Understand

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History
Archeological finds of human toolmaking date back to 700,000 BCE, and the first pottery is found around 8000 BCE. Comb-pattern pottery culture peaked around 3500-2000 BCE.

Korea's history begins with the founding of Gojoseon (also called Ancient Choson) by the legendary Dangun in 2333 BCE. Archeological and contemporaneous written records of Gojoseon as a kingdom date back to around 7th-4th century BCE. It was followed by the Three Kingdoms of Korea, namely Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla, which vied for control of the peninsula until unified by Silla in 668. Unified Silla was replaced by the Goryeo (also Koryo) dynasty, from which the modern name "Korea" derives. The Joseon (also Choson) dynasty ruled Korea from 1392 to 1910, one of the longest actively ruling dynasties in world history.

In the early 20th century, Japan occupied Korea, as a protectorate in 1905 and by annexation in 1910. Despite an independence movement, 35 years of occupation followed, through suppression of resistance, economic exploitation, and a "cultural assimilation" policy.

After Japan's defeat in World War II, US-occupied southern half and Soviet-occupied northern half each declared separate states in 1948. The Korean War (1950-53) began with North Korea's attack, and when US and other UN forces intervened on South Korea's side, China supported the North. An armistice was signed in 1953 splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel, but a peace treaty has never been signed.

Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth, with per capita income rising to roughly 20 times the level of North Korea. South Korea is now a liberal democracy and the 10th largest economy in the world. In June 2000, a historic first summit took place between the South's President Kim Dae-jung and the North's leader Kim Jong-il (leading Kim Dae-jung to awarding first Nobel Peace Prize for South Korea), but the peace process has moved at a glacial pace.

People
South Korea is a very homogeneous country, with nearly all inhabitants identifying themselves as ethnically Korean and speaking the Korean language. However, there are a significant number of foreign workers from China and Southeast Asia, and about 40,000 American military personnel stationed near the North Korean border.

Although it is the 12th most densely populated country, South Korea now has the world's lowest birthrate (1.16 children per woman nationwide and even less in Seoul), and dealing with this will be one of the major problems of the 21st century. About 85% of South Koreans live in urban areas.

Culture
During the Joseon dynasty Korea's dominant philosophy was a strict form of Confucianism. People were separated into a rigid hierarchy, with the king at the apex, an elite of officials and warriors below him, a small middle class of merchants below them, then a vast population of peasants and a hereditary class of slaves. Men were superior to women, educated were superior to the uneducated and everybody stuck to his defined role or faced the severe consequences. Buddhism and its supposedly dangerous notions of equality and individual spiritual pursuit were suppressed.

While...