South Korea Travel Podcast with Minjun Park

Location

Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea

Terrain

Mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south

Climate

Temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter; cold winters

Elevation

Highest point

Halla-san 1,950 m

Lowest point

Sea of Japan 0 m

Mean elevation

282 m

Area

Total

99,720 sq km

Land

96,920 sq km

Water

2,800 sq km

Size comparison

Slightly smaller than Pennsylvania; slightly larger than Indiana

Coastline

2,413 km

Land borders

Total

237 km

Border countries

North Korea 237 km

Natural resources

Coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential

Land use

Agricultural land

16.1% (2023 est.)

Arable land

14.9% (2023 est.)

Permanent crops

2.1% (2023 est.)

Permanent pasture

0.6% (2023 est.)

Forest

64.4% (2023 est.)

Other

19.5% (2023 est.)

Natural hazards

Occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in southwest

Volcanism: Halla (1,950 m) is considered historically active; it has not erupted in many centuries

Note

Strategic location on Korea Strait; about 3,000 mostly small and uninhabited islands lie off the western and southern coasts

Population

Total

51,486,343 (2025 est.)

Male

25,636,127

Female

25,850,216

Nationality

Noun

Korean(s)

Adjective

Korean

Ethnic groups

Korean

Languages

Languages

Korean, English

Major-language sample(s)

월드 팩트북, 필수적인 기본 정보 제공처 (Korean)

Religions

Protestant 17%, Buddhist 16%, Catholic 6%, none 60% (2021 est.)

Median age

Total

47 years (2025 est.)

Male

44 years

Female

47.3 years

Life expectancy

Total population

83.4 years (2024 est.)

Male

80.3 years

Female

86.6 years

Urbanisation

Urban population

81.5% of total population (2023)

Rate of urbanization

0.31% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Where people live

The population is primarily concentrated in the lowland areas, where density is high; Gyeonggi Province in the northwest, which surrounds the capital of Seoul and contains the port of Incheon, is the most densely populated province; Gangwon in the northeast is the least populated

Largest cities

9.988 million SEOUL (capital), 3.472 million Busan, 2.849 million Incheon, 2.181 million Daegu (Taegu), 1.577 million Daejon (Taejon), 1.529 million Gwangju (Kwangju) (2023)

Background

The first recorded kingdom (Choson) on the Korean Peninsula dates from approximately 2300 B.C. Over the subsequent centuries, three main kingdoms -- Kogoryo, Baekche, and Silla -- were established on the Peninsula. By the 5th century A.D., Kogoryo emerged as the most powerful, with control over much of the Peninsula and part of Manchuria (modern-day northeast China). However, Silla allied with the Chinese to create the first unified Korean state in 688. Following the collapse of Silla in the 9th century, Korea was unified under the Koryo (Goryeo; 918-1392) and the Chosen (Joseon; 1392-1910) dynasties.

Korea became the object of intense imperialistic rivalry among the Chinese (its traditional benefactor), Japanese, and Russian empires in the latter half of the 19th and early 20th centuries. After the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), Korea was occupied by Imperial Japan. In 1910, Japan formally annexed the entire Peninsula. Korea regained its independence after Japan's surrender to the US and its allies in 1945. A US-supported democratic government (Republic of Korea, ROK) was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula, while a communist-style government backed by the Soviet Union was installed in the north (North Korea; aka Democratic People's Republic of Korea, DPRK). During the Korean War (1950-53), US troops and UN forces fought alongside ROK soldiers to defend South Korea from a North Korean invasion supported by communist China and the Soviet Union. After the 1953 armistice, the two Koreas were separated by a demilitarized zone.

