 July 2013 | title = News | publisher=[[Naver]] }}</ref> Japanese officials considered returning Korean cultural properties, but to date<ref name="Newsweek" /> this has not occurred.<ref name="naver" /> Both Koreas and Japan still dispute the ownership of the [[Liancourt Rocks|Dokdo]] islets, located east of the Korean Peninsula.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.vop.co.kr/A00000206601.html | title= 日독도 영유권 교육강화 방침, 2005년에 이미 발표 :: 한국의 대표 진보언론 민중의소리 | date= 19 May 2008 | publisher= Vop | location= KR | access-date= 3 November 2009 | archive-date= 15 May 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110515013115/http://www.vop.co.kr/A00000206601.html | url-status= live }}</ref>

There was significant emigration to the overseas territories of the [[Empire of Japan]] during the Japanese occupation period, including [[Korea under Japanese rule|Korea]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.columbia.edu/~hds2/BIB95/00korea_cohen.htm |title=Japanese Periodicals in Colonial Korea |publisher=Columbia |access-date=3 November 2009 |archive-date=21 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111221234952/http://www.columbia.edu/~hds2/BIB95/00korea_cohen.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> By the end of World War II, there were over 850,000 Japanese settlers in Korea.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/CMTS/MonoPaper3-13.html |title=The Life Instability of Intermarried Japanese Women in Korea |publisher=USC |access-date=3 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991013000846/http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/CMTS/MonoPaper3-13.html |archive-date=13 October 1999 }}</ref> After World War II, most of these [[overseas Japanese]] repatriated to Japan.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Park |first=Yi-Jin |date=2020 |title=Re-nationalizing Repatriated Japanese into Post-War Japan: From Imperial Subjects to Post-War Citizens |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/756096 |journal=Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies |volume=20 |issue=1 |pages=113–138 |via=Project MUSE |access-date=16 June 2022 |archive-date=3 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220703185515/https://muse.jhu.edu/article/756096 |url-status=live }}</ref> Migrants who remained [[Squatting in South Korea|squatted]] in [[informal settlements]].<ref name="Squatting">{{cite journal |last1=Ha |first1=Seong-Kyu |title=Housing poverty and the role of urban governance in Korea |journal=Environment and Urbanization |date=April 2004 |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=139–154 |doi=10.1177/095624780401600112 |bibcode=2004EnUrb..16..139H |language=en |issn=0956-2478|doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Division and conflict===
{{Main|Division of Korea||}}
[[File:Korean Peninsula at night 20240124 132602 GMT Iss-070e080670.jpg|thumb|left|Satellite image of the Korean Peninsula demonstrating the differences in light pollution between the two Koreas, 2024]]
In 1945, with the [[surrender of Japan]], the [[United Nations]] developed plans for a trusteeship administration, the [[Soviet Union]] administering the peninsula north of the [[38th parallel north|38th parallel]] and the [[United States]] [[USAMGIK|administering the south]]. The politics of the [[Cold War]] resulted in the 1948 establishment of two separate governments, North Korea and South Korea.

The aftermath of World War II left Korea partitioned along the 38th parallel on 2 September 1945, with the north under Soviet occupation and the south under US occupation supported by other allied states. Consequently, North Korea, a Soviet-style socialist republic was established in the north, and South Korea, a Western-style regime, [[Division of Korea|was established in the south]].

North Korea is a [[one-party state]] ruled by the [[Workers' Party of Korea]], now centred on [[Kim Il Sung]]'s ''[[Juche]]'' ideology, with a [[Planned economy|centrally planned]] industrial economy. South Korea is a [[multi-party state]] with a [[capitalism|capitalist]] [[market economy]], alongside membership in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the [[G-20 major economies|Group of Twenty]]. The two states have greatly diverged both culturally and economically since their partition, though they still share a common traditional culture and pre-Cold War history.

Since the 1960s, the South Korean economy has grown enormously and the economic structure was radically transformed. In 1957, South Korea had a lower [[per capita GDP]] than [[Ghana]],<ref>{{Citation | newspaper = The Independent | place = UK | url = https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/leading-article-africa-has-to-spend-carefully-407666.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110513090857/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/leading-article-africa-has-to-spend-carefully-407666.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 13 May 2011 | type = leading article | title = Africa has to spend carefully | date=13 July 2006}}</ref> and by 2008 it was 17 times as high as Ghana's.{{Refn | group = "lower-alpha" | $26,341 GDP for Korea, $1513 for Ghana.<ref>{{Citation|url=http://imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2008/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2008&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&pr1.x=29&pr1.y=12&c=512%2C446%2C914%2C666%2C612%2C668%2C614%2C672%2C311%2C946%2C213%2C137%2C911%2C962%2C193%2C674%2C122%2C676%2C912%2C548%2C313%2C556%2C419%2C678%2C513%2C181%2C316%2C682%2C913%2C684%2C124%2C273%2C339%2C921%2C638%2C948%2C514%2C943%2C218%2C686%2C963%2C688%2C616%2C518%2C223%2C728%2C516%2C558%2C918%2C138%2C748%2C196%2C618%2C278%2C522%2C692%2C622%2C694%2C156%2C142%2C624%2C449%2C626%2C564%2C628%2C283%2C228%2C853%2C924%2C288%2C233%2C293%2C632%2C566%2C636%2C964%2C634%2C182%2C238%2C453%2C662%2C968%2C960%2C922%2C423%2C714%2C935%2C862%2C128%2C716%2C611%2C456%2C321%2C722%2C243%2C942%2C248%2C718%2C469%2C724%2C253%2C576%2C642%2C936%2C643%2C961%2C939%2C813%2C644%2C199%2C819%2C184%2C172%2C524%2C132%2C361%2C646%2C362%2C648%2C364%2C915%2C732%2C134%2C366%2C652%2C734%2C174%2C144%2C328%2C146%2C258%2C463%2C656%2C528%2C654%2C923%2C336%2C738%2C263%2C578%2C268%2C537%2C532%2C742%2C944%2C866%2C176%2C369%2C534%2C744%2C536%2C186%2C429%2C925%2C178%2C746%2C436%2C926%2C136%2C466%2C343%2C112%2C158%2C111%2C439%2C298%2C916%2C927%2C664%2C846%2C826%2C299%2C542%2C582%2C443%2C474%2C917%2C754%2C544%2C698%2C941&s=PPPPC&grp=0&a= |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20091223115619/http://imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2008/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2008&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&pr1.x=29&pr1.y=12&c=512%2C446%2C914%2C666%2C612%2C668%2C614%2C672%2C311%2C946%2C213%2C137%2C911%2C962%2C193%2C674%2C122%2C676%2C912%2C548%2C313%2C556%2C419%2C678%2C513%2C181%2C316%2C682%2C913%2C684%2C124%2C273%2C339%2C921%2C638%2C948%2C514%2C943%2C218%2C686%2C963%2C688%2C616%2C518%2C223%2C728%2C516%2C558%2C918%2C138%2C748%2C196%2C618%2C278%2C522%2C692%2C622%2C694%2C156%2C142%2C624%2C449%2C626%2C564%2C628%2C283%2C228%2C853%2C924%2C288%2C233%2C293%2C632%2C566%2C636%2C964%2C634%2C182%2C238%2C453%2C662%2C968%2C960%2C922%2C423%2C714%2C935%2C862%2C128%2C716%2C611%2C456%2C321%2C722%2C243%2C942%2C248%2C718%2C469%2C724%2C253%2C576%2C642%2C936%2C643%2C961%2C939%2C813%2C644%2C199%2C819%2C184%2C172%2C524%2C132%2C361%2C646%2C362%2C648%2C364%2C915%2C732%2C134%2C366%2C652%2C734%2C174%2C144%2C328%2C146%2C258%2C463%2C656%2C528%2C654%2C923%2C336%2C738%2C263%2C578%2C268%2C537%2C532%2C742%2C944%2C866%2C176%2C369%2C534%2C744%2C536%2C186%2C429%2C925%2C178%2C746%2C436%2C926%2C136%2C466%2C343%2C112%2C158%2C111%2C439%2C298%2C916%2C927%2C664%2C846%2C826%2C299%2C542%2C582%2C443%2C474%2C917%2C754%2C544%2C698%2C941&s=PPPPC&grp=0&a= |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 December 2009 |title=World Economic Outlook Database |date=October 2008 |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |access-date=14 February 2009 }}</ref>}}

