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Korea lies adjacent to China and Japan. The northern border of Korea is formed by the Amnokgang (Yalu) and Dumangang (Tumen) rivers, which separate it from Manchuria. A 16-kilometer segment of the Dumangang to the east also serves as a natural border with Russia. The west coast of the Korean Peninsula is bounded by the Korean Bay to the north and the Yellow Sea to the south; the east coast faces the East Sea.

Two hundred kilometers separate the peninsula from eastern China. The shortest distance between Korean and Chinese coasts is 200 kilometers and from the southeastern tip of the peninsula, the nearest point on the Japanese coast is also about 200 kilometers away.

Because of its unique geographical location, Chinese culture filtered into Japan through Korea; a common cultural sphere of Buddhism and Confucianism was thus established between the three countries.


The Korean Peninsula extends about 1,000 kilometers southward from the northeast Asian continental landmass. Roughly 300 kilometers in width, climate variations are more pronounced along the south-north axis. Differences in plant vegetation can be seen between the colder north and the warmer south.

The peninsula and all of its associated islands lie between 3306'40"N and 4300'39"N parallels and 12411'00"E and 13152'08"E meridians. The latitudinal location of Korea is similar to that of the Iberian Peninsula and Greece. The entire peninsula corresponds approximately to the north-south span of the state of California.

Longitudinally, Korea lies straight north of the Philippines and central Australia. The meridian of 12730'E passes through the middle of the Korean Peninsula. Korea, however, shares the same standard meridian of 135E with Japan. Seoul and Tokyo local time is nine hours earlier than Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

 
 

Seoul is the center of all political, economic and cultural activity in South Korea. Clustered around Seoul are also a number of smaller cities, which form a continuous and sprawling urban area. In and around Seoul is the largest concentration of the nation's industries. As the hub of South Korea's transportation networks, with Gimpo International Airport located on the western outskirts of Seoul, the newly built Incheon International Airport, and railroad networks that connect to all parts of the country, the capital area serves as South Korea's gateway to the world. Given its strategic importance, the dialect spoken in Seoul is considered to be the nation's standard language.
 
 
Archeologists believe that people have been living on the Korean peninsula for about half million years. Stone chopping tools and hand axes have been found in archeological digs in central Korea. Pieces of old pottery decorated with comb patterns have been found at riverside and coastal sites around the country. Farming, including planting of rice in warmer southern regions, started around 3,500 years ago during the Bronze Age. Archeologists have found carbonized rice grains and farming tools at many archeological digs from this period.

Korean people trace their origin to the founding of the state of Chosun, which literally means "Land of the Morning Calm." In 2333 B.C., Tan-gun, a legendary figure, born between the son of Heaven and a bear-totem tribe woman, established Chosun.

Ancient Korea was characterized by clan communities that combined to form small town-states. They rose and fell, so that by the first century B.C., three kingdoms of Koguryo (37 B.C. - 668 A.D.), Backje (18 B.C. - 660 A.D.), and Shilla (57 B.C. - 935 A. D.) emerged on the Korean Peninsula and on the area now known as Manchuria. Since Shilla unified the peninsula in 676 A.D., Korea has been ruled by a single government and has maintained its political independence, cultural identity, and ethnic identity, in spite of frequent foreign invasions. Both Koryo (918-1392 A.D.) and Chosun (1392-1910 A.D.) Dynasties consolidated their power and flourished culturally, while repelling intruders like Khitans, Mongols, Manchus, and Japanese. In the late nineteenth century Korea became the focus of intense imperialist competition among nations such as China, Russia, and Japan. In 1910 Japan annexed Korea and instituted colonial rule. National liberation occurred in 1945 but was soon followed by territorial division after the Korean War. The Republic of Korea in the south has a democratic government, while the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the north is ruled by a Communist regime.