Syngman RHEE led the country as its first president from 1948 to 1960. PARK Chung-hee took over leadership of the country in a 1961 coup. During his controversial rule (1961-79), South Korea achieved rapid economic growth, with per capita income rising to roughly 17 times the level of North Korea by 1979. PARK was assassinated in 1979, and subsequent years were marked by political turmoil and continued military rule as the country's pro-democracy movement grew. South Korea held its first free presidential election under a revised democratic constitution in 1987, with former South Korean Army general ROH Tae-woo winning a close race. In 1993, KIM Young-sam became the first civilian president of South Korea's new democratic era. President KIM Dae-jung (1998-2003) won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his contributions to South Korean democracy and his "Sunshine Policy" of engagement with North Korea. President PARK Geun-hye, daughter of former South Korean President PARK Chung-hee, took office in 2013 as South Korea's first female leader. In 2016, the National Assembly passed an impeachment motion against PARK over her alleged involvement in a corruption and influence-peddling scandal, triggering an early presidential election in 2017 won by MOON Jae-in. In 2022, longtime prosecutor and political newcomer YOON Suk Yeol won the presidency by the slimmest margin in South Korean history.

Discord and tensions with North Korea, punctuated by North Korean military provocations, missile launches, and nuclear tests, have permeated inter-Korean relations for years. Relations remained strained, despite a period of respite in 2018-2019 ushered in by North Korea's participation in the 2018 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in South Korea and high-level diplomatic meetings, including historic US-North Korea summits. In 2024, Pyongyang announced it was ending all economic cooperation with South Korea, a move that followed earlier proclamations that it was scrapping a 2018 military pact to de-escalate tensions along their militarized border, abandoning the country’s decades-long pursuit of peaceful unification with South Korea, and designating the South as North Korea’s “principal enemy.”

Government

Presidential republic

Capital

Seoul

Time zone

UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Local name

Taehan-min'guk

Independence

15 August 1945 (from Japan)

National day

Liberation Day, 15 August (1945)

Overview

High-income, export- and technology-oriented East Asian economy; manufacturing led by semiconductor and automotive industries; slow growth amid declining construction investment, export risks, and recent political instability; aging workforce; increased restraint in fiscal policy while maintaining industry support initiatives

GDP per capita

Real GDP per capita 2023

$50,400 (2023 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2022

$49,800 (2022 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2021

$48,400 (2021 est.)

Inflation

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2024

2.3% (2024 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2023

3.6% (2023 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2022

5.1% (2022 est.)

Unemployment

Unemployment rate 2024

2.7% (2024 est.)

Unemployment rate 2023

2.7% (2023 est.)

Unemployment rate 2022

2.9% (2022 est.)

Exchange rate

Currency

South Korean won (KRW) per US dollar -

Exchange rates 2024

1,363.375 (2024 est.)

Exchange rates 2023

1,305.662 (2023 est.)

Exchange rates 2022

1,291.447 (2022 est.)

Exchange rates 2021

1,143.952 (2021 est.)

Exchange rates 2020

1,180.266 (2020 est.)

Main industries

Electronics, telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel

Agriculture

Rice, vegetables, cabbages, milk, onions, pork, chicken, eggs, tangerines/mandarins, potatoes (2023)

Airports

92 (2025)

Railways

Total

3,979 km (2016)

Standard gauge

3,979 km (2016) 1.435-m gauge (2,727 km electrified)

Ports

Total ports

15 (2024)

Large

2

Medium

5

Small

4

Very small

4

Ports with oil terminals

10

Key ports

Busan, Gwangyang Hang, Inchon, Masan, Mokpo, Pyeongtaek Hang, Ulsan

Internet domain

.kr

Internet users

Percent of population 97% (2023 est.)

Mobile subscriptions

Total subscriptions

89.2 million (2024 est.)

Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

173 (2024 est.)

Environmental issues

Air pollution in large cities; acid rain; water pollution from sewage and industrial effluents; drift-net fishing; solid waste disposal; transboundary air pollution from China

Fresh water

69.7 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

UNESCO Global Geoparks

Total global geoparks and regional networks

7 (2025)

Global geoparks and regional networks

Cheongsong; Danyang; Gyeongbuk Donghaean; Hantangang; Jeju Island; Jeonbuk West Coast; Mudeungsan (2025)