According to [[R. J. Rummel]], [[slavery|forced labour]], executions, and concentration camps were responsible for over one million deaths in North Korea from 1948 to 1987;<ref>{{Citation | last = Rummel | first = RJ | chapter-url = http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP10.HTM | chapter = 10. Statistics of North Korean Democide: Estimates, Calculations, and Sources | title = Statistics of Democide | year = 1997 | publisher = Hawaii | access-date = 5 February 2013 | archive-date = 3 December 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171203123703/http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/SOD.CHAP10.HTM | url-status = live }}</ref> others have estimated 400,000 deaths in concentration camps alone.<ref>Omestad, Thomas, [https://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/030623/23gulag.htm "Gulag Nation"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050509131122/http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/030623/23gulag.htm |date=9 May 2005 }}, [[U.S. News & World Report]], 23 June 2003.</ref> Estimates based on the most recent North Korean census suggest that 240,000 to 420,000 people died as a result of the [[North Korean famine|1990s famine]] and that there were 600,000 to 850,000 unnatural deaths in North Korea from 1993 to 2008.<ref name="Spoorenberg, Thomas pp. 133-158">{{Citation | last1 = Spoorenberg | first1 = Thomas | last2 = Schwekendiek | first2 = Daniel | edition = online | title = Demographic Changes in North Korea: 1993–2008 | journal = Population and Development Review | volume = 38 | issue = 1 | pages = 133–58 | doi=10.1111/j.1728-4457.2012.00475.x| year = 2012 | hdl = 10.1111/j.1728-4457.2012.00475.x | hdl-access = free }}</ref> In South Korea, as guerrilla activities expanded, the South Korean government used strong measures against peasants, such as forcefully moving their families from guerrilla areas. According to one estimate, these measures resulted in 36,000 people killed, 11,000 people wounded, and 432,000 people displaced.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A History of Korea|last=Hatada|first=Takashi|publisher=American Bibliographic Center-Clio Press|year=1969|location=Santa Barbara, California|pages=140}}</ref>

===Korean War===
{{main|Korean War}}
The Korean War broke out when Soviet-backed North Korea invaded South Korea. Despite massive swings in territorial gain back and forth, in the end neither side gained much territory as a result. The Korean Peninsula remained divided, the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone]] being the ''de facto'' border between the two states.

In June 1950 North Korea invaded the South, using Soviet tanks and weaponry. During the [[Korean War]] (1950–53) more than 1.2 million people died and the three years of fighting throughout the nation effectively destroyed most cities.<ref>{{Citation | first1 = Bethany | last1 = Lacina | first2 = Nils Petter | last2 = Gleditsch | url = http://www.bethanylacina.com/LacinaGleditsch_newdata.pdf | title = Monitoring Trends in Global Combat: A New Dataset of Battle Deaths | journal = European Journal of Population | year = 2005 | volume = 21 | issue = 2–3 | pages = 145–166 | doi = 10.1007/s10680-005-6851-6 | s2cid = 14344770 | access-date = 19 June 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141006175909/http://www.bethanylacina.com/LacinaGleditsch_newdata.pdf | archive-date = 6 October 2014 | url-status = usurped}}</ref> The war ended with an [[Korean Armistice Agreement|armistice agreement]] at approximately the [[Military Demarcation Line]], but the two governments are officially still at war.

===North and South Korea===
{{See also|History of North Korea|History of South Korea|Korean conflict|Korean reunification}}
[[File:2018 inter-Korean summit square.jpg|thumb|upright|Kim and Moon shaking hands over the [[demarcation line]] on 27 April 2018]]
In 2018, the leaders of North Korea and South Korea officially signed the [[Panmunjom Declaration]], announcing that they will work to end the conflict.<ref>{{Cite news |script-title=ko:판문점 선언: 작년에 비해 담담해진 2주년… 문 대통령 '작은 일이라도 끊임없이 실천해야' |url=https://www.bbc.com/korean/52451580 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230622145307/https://www.bbc.com/korean/52451580|archive-date=Jun 22, 2023 |newspaper=BBC News 코리아 }}</ref>

In November 2020, South Korea and China agreed to work together to mend South Korea's relationship with North Korea. During a meeting between [[Moon Jae-in|President Moon]] and China's foreign minister, [[Wang Yi (politician)|Wang Yi]], Moon expressed his gratitude to China for its role in helping to foster peace in the Korean Peninsula. Moon was quoted telling Wang during their meeting that "[the South Korean] government will not stop efforts to put an end (formally) to war on the Korean Peninsula and achieve complete denuclearization and permanent peace together with the international community, including China."<ref>{{Cite web|date=27 November 2020|title=South Korea, China agree on North Korea talks, early Xi visit|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/11/27/china-south-korea-agree-on-early-xi-visit-north-korea-talks|access-date=16 March 2021|archive-date=17 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210217105959/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/11/27/china-south-korea-agree-on-early-xi-visit-north-korea-talks|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Geography==
{{Main|Geography of Korea}}
{{See also|Geography of North Korea|Geography of South Korea|Provinces of Korea}}
[[File:N Korea sat image.jpg|thumb|Satellite image of Korea]]
[[File:Korean.Seoraksan-Ulsanbawi-01.jpg|thumb|A view of [[Seoraksan]]]]
[[File:Daedongyeojido 1860.jpg|thumb|[[Daedongyeojido]] – this 1861 map of Korea represents the peak of pre-modern mapmaking in the region.]]
[[File:Korea-Jejudo-Coast-03.jpg|thumb|Jeju Island seashore]]
Korea consists of a [[peninsula]] and nearby islands located in [[East Asia]]. The peninsula extends southwards for about {{convert|1100|km|abbr=on}} from continental [[Asia]] into the [[Pacific Ocean]] and is surrounded by the [[Sea of Japan]] to the east and the [[Yellow Sea]] (West Sea) to the west, the [[Korea Strait]] connecting the two bodies of water.<ref>{{cite web |title=Geography of the Korean Peninsula |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/the-korean-peninsula-1435252 |website=Thoughtco |access-date=3 July 2018 |archive-date=3 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180703133658/https://www.thoughtco.com/the-korean-peninsula-1435252 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/064th_issue/98100708.htm Korean Map] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130723104323/http://www1.korea-np.co.jp/pk/064th_issue/98100708.htm |date=23 July 2013 }}, The People's Korea, 1998.</ref> To the northwest, the [[Amnok River]] separates Korea from China and to the northeast, the [[Duman River]] separates it from China and Russia.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OyiXSQAACAAJ&q=korean+penin+geography|title=Geography of Korea|date=6 July 2011|publisher=General Books|isbn=9781157065555|access-date=14 November 2020|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509180226/https://books.google.com/books?id=OyiXSQAACAAJ&q=korean+penin+geography|url-status=live}}</ref> Notable islands include [[Jeju Island]], [[Ulleung Island]], [[Dokdo]].

