Korea , Korean Hanguk or Choson, region and historic country (85,049 sq mi/220,277 sq km), E Asia. A peninsula, 600 mi (966 km) long, Korea separates the Sea of Japan (called the East Sea by Koreans) on the east from the Yellow Sea (and Korea Bay [or West Korea Bay], a northern arm of the Yellow Sea) on the west. On the south it is bounded by the Korea Strait (connecting the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea) and on the north its land boundaries with China (c.500 mi/800 km) and with Russia (only c.11 mi/18 km) are marked chiefly by the great Yalu (Korean Amnok ) and Tumen (Korean Duman or Tuman ) rivers.

Land and People

The Korean peninsula is largely mountainous; the principal series of ranges, extending along the east coast, rises (in the northeast) to 9,003 ft (2,744 m) at Mt. Paektu (Baekdu), the highest peak in Korea. Most rivers are relatively short and many are unnavigable, filled with rapids and waterfalls; important rivers, in addition to the Yalu and Tumen, are the Han, the Geum, the Taedong (Daedong), the Nakdong, and the Seomjin. Off the heavily indented coast (c.5,400 mi/8,690 km long) lie some 3,420 islands, most of them rocky and uninhabited (of the inhabited islands, about half have a population of less than 100); the main island group is in the Korean Archipelago in the Yellow Sea. The climate of Korea ranges from dry and extremely cold winters in the north to almost tropical conditions in parts of the south.

Many Koreans are Buddhists or Confucianists, although the people tend to be eclectic in their religious practices. Korean Confucianism, for example, has developed into more of an ethical system than a religion, and its influence is wide and pervasive. Of the various indigenous religions, Chondogyo (a native mixture of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism) is the most influential. South Korea has a large number of practicing Christians, roughly a quarter of the population. (Roman Catholicism was introduced in the late 18th cent., and Protestantism in the late 19th cent.) The North Korean government has actively suppressed religion as contrary to Marxist belief. Korean is spoken in both countries, and English is widely taught in South Korean schools.

Economy

Korea once had large timber resources. In the North, reforestation and conservation programs have helped reverse the effects of excessive cutting during the Japanese occupation (1910-45). Predominant trees are larch, oak, alder, pine, spruce, and fir. Forests in the South were depleted as a result of illegal cutting after 1945 and damage during the Korean War (1950-53), but reforestation programs have helped to remedy the loss.

Korea has great mineral wealth, most of it (80%-90%) concentrated in the North. Of the peninsula's five major minerals—gold, iron ore, coal, tungsten, and graphite—only tungsten and amorphous graphite are found principally in the South. South Korea has only 10% of the peninsula's rich coal and iron deposits. Its minerals are widely scattered, and mining operations are generally small scale, although tungsten is an important export item. In the North, modern mining methods have been instituted, and minerals and metals account for a significant portion of the country's export revenue. North Korea is especially rich in iron and coal and has some 200 different minerals of economic value. Some of the other more important minerals that are produced are lead, zinc, copper, uranium, manganese, gold, silver, and tungsten.

Because of the mountainous and rocky terrain, less than 20% of Korean land is arable. Rice is the chief crop, with wet paddy fields constituting about half of the farmland. Paddies are found along the coasts, in reclaimed tidal areas, and in river valleys. Barley, wheat, corn, soybeans, and grain sorghums are also extensively cultivated, especially in the uplands; other crops include potatoes, pulses, cotton, tobacco, vegetables, fruits, and sweet potatoes. Cattle, pigs, and chickens are raised. Before the country was divided (1945), the colder and less fertile north depended heavily upon the south for food. Agricultural self-sufficiency became a major goal of the North Korean government, and mechanized methods were introduced there in and in the South. Both governments expanded irrigation facilities, constructed numerous dams, and initiated land reclamation projects; however, the North has suffered severe food shortages. Livestock previously played a minor role in Korean agriculture, especially in the North, where the steep and often barren hills are unsuitable for large-scale grazing, but since the end of the Korean War beef has become a significant component of the diet in the South.

