about south korea.docx

8/14/2019 About South Korea.docx

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South Korea

Full name Republic of Korea / South KoreaCapital City Seoul

Language Korean (official)

Currency Republic of Korean Won (W)Religion Christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism, ShamanismNational Anthem Aegukga ("The Song of Love for the Country,"or "The Patriotic Song.")

Places to Visit Gyeongju, Seoul, Songnisan National Park, Dadohae Haesang National Park,

Dodong Mineral Spring Park, Gyeongbokgung, Korean Folk Village, SeongnamsaShopping sweaters, silks, brocades, Amethyst, clothes, handbags, leatherwork, Topaz,

Amber, jade, silver, ginseng, gold jewelry, paintings, musical instruments, brassware,

lacquerware, woodcarvings, costume dolls, baskets.

While traveling to the Republic of Korea, glance through the reminiscence left over by the

Joseon dynasty or watch out for the tallest statue of bronze made Buddha that attracts several

pagodas and travelers from all over of the world. Observe the Asian art that are inscribed in thetemple of Bulguska, or tour to the tombs of 20 Korean rulers along the Tumuli Park that still

retains its age old culture. Maintaining a rich culture, and a marvelous heritage jaunt to this

destination of South Korea that greets you with exquisite attractions.

South Korea Map Location of South Korea

The Republic of Korea is an East Asian state nestled along the Korean Peninsula towards its

southern side. The province is engulfed by North Korea (Democratic People's Republic ofKorea) from the northern end, the Yellow Sea towards the western end, where diagonally placed

is the continent of China, while Japan is positioned along the Korea Strait towards the

southeastern side.

Physical Map of South Korea

The Republic of Korea is mountainous in nature with major portion lying uncultivated. The

western and the southeastern region are marked with lowlands, which covers about 30 % of thetotal land space. South Korea is separated into four chief physical regions, namely:

High mountain ranges and tapered coastal plains (eastern front);

Broad coastal plains, watercourse basins, and undulating hills (western front);Mountains and valleys (southwestern front); and

Nakdong River's Broad basin (southeastern front).

Western and southern coasts are filled with three thousand islands that are usually uninhabited.

Jeju Island is the country's largest island placed about 100 kilometers off shoring the southerncoastal region of South Korea.

South Korea FlagFlag of South Korea

The South Korea flag is designed with three distinct parts, a white background, a red and bluecolored taeguk positioned in the middle and four trigrams, placed in each corner of the flag

surrounding the taeguk.


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has Chinese phrases inscribed in it that praises Confucian ethics, which includes filial piety and

dedication inscribed within it. Several sculptures are made out of bronze, stone, and rock that

gain its inspiration from Buddhism. The Sakyamuni Buddha is known as one of the majornational artwork within the region.

Culture: Koreans celebrate their New Year festival by wearing their traditional attire known ashanbok and thereby greeting their parents with a big bow which is natively called as sebae. Oneeats ttok-kuk, the rice cake soup during this auspicious day. Participate in the Ch'usok, harvest

festival where you may catch up with natives consuming songp'yon (half-moon-shaped rice

cakes). Kut is executed in several occasions like getting good fortune, curing sickness, showingthe path of heaven taken by the spirits of departed person, which is accompanied with songs,

dances, and chants.

Music: Korean music can be identified with two kinds of rhythm namely the folk and classical,relating to courtly feeling like sanjo, pansori and nongak. Korean court music can be classified

into three types namely aak, hyangak and dangak. P'ansori is the native folk vocal music that

involves singing and storytelling while being accompanied by a changgo (the conventionalmusical drum). Kut and nong-ak are known as the farmer's celebration music, which is combined

with the local dance. Mask dances are even popular in the area, which involves satiric drama.

Economy of Republic of Korea

South Korea stands in the tenth position as one of the largest economy in the world while being

third largest within Asia just after Japan and China.

China is the sole trading partner as far as export is concerned. Exports of manufactured goods

have created a boom within the economic sector.

South Korea's per capita income has risen 12 times than that of the North Korea. South Korea

witnessed severe exploitation during the year 1950, where the area infrastructure was greatly

hampered by the Korean War. After then, the country was to a greater extent dependent on theUS aid. Later on emphasis was laid on the economic growth where the economy undertook a

five-year recovery plan. Foreign trade was highlighted with emphasis made on trade and

investment. Light and heavy industries played a major role in the development of the industry.