The southern and western parts of the peninsula have well-developed plains, while the eastern and northern parts are mountainous. The highest mountain in Korea is [[Mount Paektu]] (2,744&nbsp;m), through which runs the border with China. The southern extension of Mount Paektu is a highland called [[Gaema Heights]]. This highland was mainly raised during the [[Cenozoic]] [[orogeny]] and partly covered by volcanic matter. To the south of Gaema Gowon, successive high mountains are located along the eastern coast of the peninsula. This mountain range is named [[Baekdu-daegan]]. Some significant mountains include [[Sobaeksan]] (1,439&nbsp;m), [[Mount Kumgang]] (1,638&nbsp;m), [[Seoraksan]] (1,708&nbsp;m), [[Taebaeksan]] (1,567&nbsp;m), and [[Jirisan]] (1,915&nbsp;m). There are several lower, secondary mountain series whose direction is almost perpendicular to that of Baekdu-daegan. They are developed along the tectonic line of [[Mesozoic]] orogeny and their directions are basically northwest.

Unlike most ancient mountains on the mainland, many important islands in Korea were formed by volcanic activity in the Cenozoic orogeny. Jeju Island, situated off the southern coast, is a large volcanic island whose main mountain, [[Mount Halla]] or Hallasan (1,950&nbsp;m), is the highest in South Korea. Ulleung Island is a volcanic island in the Sea of Japan, the composition of which is more [[felsic]] than Jeju. The volcanic islands tend to be younger, the more westward.

Because the mountainous region is mostly on the eastern part of the peninsula, the main [[Rivers of Korea|rivers]] tend to flow westwards. Two exceptions are the southward-flowing [[Nakdong River]] and [[Seomjin River]]. Important rivers running westward include the Amnok River, the [[Ch'ongch'on River|Chongchon River]], the [[Taedong River]], the [[Han River (Korea)|Han River]], the [[Geum River]], and the [[Yeongsan River]]. These rivers have vast flood plains and provide an ideal environment for [[paddy field|wet-rice]] cultivation.

The southern and southwestern coastlines of the peninsula form a well-developed [[ria]] coastline, known as ''Dadohae-jin'' in Korean. This convoluted coastline provides mild seas, and the resulting calm environment allows for safe navigation, fishing, and [[seaweed farming]]. In addition to the complex coastline, the western coast of the Korean Peninsula has an extremely high [[tide|tidal amplitude]] (at [[Incheon]], around the middle of the western coast, the tide can get as high as 9&nbsp;m). Vast tidal flats have been developing on the south and west coastlines.

===Climate===
Korea has a temperate climate with comparatively fewer [[typhoons]] than other countries in East Asia. Due to the peninsula's position, it has a unique climate influenced by Siberia in the north, the Pacific Ocean in the east and the rest of Eurasia in the west. The peninsula has four distinct seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter.<ref>{{cite web |title=Climate of Korea |url=https://web.kma.go.kr/eng/biz/climate_01.jsp |website=[[Korea Meteorological Administration]]|publisher=South Korean Government |access-date=3 July 2018 |archive-date=10 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710162728/http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/biz/climate_01.jsp |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Spring====
As influence from Siberia weakens, temperatures begin to increase while the high pressure begins to move away. If the weather is abnormally dry, Siberia will have more influence on the peninsula leading to wintry weather such as snow.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EHoMAQAAIAAJ&q=climate+korea|title=Climate of Korea: Climatic Data|last1=McCune|first1=Shannon|year=1941|access-date=21 September 2020|archive-date=9 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509180224/https://books.google.com/books?id=EHoMAQAAIAAJ&q=climate+korea|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Summer====
During June at the start of the summer, there tends to be a lot of rain due to the cold and wet air from the [[Sea of Okhotsk]] and the hot and humid air from the Pacific Ocean combining. When these fronts combine, it leads to a so-called rainy season with often cloudy days with rain, which is sometimes very heavy. The hot and humid winds from the south west blow causing an increasing amount of humidity and this leads to the fronts moving towards [[Manchuria]] in China and thus there is less rain and this is known as midsummer; temperatures can exceed {{convert|30|°C|°F}} daily at this time of year.

====Autumn====
Usually, high pressure is heavily dominant during autumn leading to clear conditions. Furthermore, temperatures remain high but the humidity becomes relatively low.

====Winter====
The weather becomes increasingly dominated by Siberia during winter and the jet stream moves further south causing a drop in temperature. This season is relatively dry with some snow falling at times.

===Biodiversity===
{{Main|Wildlife of Korea}}
Animal life of the Korean Peninsula includes a considerable number of bird species and native [[freshwater fish]]. Native or [[endemic]] species of the Korean Peninsula include [[Korean hare]], [[Water deer|Korean water deer]], [[Korean field mouse]], [[Korean brown frog]], [[Korean pine]] and [[Picea koraiensis|Korean spruce]]. The [[Korean Demilitarized Zone]] (DMZ) with its forest and natural [[wetlands]] is a unique biodiversity spot, which harbours eighty-two [[endangered species]]. Korea once hosted many [[Siberian tigers]], but as the number of people affected by the tigers increased, the tigers were killed in the Joseon dynasty and the Siberian tigers in the South Korea became extinct during the Japanese colonial era period. It has been confirmed that Siberian tigers are only on the side of North Korea now.

There are also approximately 3,034 species of [[vascular plants]] throughout the peninsula.

==Economy==
===Science and technology===
{{Main|History of science and technology in Korea}}
{{See also|List of Korean inventions and discoveries}}
[[File:Cheomseongdae 첨성대.jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Cheomseongdae]], the oldest surviving [[astronomical observatory]] in Asia]]
One of the best known artefacts of Korea's history of science and technology is the [[Cheomseongdae]], a 9.4-meter high [[astronomical observatory]] built in 634 CE.

The earliest known surviving Korean example of woodblock printing is [[The Great Dharani Sutra]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cha.go.kr/english/search_plaza/ECulresult_Db_View.jsp?VdkVgwKey=11,01260000,37 |title=Cultural Heritage, the source for Koreans' Strength and Dream |publisher=[[Cultural Heritage Administration]] |location=KR |access-date=3 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080316165534/http://www.cha.go.kr/english/search_plaza/ECulresult_Db_View.jsp?VdkVgwKey=11%2C01260000%2C37 |archive-date=16 March 2008 }}</ref> It is believed to have been printed in Korea in 750–51 CE, which if correct, would make it older than the [[Diamond Sutra]].