The fishing waters off Korea are among the best in the world; the long coastline and numerous islands, inlets, and reefs provide excellent fishing grounds, and the presence of both a warm and a cold current attracts a great variety of species. Korean deep-sea fishing ships range into the Atlantic and Arctic oceans, and species are also raised in aquaculture facilities.

The Korean economy was shattered by the war of 1950 to 1953. Postwar reconstruction was abetted by enormous amounts of foreign aid (in the North from Communist countries and in the South chiefly from the United States) and intensive government economic development programs. The greatest industrial advances were made during the 1960s; in that decade the South experienced an 85% increase in productivity and a 250% rise in per capita gross national product. Economic development throughout Korea has been uneven, with the South showing significantly greater gains. The per capita gross domestic product of the South is some 20 times that of the North. In the South such consumer goods industries as textiles, garments, and footwear have given way to heavy industry, consumer electronics, and information industries. A great variety of products are now manufactured; these include electrical and electronic equipment, automobiles, chemicals, ships, steel, and ceramic goods. South Korea exports semiconductors, wireless telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles, computers, steel, ships, and petrochemicals. Imports include machinery, electronics, oil, steel, transportation equipment, organic chemicals, and plastic. The main trading partners are China, Japan, and the United States.

The North, too, has changed from a predominantly agricultural society (in 1946) to an industrial one. With abundant mineral resources and hydropower, 70% of its national product is now derived from mining, manufacturing, and services; about 30% still comes from agriculture. Development was impeded, however, by the rigid economic system, and the economy severely affected by a loss of trading partners after the collapse of East European Communism. In 2002 the government instituted a series of limited economic reforms, including letting markets set prices of many goods and services and permitting private traders. Major North Korean industries include mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), food processing, and the manufacture of military products, machines, electric power, chemicals, and textiles (synthetics, wool, cotton, silk). Exports include minerals, metallurgical products, armaments, and textiles. Petroleum, coal, machinery and equipment, textiles, and grain are the main imports. The chief trading partners are China, South Korea, and Thailand.

The industrialization of both North and South has been accompanied by improved transportation. By the end of the Korean War the rail system had been destroyed, and paved highways were almost nonexistent. The railroads have been extensively rebuilt, and in the South high-speed lines connect Seoul with Daegu and Busan in the southeast and Gwangju in the southwest. The South Korean government also has completed a series of superhighways connecting Seoul with numerous major cities. There is domestic air service, and international airports are located at Seoul, Busan, and Pyongyang. The expansion of port facilities at Busan and Incheon has vastly increased their capacity.

Government

South Korea is governed under the constitution of 1987. The president, who is head of state, is popularly elected for a single five-year term. The government is headed by the prime minister, who is appointed by the president. The unicameral legislature consists of the 299-seat National Assembly, whose members are popularly elected (245 directly, 54 on a proportional basis) for four-year terms. Administratively, South Korea is divided into nine provinces and seven metropolitan cities.

North Korea is governed under the constitution of 1972. The president is the head of state, but the title of president was reserved for Kim Il Sung after his death. The chairman of the National Defense Commission is now regarded as the nation's highest administrative office. The premier, who is the head of government, is elected, unopposed, by the Supreme People's Assembly. The unicameral legislature consists of the 687-seat Supreme People's Assembly, whose members are popularly elected to five-year terms. Although nominally a republic governed by the Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea is actually ruled by the Communist Party (known in Korea as the Korea Workers Party). The ruling party approves a list of candidates who are generally elected without opposition. Administratively North Korea is divided into nine provinces and four municipalities.

History

Early History to Japanese Rule

The Koreans, descended from Tungusic tribal peoples, are a distinct racial and cultural group. According to Korean legend, Tangun established Old Choson in NW Korea in 2333 BC, and the Korean calendar enumerates the years from this date. Chinese sources assert that Ki-tze (Kija), a Shang dynasty refugee, founded a colony at Pyongyang in 1122 BC, but the first Korean ruler recorded in contemporaneous records is Wiman, possibly a Chinese invader who overthrew Old Choson and established his rule in N Korea in 194 BC Chinese forces subsequently conquered (c.100 BC) the eastern half of the peninsula. Lolang, near modern Pyongyang, was the chief center of Chinese rule.