The economy took a major upsurge and was even called as the "Miracle on the Han River", as

this river of Han seems to pass through the national capital of the region, that is Seoul. It was

during 1990, textiles and shoes were greatly exported, that brought in revenue within theprovince. The area produces goods like shipbuilding, automobiles, electronics, steel and later,

mobile phones, digital monitors, and semiconductors.

The economy was regulated with reasonable inflation, low unemployment, addition of export,and equal allotment of income that brought about its stability.

South Korea Government


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The structure of the South Korea Government is framed according to theConstitution of the

Republic of Korea. First promulgated in the year 1948, the document has undergone several

revisions. The South Korea Government always had a Presidential system with a relativelyindependent chief executive. The South Korea Government is divided into three branches of the

Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. Like most other three branch system, the South Korea

Government works with an efficient system of checks and balances.

The head of the Executive branch of the South Korea Government is the President. Elected

directly by the people, the president is the only elected member of the National Executive. The

President is also the head of the South Korea Government, head of state, and commander in chiefof the South Korean armed forces and serves a term of five years.

The Legislature of the South Korea Government, at a National level comprises of the National

Assembly of South Korea. The Legislature is an Unicameral one with 273 members who areelected from single-member constituencies. The Legislature of the South Korea Government is

vested with the power of auditing the budget and administrative procedures, deliberating and

passing legislation ratifying treaties, and approving state appointments.

Headed by the Constitutional Court, the Judicial branch of the South Korea Government is an

important organ of the Government. The President of the Constitutional Court is appointed by

the President of the Nation supported by the Assembly. The Constitutional Court includes ninejustices who are appointed by the President.

South Korea ConstitutionThe Constitution of South Korea was first promulgated in the year 1948 on the 17th day of July.

Forming the basic laws of the country, theConstitution of South Korea declares the country to be

a Republic. TheFirst Constitution of South Korea placed the Nation under the complete control

of the President. However, the Constitution of 1948 has undergone several alterations and notonly amended has even been completely re- written.

The South Korean Constitution of 1948 first amended for the First time in the year 1952 justahead of the re- election of President Syngman Rhee. This new South Korean Constitution

provided for a direct Presidential election and a Bicameral Legislature. However, once again in

Syngman Rhee's regime the South Korean Constitution was amended in the year1954 andemphasized on establishing a Capitalist Economic Model. These provisions were a cause of

protest and the Second Republic was initiated with a more Democratic Constitution which was in

effect from the year 1960. However, the 1960 Constitution was nullified as fast as 1961 and

theConstitution of the Third Republic was passed in the year 1962. ThisConstitution wassomewhat similar to the U.S Constitution. With the protests of 1987 in favor of Democracy the

Sixth Republic introduced theConstitution of 1988.

The Constitution of South Korea includes, a preamble, 130 articles, and supplementaryprovisions. The Constitutiondemarcates the jurisdiction of an executive branch headed by a

president and prime minister, an Unicameral legislature called theNational Assembly, and a

judiciary which consists of the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court and lower courts.


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South Korea History

A tradition of forty to fifty thousand years bestows the South Korea History. The evidence of the

Paleolithic people can be traced in the ancient Korea. The documents of Neolithic communitiesat around 4000 B.C. can even be traced in the South Korea History. There are few remains that

tell of the pottery culture in ancient Korea. The evidences are collected that show that the ancient

Koreans believed in shamanism. The legends revolving round South Korea tell that 'Tangun' wasthe figure who founded the first Korean kingdom of Choson. A few evidences are prevalent thatshow that Choson was a merger of Walled Town states and tribal states. These tribal folks

survived on agriculture.

The modern South Korea History has seen lots of wars and foreign invasions. Korea was

occupied by the Japanese forces from 1910. Korea earned their independence from these forces

in 1945. Till then Korea was a unified country. After 1945, Korea was split into two. The

southern half of the Korean peninsula came to be known as South Korea. The Republic of Korea(South Korea) was formally proclaimed on August 15, 1948. But soon the Korean War erupted

that made the lives of both halves of Korea tragic. The Korean War continued from 1950 to

1953. There have been frequent tensions between these neighboring countries since then. Thoughthere has been a little improvement in their relationship since 1991 when the Prime Ministers

from both these nations signed a declaration of non-aggression and reconciliation.

about south korea.docx

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