[[File:SelectedTeachingsofBuddhistSagesandSonMasters1377.jpg|thumb|left|''[[Jikji]]'', ''Selected Teachings of Buddhist Sages and Seon Masters'', the earliest known book printed with movable metal type, 1377. Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris.]]
During the [[Goryeo]] period, [[metal movable type]] printing was invented by [[Ch'oe Yun-ŭi]] in 1234 CE.<ref>{{cite web|title=Korean Classics : Asian Collections: An Illustrated Guide (Library of Congress – Asian Division)|url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/asian/guide/guide-korean.html|website=Library of Congress|publisher=United States Congress|access-date=19 August 2016|archive-date=26 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026173540/https://www.loc.gov/rr/asian/guide/guide-korean.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="print_c"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Korea, 1000–1400 A.D. {{!}} Chronology {{!}} Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History {{!}} The Metropolitan Museum of Art|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/07/eak.html|website=The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History|publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|access-date=19 August 2016|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327034517/https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/07/eak.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Movable type – Oxford Reference|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100213284|website=Oxford Reference|publisher=Oxford University Press|access-date=19 August 2016|archive-date=26 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026154750/http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100213284|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="print_f"/><ref name="print_a"/> This invention made printing easier, more efficient and also increased literacy, which observed by Chinese visitors was seen to be so important where it was considered to be shameful to not be able to read.<ref>Baek Sauk Gi (1987). Woong-Jin-Wee-In-Jun-Gi #11 Jang Young Sil, page 61. Woongjin Publishing.</ref> The [[Mongol Empire]] later adopted Korea's movable type printing and spread as far as Central Asia. There is conjecture as to whether or not Ch'oe's invention had any influence on later printing inventions such as Gutenberg's [[Printing press]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rightreading.com/printing/gutenberg.asia/gutenberg-asia-1-introduction.htm|title=Gutenberg and the Koreans: Did Asian Printing Traditions Influence the European Renaissance?|website=www.rightreading.com|access-date=1 August 2017|archive-date=19 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019002416/http://www.rightreading.com/printing/gutenberg.asia/gutenberg-asia-1-introduction.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> When the [[Mongols]] [[Mongol invasion of Europe|invaded Europe]] they inadvertently introduced different kinds of Asian technology.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thoughtco.com/mongols-effect-on-europe-195621 |title=Effects of the Mongol Empire on Europe |publisher=Szczepanski, Kallie |access-date=27 January 2020 |archive-date=27 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200127210731/https://www.thoughtco.com/mongols-effect-on-europe-195621 |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the Joseon period, the [[Turtle Ship]] was invented, which were covered by a wooden deck and iron with thorns,<ref name="Hawley 2005, 195f.">{{cite book| last = Hawley| first = Samuel| title = The Imjin War. Japan's Sixteenth-Century Invasion of Korea and Attempt to Conquer China| year = 2005| publisher = The Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch| location = Seoul| isbn = 978-89-954424-2-5| pages = 195f }}</ref><ref name="Turnbull 2002, 244">{{cite book| last = Turnbull| first = Stephen| title = Samurai Invasion. Japan's Korean War 1592–98| year = 2002| publisher = Cassell & Co| location = London| isbn = 978-0-304-35948-6| page = [https://archive.org/details/samuraiinvasionj0000turn/page/244 244]| url = https://archive.org/details/samuraiinvasionj0000turn/page/244}}</ref><ref name="Roh 2004, 13">{{cite journal | last =Roh | first =Young-koo | title =Yi Sun-shin, an Admiral Who Became a Myth | journal =The Review of Korean Studies | volume =7 | issue =3 | year =2004 | pages =15–36 | url =http://review.aks.ac.kr/AttachedFiles/7-3-1-Yi%20Sun-shin,%20an%20Admiral%20Who%20Became%20a%20Myth.pdf | place =KR | access-date =4 February 2012 | archive-date =21 September 2013 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130921021725/http://review.aks.ac.kr/AttachedFiles/7-3-1-Yi%20Sun-shin,%20an%20Admiral%20Who%20Became%20a%20Myth.pdf | url-status =dead }}</ref> as well as other weapons such as the [[Korean cannon|bigyeokjincheolloe cannon]] (비격진천뢰, {{linktext|飛|擊|震|天|雷}}) and the [[hwacha]].

The Korean alphabet [[hangul]] was also invented during this time by [[Sejong the Great of Joseon|King Sejong the Great]].

==Demographics==
{{Main|Koreans|Demographics of South Korea|Demographics of North Korea}}
{{As of|2023}}, the combined population of the Koreas is about 77.9 million (South Korea: 51.7 million, North Korea: 26.1 million).{{UN_Population|ref}} Korea is chiefly populated by a highly [[wikt:homogeneous|homogeneous]] [[ethnic]] group, the [[Koreans]], who speak the [[Korean language]].<ref>{{cite web | work = Aparc | url = http://aparc.stanford.edu/news/koreas_ethnic_nationalism_is_a_source_of_both_pride_and_prejudice_according_to_giwook_shin_20060802/ | title = Korea's ethnic nationalism is a source of both pride and prejudice, according to Gi-Wook Shin | publisher = Stanford | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110720053258/http://aparc.stanford.edu/news/koreas_ethnic_nationalism_is_a_source_of_both_pride_and_prejudice_according_to_giwook_shin_20060802 | archive-date = 20 July 2011 | url-status = dead}}</ref> The number of foreigners living in Korea has also steadily increased since the late 20th century, particularly in South Korea, where more than 1 million foreigners reside.<ref>{{Citation | date = 24 February 2009 | newspaper = [[Los Angeles Times]] | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-feb-24-fg-korea-teach24-story.html | title = Trying to teach South Korea about discrimination | first = John M. | last = Glionna | access-date = 16 August 2009 | archive-date = 17 November 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161117013706/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/feb/24/world/fg-korea-teach24 | url-status = live }}</ref> It was estimated in 2006 that only 26,700 of the old [[Ethnic Chinese in Korea|Chinese community]] now remain in South Korea.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/152641.html|date=29 August 2006|access-date=8 December 2006|title=No 'real' Chinatown in S. Korea, the result of xenophobic attitudes|last=Kim|first=Hyung-jin|publisher=[[Yonhap News Agency]]|archive-date=5 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105130257/http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/152641.html|url-status=live}}</ref> However, in recent years, immigration from mainland China has increased; 624,994 persons of [[People's Republic of China|Chinese]] nationality have immigrated to South Korea, including 443,566 of [[Ethnic Koreans in China|ethnic Korean]] descent.<ref name="million">{{cite web|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/08/06/2009080600243.html|title=More Than 1 Million Foreigners Live in Korea|work=[[The Chosun Ilbo]]|date=6 August 2009|access-date=16 August 2009|archive-date=9 September 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090909061931/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/08/06/2009080600243.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Small communities of ethnic Chinese and [[Japanese people in North Korea|Japanese]] are also found in North Korea.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-north/ | work = The World Factbook | title = Korea, North | publisher = CIA | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 27 September 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210927094507/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-north/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