Koguryo, a native Korean kingdom, arose in the north on both sides of the Yalu River by the 1st cent. AD; tradition says it was founded in 37 BC By the 4th cent. AD it had conquered Lolang, and at its height under King Kwanggaet'o (r.391-413) occupied much of what is now Korea and NE China. In the 6th and 7th cent. the kingdom resisted several Chinese invasions. Meanwhile in the south, two main kingdoms emerged, Paekche (traditionally founded 18 BC, but significant beginning c.AD 250) in the west and Silla (traditionally founded 57 BC, but significant beginning c.AD 350) in the east. After forming an alliance with T'ang China, Silla conquered Paekche and Koguryo by 668, and then expelled the Chinese and unified much of the peninsula. Remnants of Koguryo formed the kingdom of Parhae (north of the Taedong River and largely in E Manchuria), which lasted until 926.

Under Silla's rule, Korea prospered and the arts flourished; Buddhism, which had entered Korea in the 4th cent., became dominant in this period. In 935 the Silla dynasty, which had been in decline for a century, was overthrown by Wang Kon, who had established (918) the Koryo dynasty (the name was selected as an abbreviated form of Koguryo and is the source of the name Korea). During the Koryo period, literature was cultivated, and although Buddhism remained the state religion, Confucianism—introduced from China during the Silla years and adapted to Korean customs—controlled the pattern of government. A coup in 1170 led to a period of military rule. In 1231, Mongol forces invaded from China, initiating a war that was waged intermittently for some 30 years. Peace came when Koryo accepted Mongol suzerainty, and a long period of Koryo-Mongol alliance followed. In 1392, Yi Songgye, a general who favored the Ming dynasty (which had replaced the Mongols in China), seized the throne and established the Choson dynasty.

The Choson (or Yi) dynasty, which was to rule until 1910, built a new capital at Hanseong (Seoul) and established Confucianism as the official religion. Early in the dynasty (15th cent.) printing with movable metal type, which had been developed two centuries earlier, became widely used, and the Korean alphabet was developed. The 1592 invasion by the Japanese shogun Hideyoshi was driven back by Choson and Ming forces, but only after six years of great devastation and suffering. Manchu invasions in the first half of the 17th cent. resulted in Korea being made (1637) a tributary state of the Manchu dynasty. Subsequent factional strife gave way, in the 18th cent., to economic prosperity and a cultural and intellectual renaissance. Korea limited its foreign contacts during this period and later resisted, longer than China or Japan, trade with the West, which led to its being called the Hermit Kingdom.

In 1876, Japan forced a commerical treaty with Korea, and to offset the Japanese influence, trade agreements were also concluded (1880s) with the United States and European nations. Japan's control was tightened after the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-5), when Japanese troops moved through Korea to attack Manchuria. These troops were never withdrawn, and in 1905 Japan declared a virtual protectorate over Korea and in 1910 formally annexed the country. The Japanese instituted vast social and economic changes, building modern industries and railroads, but their rule (1910-45) was harsh and exploitative. Sporadic Korean attempts to overthrow the Japanese were unsuccessful, and after 1919 a provisional Korean government, under Syngman Rhee , was established at Shanghai, China.

A Country Divided

In World War II, at the Cairo Conference (1943), the United States, Great Britain, and China promised Korea independence. At the end of the war Korea was arbitrarily divided into two zones as a temporary expedient; Soviet troops were north and Americans south of the line of lat. 38°N. The Soviet Union thwarted UN efforts to hold elections and reunite the country under one government. When relations between the Soviet Union and the United States worsened, trade between the two zones ceased; great economic hardship resulted, since the regions were economically interdependent, industry and trade being concentrated in the North and agriculture in the South.

In 1948 two separate regimes were formally established—the Republic of Korea in the South, and the Democratic People's Republic under Communist rule in the North. By mid-1949 all Soviet and American troops were withdrawn, and two rival Korean governments were in operation, each eager to unify the country under its own rule. In June, 1950, the North Korean army launched a surprise attack against South Korea, initiating the Korean War , and with it, severe hardship, loss of life, and enormous devastation.