{{Largest cities
| country      = Korea
| stat_ref     = Sources: [https://web.archive.org/web/20100331091148/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/sources/census/2010_PHC/North_Korea/Final%20national%20census%20report.pdf 2008 North Korean census] and [http://kostat.go.kr/portal/korea/kor_nw/2/1/index.board?bmode=read&aSeq=356061 2015 South Korean census]
| class = info
| div_name     = Province
| div_link     = <!-- the template will automatically create a link for "div_name of country" (e.g. Provinces of Chile), if this doesn't work you can use this field -->

| city_1 = Seoul | div_1 = Seoul | pop_1 = 9,904,312 | img_1 = Westward view from Lotte World Tower.jpg
| city_2 = Busan | div_2 = Busan | pop_2 = 3,448,737 | img_2 = View of Busan from Busan Tower.jpg
| city_3 = Pyongyang | div_3 = Pyongyang | pop_3 = 3,255,288 | img_3 = Pyongyang western view April 2010.jpg
| city_4 = Incheon | div_4 = Incheon | pop_4 = 2,890,451 | img_4 = Incheon Grand Bridge.jpg
| city_5 = Daegu | div_5 = Daegu | pop_5 = 2,446,052
| city_6 = Daejeon | div_6 = Daejeon | pop_6 = 1,538,394
| city_7 = Gwangju | div_7 = Gwangju | pop_7 = 1,502,881
| city_8 = Suwon | div_8 = Gyeonggi | pop_8 = 1,194,313
| city_9 = Ulsan | div_9 = Ulsan | pop_9 = 1,166,615
| city_10 = Changwon | div_10 = South Gyeongsang | pop_10 = 1,059,241
| city_11 = Goyang | div_11 = Gyeonggi | pop_11 = 990,073
| city_12 = Yongin | div_12 = Gyeonggi | pop_12 = 971,327
| city_13 = Seongnam | div_13 = Gyeonggi | pop_13 = 948,757
| city_14 = Bucheon | div_14 = Gyeonggi | pop_14 = 843,794
| city_15 = Cheongju | div_15 = North Chungcheong | pop_15 = 833,276
| city_16 = Hamhung | div_16 = South Hamgyong  | pop_16 = 768,551
| city_17 = Ansan | div_17 = Gyeonggi | pop_17 = 747,035
| city_18 = Chongjin | div_18 = North Hamgyong  | pop_18 = 667,929
| city_19 = Jeonju | div_19 = North Jeolla | pop_19 = 658,172
| city_20 = Cheonan | div_20 = South Chungcheong | pop_20 = 629,062
}}

===Language===
{{Main|Korean language|Korean Sign Language}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=August 2019}}
[[File:Hunmin jeong-eum.jpg|thumb|upright|''[[Hunminjeongeum]]'', afterwards called [[Hangul]]]]
[[Korean language|Korean]] is the official language of both North and South Korea, and (along with Mandarin) of [[Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture]] in [[Jilin Province]], [[China]]. Worldwide, there are up to 80 million speakers of the Korean language. South Korea has around 50 million speakers while North Korea around 25 million. Other large groups of Korean speakers through [[Korean diaspora]] are found in [[China]], the [[United States]], [[Japan]], former [[Soviet Union]] and elsewhere.

Modern Korean is written almost exclusively in the script of the [[Hangul|Korean alphabet]] (known as Hangul in South Korea and Chosungul in China and North Korea), which was invented in the 15th century. Korean is sometimes written with the addition of some Chinese characters called Hanja; however, this is only occasionally seen nowadays.

===Religion===
{{Main|Religion in Korea|Religion in South Korea|Religion in North Korea}}
{{See also|Korean shamanism|Korean Confucianism|Korean Buddhism|Taoism in Korea|Christianity in Korea|Islam in Korea}}
[[File:Korea south kangnung kyongpodae.jpg|thumb|Korean Buddhist architecture]]
[[File:Goryeo Buddhist painting.jpg|thumb|upright|''Amitabha and Eight Great Bodhisattvas'', Goryeo scroll from the 1300s]]
[[Confucian]] tradition has dominated Korean thought, along with contributions by [[Buddhism]], [[Taoism]], and [[Korean Shamanism]]. Since the middle of the 20th century, however, [[Christianity]] has competed with Buddhism in South Korea, while religious practice has been suppressed in North Korea. Throughout Korean history and culture, regardless of separation; the influence of traditional beliefs of Korean Shamanism, Mahayana Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism have remained an underlying religion of the Korean people as well as a vital aspect of their culture; all these traditions have coexisted peacefully for hundreds of years up to today despite strong Westernisation from Christian missionary conversions in the South<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.korea.net/korea/kor_loca.asp?code=U05 | work = About Korea | title = Religion |publisher=Korea | access-date=3 November 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080731234901/http://www.korea.net/korea/kor_loca.asp?code=U05 |archive-date = 31 July 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | work = Japan to Mali | url = http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Japan-to-Mali/South-Koreans.html | title = South Koreans | publisher = Every Culture | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 23 July 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100723044101/http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Japan-to-Mali/South-Koreans.html | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/South-Korea.html | title= Culture of South Korea | publisher= Every Culture | access-date= 3 November 2009 | archive-date= 25 December 2018 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181225034019/https://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/South-Korea.html | url-status= live }}</ref> or the pressure from the [[Juche]] [[Government of North Korea|government]] in the North.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/North-Korea.html |title= Culture of North Korea |publisher= Every Culture |access-date= 3 November 2009 |archive-date= 25 December 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181225033958/https://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/North-Korea.html |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-north/ | work = The World Factbook | title = North Korea: people | publisher = CIA | location = US | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 27 September 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210927094507/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-north/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

According to 2005 statistics from the South Korean government, about 46% of citizens profess no particular religion. [[Christianity in Korea|Christians]] account for 29.2% of the population (of which are Protestants 18.3% and Catholics 10.9%) and [[Korean Buddhism|Buddhists]] 22.8%.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108411.htm | work = International Religious Freedom Report | year = 2008 | title = Korea, Republic of | publisher = Department of State | location = [[United States of America|US]] | access-date = 3 November 2009 | archive-date = 1 October 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181001085824/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108411.htm | url-status = live }}</ref> In North Korea, around 71.3% claim to be non-religious or atheists, 12.9% follow [[Cheondoism]] and 12.3% [[Korean shamanism|Korean Folk Religion]], while Christians account for 2% of the population and Buddhists 1.5%.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pewforum |date=2 April 2015 |title=Religious Composition by Country, 2010–2050 |url=https://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/ |access-date=9 March 2022 |website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project |language=en-US |archive-date=8 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308135450/https://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Islam in South Korea]] is practised by about 45,000 natives (about 0.09% of the population) in addition to some 100,000 foreign workers from Muslim countries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.islamawareness.net/Asia/KoreaSouth/ks_news002.html |title=The Korea Times: Islam takes root and blooms |publisher=Islam awareness |date=22 November 2002 |access-date=3 November 2009 |archive-date=8 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120208153147/http://www.islamawareness.net/Asia/KoreaSouth/ks_news002.html |url-status=live }}</ref> While in North Korea it's estimated to be around 3000 Muslims, which is around 0.01% of the population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Korea, (North) Democratic Republic of, Religion And Social Profile {{!}} National Profiles {{!}} International Data {{!}} TheARDA |url=https://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_123_2.asp |access-date=9 March 2022 |website=www.thearda.com |archive-date=24 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924015607/https://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_123_2.asp |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Ar-Rahman Mosque (Pyongyang)|Ar-Rahman Mosque]] is the only mosque in DPRK, and it is located at the Iranian Embassy grounds in Pyongyyang.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 May 2021 |title=Inside North Korea's only mosque during Eid al-Fitr |url=https://www.nknews.org/2021/05/inside-north-koreas-only-mosque-during-eid-al-fitr/ |access-date=9 March 2022 |website=[[NK News]] |language=en-US |archive-date=18 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518074349/https://www.nknews.org/2021/05/inside-north-koreas-only-mosque-during-eid-al-fitr/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1993, the [[Korean Culture and Information Service|Korean Overseas Culture and Information Service]] estimated that around 1,600,000 people practice [[Korean new religions]] in both Korean countries.<ref name=":1922">{{Cite book |title=A Handbook of Korea |date=December 1993 |publisher=[[Korean Culture and Information Service|Korean Overseas Culture and Information Service]] |isbn=978-1-56591-022-5 |edition=9th |location=Seoul |pages=143}}</ref>

===Education===
{{Main|Education in South Korea|Education in North Korea}}
The modern South Korean school system consists of six years in elementary school, three years in middle school, and three years in high school. Students are required to go to elementary and middle school, and do not have to pay for their education, except for a small fee called a "School Operation Support Fee" that differs from school to school. The [[Programme for International Student Assessment]], coordinated by the [[OECD]], ranks South Korea's science education as the third best in the world and being significantly higher than the OECD average.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/42/8/39700724.pdf | title = Data | publisher = OECD | access-date = 21 May 2012 | archive-date = 29 December 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091229020307/http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/42/8/39700724.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

Although South Korean students often rank high on international comparative assessments, the education system is criticized for emphasising too much upon passive learning and memorisation. The South Korean education system is rather notably strict and structured <!-- This wording implies Western education systems are unstructured.--> as compared to its counterparts in most Western societies.

The North Korean education system consists primarily of [[state school|universal and state funded]] schooling by the [[Politics of North Korea|government]]. The national literacy rate for citizens 15 years of age and above is over 99 per cent.<ref name="loc-nk">[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/North_Korea.pdf Library of Congress country study], see p. 7 for Education and Literacy ({{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120728090717/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/North_Korea.pdf |date=28 July 2012 }})</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/tableView.aspx|title=UIS Statistics|last=UIS|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=16 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716104117/http://stats.uis.unesco.org/unesco/TableViewer/tableView.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> Children go through one year of kindergarten, four years of [[primary education]], six years of [[secondary education]], and then on to [[University|universities]]. The most prestigious university in the DPRK is [[Kim Il Sung University]]. Other notable universities include [[Kim Chaek University of Technology]], which focuses on computer science, [[Pyongyang University of Foreign Studies]], which trains working level diplomats and trade officials, and [[Kim Hyong Jik University of Education]], which trains teachers.

==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Korea|Korean art|Korean pottery and porcelain|Korean martial arts|Korean dance|Korean bow|Korean architecture}}
{{location map+ |Korea |float=right|width=250 |caption=Location of World Heritage Sites in Korea.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/kp/ |title=Democratic People's Republic of Korea |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=30 June 2018 |archive-date=1 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140701105958/https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/kp |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/kr/ |title=Republic of Korea |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=30 June 2018 |archive-date=30 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630214116/http://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/kr/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{paragraph break}}Note: Seoul is home to three separate properties; Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty locate throughout the country, only one site is shown on map. |places=
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Goguryeo tombs]]
  | position = top
  | lat_deg = 38 | lat_min = 51 | lat_sec = 47 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 125 | lon_min = 24 | lon_sec = 54 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Historic Monuments and Sites in Kaesong]]
  | position = top
  | lat_deg = 37 | lat_min = 58 | lat_sec = 00 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 126 | lon_min = 33 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Baekje Historic Areas]]
  | position = left
  | lat_deg = 36 | lat_min = 27 | lat_sec = 43 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 127 | lon_min = 07 | lon_sec = 38 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Changdeokgung]] / [[Jongmyo]]
  | position = left
  | lat_deg = 37 | lat_min = 33 | lat_sec = 00 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 126 | lon_min = 59 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Gyeongju Historic Areas]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 35 | lat_min = 47 | lat_sec = 20 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 129 | lon_min = 13 | lon_sec = 36 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Haeinsa]]
  | position = top
  | lat_deg = 35 | lat_min = 48 | lat_sec = 00 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 128 | lon_min = 06 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Hahoe Folk Village|Hahoe]]
  | position = bottom
  | lat_deg = 36 | lat_min = 32 | lat_sec = 21 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 128 | lon_min = 30 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Yangdong Folk Village|Yangdong]]
  | position = right
  | lat_deg = 36 | lat_min = 00 | lat_sec = 47 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 129 | lon_min = 09 | lon_sec = 45 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Hwaseong Fortress|Hwaseong]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 37 | lat_min = 16 | lat_sec = 20 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 127 | lon_min = 00 | lon_sec = 30 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes|Jeju]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 33 | lat_min = 28 | lat_sec = 08 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 126 | lon_min = 43 | lon_sec = 13 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Namhansanseong]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 37 | lat_min = 28 | lat_sec = 44 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 127 | lon_min = 10 | lon_sec = 52 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty|Royal Tombs of the Joseon]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 37 | lat_min = 11 | lat_sec = 50 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 128 | lon_min = 27 | lon_sec = 10 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Bulguksa]] and [[Seokguram]]
  | position = right
  | lat_deg = 35 | lat_min = 47 | lat_sec = 00 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 129 | lon_min = 21 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = [[Gochang, Hwasun and Ganghwa Dolmen Sites|Dolmen Sites]]
  | position =
  | lat_deg = 34 | lat_min = 58 | lat_sec = 00 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 126 | lon_min = 55 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
{{Location map~ |Korea
  | label = Sansa
  | position = top
  | lat_deg = 36 | lat_min = 32 | lat_sec = 31 | lat_dir = N
  | lon_deg = 127 | lon_min = 50 | lon_sec = 00 | lon_dir = E
  }}
}}

[[File:Korean sword dance-Jinju geommu-03.jpg|thumb|Traditional Korean dance (''Jinju geommu'')]]
In ancient Chinese texts, Korea is referred to as "Rivers and Mountains Embroidered on Silk" ({{Korean|hangul=금수강산|hanja=錦繡江山|labels=no}}) and "Eastern Nation of Decorum" ({{Korean|hangul=동방예의지국|hanja=東方禮儀之國|labels=no}}).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://100.naver.com/100.nhn?docid=714173|script-title=ko:대한민국의 국호|work=Naver Encyclope|access-date=14 August 2007|archive-date=16 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916090714/https://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=1177248&cid=40942&categoryId=34708|url-status=dead}}</ref> Individuals are regarded as one year old when they are born, as Koreans reckon the pregnancy period as one year of life for infants, and age increments increase on [[Korean New Year|New Year's Day]] rather than on the anniversary of birthdays. Thus, one born immediately before New Year's Day may only be a few days old in western reckoning, but two years old in Korea. Accordingly, a Korean person's stated age (at least among fellow Koreans) will be one or two years more than their age according to western reckoning. However, western reckoning is sometimes applied with regard to the concept of [[legal age]]; for example, the [[Legal drinking age|legal age for purchasing alcohol]] or [[Smoking age|cigarettes]] in the Republic of Korea is 19, which is measured according to western reckoning.