After the war the boundary was stabilized along a line running from the Han estuary generally northeast across the 38th parallel to a point south of Kosong (Kuum-ni), with a "no-man's land" or demilitarized zone (DMZ), 1.24 mi (2 km) wide and occupying a total of 487 sq mi (1,261 sq km), on either side of the boundary. Throughout the 1950s and 60s an uneasy truce prevailed; thousands of soldiers were poised on each side of the demilitarized zone, and there were occasional shooting incidents. In 1971 negotiations between North and South Korea provided the first hope for peaceful reunification of the peninsula; in Nov., 1972, an agreement was reached for the establishment of joint machinery to work toward unification.

The countries met several times during the 1980s to discuss reunification, and in 1990 there were three meetings between the prime ministers of North and South Korea. These talks have yielded some results, such as the exchange of family visits organized in 1989. The problems blocking complete reunification, however, continue to be substantial. Two incidents of terrorism against South Korea were widely attributed to North Korea: a 1983 bombing that killed several members of the South Korean government, and the 1987 destruction of a South Korean airliner over the Thailand-Myanmar border. In 1996, North Korea said it would cease to recognize the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas, and North Korean troops made incursions into the zone. In 1999 a North Korean torpedo boat was sunk by a South Korean vessel in South Korean waters following a gun battle, and another deadly naval confrontation following a North Korean incursion in 2002.

In early 2000, however, the North engaged in talks with a number of Western nations, seeking diplomatic relations, and South and North agreed to a presidential summit in Pyongyang. The historic and cordial meeting produced an accord that called for working toward reunification (though without specifying how) and for permitting visits between families long divided as a result of the war. Given the emotional appeal of reunification, it is likely that the North-South dialogue will continue, despite the problems involved; however, the tensions that developed in late 2002 have, for the time being, derailed any significant further reunification talks. Economic contacts have continued to expand, however, and South Korea has become a significant trade partner for the North. The North also receives substantial aid from the South.

In 2007 a rail crossing through the DMZ was symbolically reopened when two trains made test runs on the rebuilt track; regular rail service, over a short line, began late in the year. A second North-South presidential summit in Pyongyang occurred in Aug., 2007; both leaders called for negotiations on a permanent peace treaty to replace the armistice that ended the Korean War. Many U.S. troops still remain in the South, though their numbers have decreased since the 1960s and the number of U.S. bases has been greatly reduced.

North Korea

North Korea, officially Democratic People's Republic of Korea (2005 est. pop. 22,912,000), 46,540 sq mi (120,538 sq km), founded on May 1, 1948, has its capital at Pyongyang , the largest city. North Korea is divided into nine provinces and three special cities.

North Korea, although nominally a republic governed by a representative assembly, is actually ruled by the Communist party (known in Korea as the Korea Workers' party). Until his death in 1994, all governmental institutions were controlled by Kim Il Sung (widely known as "The Great Leader" ), who had been premier and then president since the country's inception in 1948. A personality cult had glorified Kim, but by the mid-1990s the rapid economic growth of North Korea's early years had given way first to stagnation and then to hardship, and there was widespread dissatisfaction with the repressive regime. Increasingly, Kim's son, Kim Jong Il, had assumed the day-to-day management of the government and, at Kim Il Sung's death in 1994, the son took over leadership of the country. He was named secretary of the Communist party in 1997 and consolidated his power with the title of National Defense Commission chairman in 1998. Under Kim, diplomatic relations have been established with a number of Western nations.

After the Korean War, the Communist government of North Korea used the region's rich mineral and power resources as the basis for an ambitious program of industrialization and rehabilitation. With Chinese and Soviet aid, railroads, industrial plants, and power facilities were rebuilt. Farms were collectivized, and industries were nationalized. In a series of multiyear economic development plans, the coal, iron, and steel industries were greatly expanded, new industries were introduced, and the mechanization of agriculture was pushed. By the mid-1990s more than 90% of the economy was socialized and 95% of the country's manufactured products were made by state-owned enterprises. A serious postwar population loss, resulting from the exodus of several million people to the South, was somewhat offset by the immigration of Chinese colonists and Koreans from Manchuria and Japan.