===Literature===
{{Excerpt|Korean literature|templates=no}}

===Music===
{{main|Traditional music of Korea}}
Traditional Korean music includes combinations of the folk, vocal, religious and [[Korean Court Music|ritual]] music styles of the [[Korean people]]. Korean music has been practised since prehistoric times.<ref>{{cite news |title=Rare Korean musical instruments exhibited |url=https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20110511000879 |work=[[The Korea Herald]] |date=11 May 2011 |language=en |access-date=24 December 2023 |archive-date=24 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231224043040/https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20110511000879 |url-status=live }}</ref> Korean music falls into two broad categories. The first, [[Hyangak]], literally means ''The local music'' or ''Music native to Korea'', a famous example of which is Sujechon, a piece of instrumental music often claimed to be at least 1,300 years old.<ref>{{cite book|last1=May|first1=Elizabeth|title=Musics of Many Cultures: An Introduction|date=1983|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0520047785|pages=[https://archive.org/details/musicsofmanycult00hood_0/page/32 32]–33|edition=Ethno Musicology|url=https://archive.org/details/musicsofmanycult00hood_0|url-access=registration|quote=hyangak korea.|access-date=10 July 2015}}</ref> The second, ''yangak'', represents a more Western style.

===Cuisine===
{{Main|Korean cuisine}}
{{See also|Korean tea ceremony|Korean royal court cuisine}}
[[File:Gimjang in Gaemi Village, 1 December 2012.jpg|thumb|[[Gimjang]], the process for making [[kimchi]]]]
Koreans traditionally believe that the taste and quality of food depend on its spices and sauces, the essential ingredients to making a delicious meal. Therefore, [[soybean paste]], [[soy sauce]], ''[[gochujang]]'' or red pepper paste and [[kimchi]] are some of the most important staples in a Korean household.

Korean cuisine was greatly influenced by the geography and climate of the Korean Peninsula, which is known for its cold autumns and winters, therefore there are many fermented dishes and hot soups and stews.

Korean cuisine is probably best known for [[kimchi]], a side dish which uses a distinctive [[fermentation (food)|fermentation]] process of preserving vegetables, most commonly cabbage. Kimchi is said to relieve the pores on the skin, thereby reducing wrinkles and providing nutrients to the skin naturally. It is also healthy, as it provides necessary vitamins and nutrients. Gochujang, a traditional Korean sauce made of red pepper is also commonly used, often as pepper (chilli) paste, earning the cuisine a reputation for spiciness.

[[Bulgogi]] (roasted marinated meat, usually beef), [[galbi]] (marinated grilled short ribs), and [[samgyeopsal]] (pork belly) are popular main courses. Fish is also a popular commodity, as it is the traditional meat that Koreans eat. Meals are usually accompanied by a soup or stew, such as [[galbitang]] (stewed ribs) or [[doenjang jjigae]] (fermented bean paste soup). The center of the table is filled with a shared collection of sidedishes called [[banchan]].

Other popular dishes include ''[[bibimbap]]'', which literally means "mixed rice" (rice mixed with meat, vegetables, and red pepper paste), and [[naengmyeon]] (cold noodles).<ref>{{cite news|language=fr|author=Shim Seung-Ja|title=La nourriture coréenne|journal=Revue Culture coréenne|number=61|date=August 2002|pages=17–23}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|language=fr|author=Chang Duk-Sang|title=L'étonnante cuisine coréenne|journal=Revue Culture coréenne|number=24|date=December 1990|pages=2–10}}</ref>

Instant noodles, or ''[[ramyeon]]'', is a popular snack food. Koreans also enjoy food from ''[[pojangmacha]]s'' (street vendors), which serve [[tteokbokki]], rice cake and fish cake with a spicy gochujang sauce; ''[[gimbap]]'', made of steamed white rice wrapped in dried [[green laver]] seaweed; fried squid; and glazed sweet potato. [[Sundae (Korean food)|Soondae]], a sausage made of cellophane noodles and pork blood, is widely eaten.

Additionally, some other common snacks include "[[Choco Pie]]", shrimp crackers, "bbeongtwigi" (puffed rice grains), and "nurungji" (slightly burnt rice). Nurungji can be eaten as it is or boiled with water to make a soup. Nurungji can also be eaten as a snack or a dessert.

Korea is unique among Asian countries in its use of metal chopsticks. Metal chopsticks have been discovered in archaeological sites belonging to the ancient Korean kingdoms of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla.

===Sports===
{{Main|Sport in South Korea|Sport in North Korea}}
North Korea and South Korea usually compete as two separate nations in international events. There are, however, a few examples of them having [[Unified Korean sporting teams|competed as one entity]], under the name Korea.

While [[association football]] remains one of the most popular sports in South Korea, the martial art of [[taekwondo]] is considered to be the national sport. [[Baseball]] and [[golf]] are also popular. The board game [[Go (game)|Go]], known in Korea as ''baduk'', has also been popular for over a millennium, first arriving from China in the 5th century CE; ''baduk'' is played both casually and competitively.

====Martial arts====
=====Taekwon-Do=====
{{Main|Taekwondo}}
Taekwon-Do is Korea's most famous martial art and sport. It combines combat techniques, self-defence, sport and exercise. Taekwon-Do has become an official Olympic sport, starting as a demonstration event in [[1988 Summer Olympics|1988]] (when South Korea hosted the Games in Seoul) and becoming an official medal event in [[2000 Summer Olympics|2000.]] The two major Taekwon-Do federations, the [[International Taekwon-Do Federation]] and the [[World Taekwondo Federation]], were founded in Korea..

=====Hapkido=====
{{Main|Hapkido}}
Hapkido is a modern [[Korean martial arts|Korean martial art]] with a grappling focus that employs joint locks, throws, kicks, punches and other striking attacks like attacks against pressure points. Hapkido emphasizes circular motion, non-resisting movements and control of the opponent. Practitioners seek to gain advantage through footwork and body positioning to employ leverage, avoiding the pure use of strength against strength.

=====Ssireum=====
{{Main|Ssireum}}
Ssireum is a traditional form of wrestling that has been practised in Korea for thousands of years, with evidence discovered from Goguryeo of Korea's Three Kingdoms Period (57 BCE to 688). Ssireum is the traditional national sport of Korea. During a match, opponents grip each other by sash belts wrapped around the waist and the thigh, attempting to throw their competitor to the sandy ground of the ring. The first opponent to touch the ground with any body part above the knee or to lose hold of their opponent loses the round.

Ssireum competitions are traditionally held twice a year, during the [[Dano (Korean festival)|Dano Festival]] (the 5th day of the fifth lunar month) and [[Chuseok]] (the 15th day of the 8th lunar month). Competitions are also held throughout the year as a part of festivals and other events.