North Korea maintained close relations with the Soviet Union and China (military aid treaties were signed with both countries in 1961) but preserved a degree of independence; the Sino-Soviet rift facilitated this. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, China became North Korea's most important ally. The country made some strides toward its goal of self-sufficiency, but large expenditures on its military and centralized control have been drags on the economy.

Relations with the United States remained tense throughout the late 20th cent. because of the U.S. military presence in Korea and its economic assistance to South Korea. In 1968, North Korea seized the U.S. intelligence ship Pueblo and imprisoned its crew for 11 months, and in 1969 it shot down an American reconnaissance plane. More recently, the United States imposed (1988) sanctions on North Korea for alleged terrorist activity and expressed concern over reports that North Korea was building a nuclear weapons plant. In 1991 both Koreas joined the United Nations after the North dropped its opposition to such a move.

New tensions mounted on the peninsula in 1994 after confirmation that the country had developed a nuclear program. After direct talks with the United States, North Korea agreed to freeze its nuclear program in return for shipments of oil and the construction of two new light-water reactors for power (the latter were not built, however). North Korea launched a medium-range missile over Japan in 1998; in 1999, the United States agreed to ease trade sanctions against the country in exchange for North Korea's agreement to suspend its missile testing. In a further easing of tensions, high-level visits by U.S. and North Korean officials were exchanged during 2000, and the South's president, Kim Dae Jung, paid a visit to the North. Relations were slow to improve, however, as the North increased its demands for economic aid while failing to fulfill its own pledges.

Continuing economic deterioration in the North led in 2002 to a number of reforms and plans for the establishment of special economic zones in Sinuiju and Kaesong . The North also was accused of attempting to earn hard currency through the illegal drug trade and the counterfeiting of U.S. currency; a North Korean cargo ship was seized by Australia in 2003 after the crew was observed unloading heroin. Moribund negotiations with South Korea and the United States were also revived, while talks with Japan led to an agreement to began normalizing diplomatic relations. Late in 2002, however, oil shipments under the 1994 agreement were halted after revelations that North Korea had a nuclear weapons program; food aid was also reduced. An economically desperate North ended UN supervision of its nuclear facilities, withdrew from the nonproliferation treaty, and made other moves toward the development of nuclear weapons.

Tensions and concerns over the North's pursuit of nuclear weapons continued into 2005. Meanwhile, the United States indicated that it believed that the North had sold enriched uranium to Libya when the latter had been attempting to develop nuclear weapons, while Korea publicly acknowledged that it had nuclear weapons and later stated that it would increase its nuclear arsenal. In Sept., 2005, talks involving the Koreas, the United States, Japan, China, and Russia produced an agreement in which the North said it would abandon its nuclear programs and weapons in return for aid and security commitments. Ambiguities in the agreement, however, led the parties to contest its terms almost immediately when North Korea demanded that it be given a light-water reactor, but U.S. officials said that they had agreed only to discuss doing so (and only after the North had done what it had committed to do).

Also in 2005, the U.S. government imposed sanctions on a Macao bank accused of laundering North Korean earnings from illegal activities, including counterfeiting U.S. money. The move, which came after a four-year investigation and appeared to have been undertaken in part in attempt to force North Korea to make nuclear concessions, led other international banks to limit their transactions with North Korea. In 2006 North Korea called for the sanctions to be lifted before it would engage in further six-party negotiations.

In July, 2006, the North again launched several tests missiles, provoking international condemnation and drawing strong reactions from both the United States and Japan; the United Nations Security Council adopted some limited military sanctions in response. Then, in October, the North conducted a small underground nuclear test. Widely and strongly condemned internationally, including by China, the North's closest ally, the test resulted in additional, largely military sanctions. Japan and a number of other nations adopted more extensive sanctions, but China and South Korea, the North's largest trade partners, both largely avoided placing restrictions on trade, out of concern over a possible military confrontation or economic and political collapse in North Korea.

In Feb., 2007, resumed six-party negotiations led to an agreement that called for the North to shut down its reactor in 60 days in exchange for aid; implementation of the agreement was held up, however, by the North's insistence on regaining access to its funds in Macao, which did not occur until June. The agreement also called for additional aid when further denuclearization steps were achieved. Japan was not a party to the aid agreement because of issues relating to the North's kidnapping of its citizens in the past. In July, the shutdown of the North's main nuclear facilities was confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Flooding in the North in Aug., 2007, left some 300,000 homeless and ruined a tenth of the nation's farmland. Kim and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun held a summit in Pyongyang in Oct., 2007. In addition to the facility shutdown, North Korea agreed to supply a declaration of its nuclear facilties and activities by the end of the 2007; it asserted it had done so, but the United States said that the declaration was not complete. Relations with the South became strained in 2008 when newly elected President Lee Myung Bak insisted that the North show progress on human rights and nuclear disarmament as a condition for aid and improvements in relations.

In May, North Korea released documents relating to its nuclear programs; also that month the United States announced that it would resume food aid to North Korea. The following month North Korea finally submitted a declaration of its nuclear weapons activities to the participants in the six-party talks, and the talks resumed in July. The next month, however, North Korea said it was stopping its disabling of its nuclear facilities because the United States had not removed it from a list of state sponsors of terrorism. After an agreement relating to verification in Oct., 2008, however, the North was removed from the list and resumed the disabling process.

South Korea

South Korea, officially Republic of Korea (2005 est. pop. 48,423,000), 38,022 sq mi (98,477 sq km), formally proclaimed on Aug. 15, 1948, has its capital at Seoul , the largest city. Busan , the second largest city, is the country's chief port, with an excellent natural harbor near the delta of the Nakdong River. Other important cities are Daegu and Incheon . South Korea is divided into nine provinces and seven independent metropolitan cities. Syngman Rhee , who had established a provisional Korean government in exile in 1919, was elected South Korea's first president in 1948.

Traditionally the agricultural region of the Korean peninsula, South Korea faced severe economic problems after partition. Attempts to establish an adequate industrial base were hampered by limited resources, particularly an acute lack of energy resources; most industry, prior to 1948, had been located in the North. War damage and the flood of refugees from North Korea further intensified the economic problem. The country depended upon foreign aid, chiefly from the United States, and the economy was characterized by runaway inflation, highly unfavorable trade balances, and mass unemployment.

The increasingly authoritarian rule of President Syngman Rhee, along with government corruption and injustice, added to the discontent of the people. The elections of Mar., 1960, in which Rhee won a fourth term, were marked by widespread violence, police brutality, and accusations by Rhee's opponents of government fraud. A student protest march in Apr., 1960, in which 125 students were shot down by the police, triggered a wave of uprisings across the country. The government capitulated, and Rhee resigned and went into exile.

Under the leadership of Dr. John M. Chang (Chang Myun), a new government was unable to correct the economic problems or maintain order, and in May, 1961, the South Korean armed forces seized power in a bloodless coup. A military junta under Gen. Park Chung Hee established tight control over civil freedoms, the press, and the economy, somewhat relaxing restrictions as its power solidified. Park was elected president in 1963, reelected in 1967, and, following a constitutional amendment permitting a third term, again in 1971.

Park's government was remarkably successful in fighting graft and corruption and in reviving the economy. Successive five-year economic development plans, first launched in 1962, brought dramatic changes. Between 1962 and 1972 manufacturing was established as a leading economic sector and exports increased dramatically. In Oct., 1972, President Park proclaimed martial law and dissolved the national assembly, asserting that such measures were necessary to improve South Korea's position in the reunification talks with North Korea. In Dec., 1972, President Park was elected to a new six-year term, under a revised constitution, by a national conference. In 1974, a Korean resident of Japan unsuccessfully attempted to assassinate Park in Seoul, fatally wounding Park's wife.

A second assassination attempt on Park, in 1979, was successful, and he was succeeded by Choi Kyu-hah, who instituted military rule. After a period of internal turmoil, Chun Doo Hwan was elected president (1980). Reforms were made to shift power to the national assembly, and the country's dynamic, export-oriented economy continued to grow. Labor unrest and general dissatisfaction with the government, however, led South Korean leaders to draw up a new constitution in 1987, which mandated popular election of the president and a reduction of the presidential term to five years.