=====Taekkyon=====
{{Main|Taekkyon}}
Taekkyon is a traditional martial art, considered the oldest form of fighting technique of Korea. Practiced for centuries and especially popular during the [[Joseon]] period, two forms co-existed: one for practical use, the other for sport. This form was usually practised alongside [[Ssireum]] during festivals and competitions between villages. Nonetheless, Taekkyon almost disappeared during the [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese Occupation]] and the [[Korean War]].

Though lost in North Korea, Taekkyon has enjoyed a spectacular revival from the 1980s in South Korea. It is the only martial art in the world (with Ssireum) recognized as a [[National Treasure (South Korea)|National Treasure of South Korea]] and a [[UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists|UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage]].

==See also==
{{Portal|Geography|Asia|North Korea|South Korea}}
* [[Inter-Korean summits]]
* [[Korean name]]
* [[Korean natural farming]]
* [[Korean War]]
* [[List of Korean inventions and discoveries]]
* [[List of peninsulas]]
* [[National Treasures of North Korea]]
* [[National Treasures of South Korea]]
* [[North Korea–South Korea relations]]
* [[Korean reunification]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist | group = "lower-alpha"}}

==References==
===Citations===
{{Reflist |30em}}

===Bibliography===
{{Refbegin |30em}}
* {{Citation | editor-first = Ian | editor-last = Castello-Cortes | title = World Reference Atlas | contribution = North Korea | edition = 2nd American | year = 1996 | publisher = Dorling Kindersley | location = New York | isbn = 978-0-7894-1085-6}}.
* {{Citation | last = Cumings | first = Bruce | title = Korea's Place in the Sun | publisher = Norton | year = 1997 | isbn = 978-0-393-31681-0 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/koreasplaceinsun00bruc }}
* {{Citation | last = Kim | others = et al. | title = Women of Korea: A History from Ancient Times to 1945 | publisher = Ewha Womans University Press | year = 1976 | isbn = 978-89-7300-116-3}}.
* {{Citation | url = http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history.htm | publisher = Asian Info | title = Korea | contribution = History | access-date = 11 July 2006 | archive-date = 4 February 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120204050220/http://www.asianinfo.org/asianinfo/korea/history.htm | url-status = live }}.
* {{Citation | url = http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/rank/2007/ARWU2007TOP500list.htm | publisher = STJI | place = [[China|CN]] | year = 2007 | title = Top 500 list | access-date = 16 November 2007 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100305220459/http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/rank/2007/ARWU2007TOP500list.htm | archive-date = 5 March 2010 | url-status = dead }}
* {{Citation | url = http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact2005/geos/ks.html#People | publisher = UMSL | year = 2005 | title = Facts | contribution = People | access-date = 16 November 2007 | archive-date = 22 July 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090722110913/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact2005/geos/ks.html#People | url-status = dead }}.
* {{Citation | url = http://www.diamond-dilemma.com/kor/doc/TariqHussain_KoreaHerald_5Mar2007.pdf | title = The Korea Herald | newspaper = [[The Korea Herald]] | publisher = Diamond dilemma | first = Tariq | last = Hussain | date = 5 March 2007 | access-date = 27 April 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071127072907/http://www.diamond-dilemma.com/kor/doc/TariqHussain_KoreaHerald_5Mar2007.pdf | archive-date = 27 November 2007 | url-status = dead }}.
* {{Citation | url = http://www.worknplay.co.kr/korea-information/ | title = Korea Expat Community | publisher = WorknPlay | contribution = Korea information | access-date = 23 July 2010 | archive-date = 5 July 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100705133350/http://www.worknplay.co.kr/korea-information/ | url-status = dead }}.
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
* Chun, Tuk Chu. "Korea in the Pacific Community". ''Social Education'' 52 (March 1988), 182. EJ 368 177.
* [[Bruce Cumings|Cumings, Bruce]]. ''The Two Koreas''. New York: Foreign Policy Association, 1984.
* {{cite book | last = Oberdorfer |first = Don |title=The Two Koreas: a Contemporary History | year =2001| publisher =Basic Books| isbn =978-0465051625|oclc=47831650}}
* ''Focus on Asian Studies''. Special Issue: "Korea: A Teacher's Guide". No. 1, Fall 1986.
* {{Citation| first = Gi-Wook | last = Shin | editor-first = Michael | editor-last = Robinson | title = Colonial modernity in Korea | place = Cambridge, [[Massachusetts|MA]] | publisher = Harvard University, Asia Center | year = 1999 | isbn = 978-0-674-14255-8}}.
* Hart, Dennis. ''From Tradition to Consumption: Construction of a Capitalist Culture in South Korea''. Seoul: Jimoondang, 2003.
* {{cite book | last = Jager | first = Sheila Miyoshi |author-link= Sheila Miyoshi Jager | title = Brothers at War – The Unending Conflict in Korea | year = 2013 | publisher = Profile Books | location = London | isbn = 978-1-84668-067-0}}
* Joe, W.J. & Choe, H.A. ''Traditional Korea: A Cultural History'', Seoul: Hollym, 1997.
* Joungwon, A.K. ''Divided Korea:  The Politics of Development'', Harvard University Press, 1975.
* Lee Ki-baik. ''A New History of Korea''. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1984.
* Lee Sang-sup. "The Arts and Literature of Korea". ''The Social Studies'' 79 (July–August 1988): 153–60. EJ 376 894.
* {{cite book|last =Pratt| first = Keith L| title = Everlasting Flower: A History of Korea| year = 2006| publisher =Reaktion| location = London| isbn = 9781861892737 |oclc=63137295}}
* Tae-Jin, Y. "The Illegality of the Forced Treaties Leading to Japan's Annexation of the Great Han Empire", In the ''Korean National Commission for UNESCO'', Vol. 36, No. 4, 1996.
* {{Citation | url = http://www.glosters.org.uk/textonly_timeline/7 | title = The Gloucestershire Regiment and The Battle of the Imjin River, Korean War | publisher = Glosters | place = [[United Kingdom|UK]] | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080513012959/http://www.glosters.org.uk/textonly_timeline/7 | archive-date = 13 May 2008}}.
* {{Citation | url = http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/46/10/38979986.pdf | type = briefing note | title = OECD Health Data | year = 2009 | contribution = How Does Korea Compare | publisher = Organisation For Economic Co-operation and Development | access-date = 2 September 2009 | archive-date = 6 December 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081206100859/http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/46/10/38979986.pdf | url-status = live }}.

==External links==
{{Wiktionary|Korea}}
{{Wikivoyage|Korea}}
* {{Wikisource-inline |list =
** {{cite EB9 |wstitle = Corea |volume= VI | pages=390–394 |short=1}}
** {{Cite EB1911 |wstitle= Korea |volume= 15 |pages=908–913 |short=1}}
** {{Cite Americana|wstitle=Korea|year=1920|noicon= x |short=x}}
** {{Cite Collier's|wstitle=Korea|noicon= x |short=x}}
}}
* {{Official website|http://www.korea.net/||name=The Republic of Korea}}

{{Korea topics}}
{{East Asian topics}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord |38|19|N|127|14|E|type:country_region:KR|display= title}}

[[Category:Korea| ]]
[[Category:Disputed territories in Asia]]
[[Category:East Asia]]
[[Category:Countries and territories where Korean is an official language]]
[[Category:Cultural regions]]