Roh Tae Woo, who was elected president and took office in 1988, fought rising inflation rates brought on by South Korea's growing economy. Roh attempted to improve relations with opposition politicians and with the North, also establishing diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union (1990) and China (1992). In 1992, Kim Young Sam , a former opposition leader who had merged his party with Roh's, was elected president, becoming the first civilian to hold the office since the Korean War. President Kim launched a campaign to eliminate corruption and administrative abuse and began to encourage economic cooperation with the North.

In 1996 former presidents Chun and Roh were put on trial on corruption charges and also tried, with 14 former generals, on charges in connection with the 1979 coup following Park's death and the 1980 massacre of prodemocracy demonstrators in Gwangju (Kwangju). Both received prison sentences. Along with other Asian countries, South Korea experienced a financial crisis in late 1997, forcing it to seek assistance from the International Monetary Fund.

In December, voters elected Kim Dae Jung , who had been a prodemocracy dissident during the country's period of military dictatorship, as South Korea's new president. The economy began to recover slowly from the effect of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis in 1999, and economic reforms promoted sustained growth. Kim worked to open relations with the North, and in 2000 he traveled there for a historic meeting with Kim Jong Il. Subsequent progress in inter-Korean relations, however, was slow, leading many in the South to feel that too many concessions had been made.

Kim Dae Jung's government was hurt by a series of corruption scandals in 2001 and 2002, some of which involved the president's family. The government suffered further embarrassment in 2002 when two nominees for prime minister were rejected by the national assembly. Despite these setbacks, the ruling party's candidate for president, Roh Moo Hyun , won the election in Dec., 2002. Following the election, when North Korea moved to resume its nuclear weapons program, the South pursued a more conciliatory course than that of the United States, and strongly opposed any military action against the North.

A political party funding scandal in 2003 implicated the main South Korean parties and many businesses, but it was overshadowed in early 2004 by the impeachment of the president over a relatively minor election law violation, which involved his public support for the new Uri party (the president is required be politically neutral). The impeachment, which also accused Roh of incompetence, was reversed by the Constitutional Court, which restored him to office in May. In the meantime, Prime Minister Goh Kun was acting president, and the Uri party gained a majority of the National Assembly seats in an April election that amounted to a repudiation by the public of the impeachment. The election was the first in which a liberal party had won control of the South Korean legislature. Roh officially joined the party in May.

In Aug., 2004, Roh announced that executive and administrative functions of the government would be moved to a new capital carved from portions of Yeongi co. and Gongju city in South Chungcheong prov., with construction to begin in 2007 and the relocation to be completed by 2030. Intended to reduce Seoul's economic dominance and overcrowding, the proposal provoked constitutional challenges from its opponents. In October the constitutional court ruled that a referendum or a constitutional amendment would be required before the move could be made.

The South revealed in Aug. and Sept., 2004, that its scientists had twice conducted experiments to enrich nuclear materials. Although the amounts of enriched plutonium and uranium were small, the admissions were embarrassing internationally and did not help the campaign against the North's nuclear program. Relations with Japan were strained in early 2005 over the ownership of the Liancourt Rocks (a perennial source of friction) and over Japanese school history textbooks that downplayed Japan's actions during World War II.

The Uri party, which had been hit by a number of scandals and ministerial resignations since winning control of parliament, lost its narrow majority in that body in Mar., 2005. In Apr., 2006, Han Myung-Sook, a member of the Uri party, became the first woman to be elected prime minister of South Korea; real power in the South Korean government, however, resides with the president. Local elections in May, 2006, resulted in significant losses for the Uri party. After the North's nuclear test in Oct., 2006, South Korea imposed some sanctions and supported the UN-adopted military sanctions, but remained committed to its policy of engagement with the North and the significant economic trade involved.

In early 2007, after the Uri party had suffered significant defections in the National Assembly Roh resigned from the party in an attempt to avoid further losses. Prime Minister Han resigned in March, and said she was considering running for president. In April a free-trade agreement was reached with the United States, and in October the leaders of the North and South met in a second summit in Pyongyang. The Dec., 2007, presidential election was won easily by Grand National party candidate Lee Myung Bak , the conservative former mayor of Seoul. Lee pursued a harder line than his predecessor in relations withthe North, calling for it to make progress on human rights and nuclear disarmament. As a result, the North escalated tensions with South Korea.

In Apr., 2008, Lee's party won a narrow majority in the parliamentary elections. That month South Korea agreed to resume imports of U.S. beef, banned five years before over concerns about mad cow disease. The news provoked weeks of antigovernment protests, which forced Lee to reconstitute his government and to renegotiate the agreement. The killing of a South Korean tourist by the North Korean military at Mt. Kumgang in North Korea led South Korea to suspend tourist visits to the site and increased tensions with the North.

Bibliography

See W. E. Henthorn, A History of Korea (1972); R. A. Scalapino and C.-S. Lee, Communism in Korea (2 vol., 1973); I. L. Bird, Korea and Her Neighbors (2 vol., 1986); K.-B. Lee, A New History of Korea (tr. 1988); J. Woo, Race to the Swift: State and Finance in Korean Industrialization (1991); M. Deuchler, The Confucian Transformation of Korea (1992); B. Cumings, Korea's Place in the Sun (1997); P. H. Lee et al., ed. Sources of Korean Tradition (2 vol., 1997-2000); D. Oberdorfer, The Two Koreas (1997); N. Eberstadt, The End of North Korea (1999); J. B. Duncan, The Origins of the Choson Dynasty (2000).

Korea

For centuries, Korea was the Hermit Kingdom, "The Land of the Morning Calm" in Asia, a country that was characterized as closed to the outside world. Nevertheless, throughout Korea's early history, neighboring nations such as China, Mongolia,

and Japan have invaded the country often. The twentieth century also brought Korea tremendous upheaval, such as the Japanese occupation (1910–1945), the Korean War (1950–1953), the partition of the country (1953–present), and the foreign-exchange crisis in 1997. Korea and the Korean family are both in a period of transition.

The concept of the contemporary Korean family dates from the 1960s, a period of transformation that affected the economic and political spheres, as well as cultural patterns and legal affairs. From the end of World War II until the 1960s, Korea experienced great social and economic difficulties such as the Korean war. After the 1960s, Korea began to industrialize rapidly, while also becoming more urban, and since then the Korean economy has grown faster than at any other time in its history. The standard of living has improved significantly: Per capita income rose from $87 in 1962 to $11,380 in 1996, although it dropped to $9,628 in 2000 after the financial crisis of 1997. Few countries have changed economically as rapidly as has Korea.

During these periods, the government made industrialization its top priority. This process brought about urbanization and changes in family type to nuclear families. As a result, the average household changed dramatically, especially the relationships among family members.

Traditional Korean Families

Families were very different among the three historical periods of the Shilla (57 b.c.e.–c.e. 935), Koryo (c.e. 918–1392), and Chosun (c.e. 1392–1910) Dynasties because of their religious orientation.

Buddhism was introduced in Korea during the Early Kingdoms (C.E. 372) and was adopted as the state religion for a millennium. With its emphasis on rejecting worldly values and concerns, including the family, Buddhism delivered a message contrary to that of Confucianism. But Buddhism's influence was limited to the sphere of individual self-enlightenment and discipline, and it appealed principally to the ruling class because the majority of people, who lived at a subsistence level, had few material possessions to renounce. As a result, relatively few people were affected by the self-abnegation and antifamilial monasticism that Buddhism taught (Han 1981; Park and Cho 1995a). The religion's influence declined further during the late Koryo Dynasty (918–1392) when Buddhist groups in Korea became corrupt. They constructed extravagant temples, and followers of the religion observed only superficial rituals (Lee 1973; Hong 1980).

When the Chosun Dynasty succeeded the Koryo in 1392, it adopted Confucianism as the familial and state philosophy, suppressing Buddhism. The term Confucianism is used to refer to the popular value system of China, Korea, and Japan. This system is derived from the synthesis of the traditional cultural values espoused by Confucius and his followers and subsequently influenced by elements of Taoism, Legalism, Mohism, Buddhism, and, in the case of Korea and Japan, Shamanism (Park and Cho 1995a). Confucianism declares the family the fundamental unit of society, responsible for the economic functions of production and consumption, as well as education and socialization, guided by moral and ethical principles (Lee 1990; Park and Cho 1995a). In its teachings, Confucianism has traditionally deified ancestors, institutionalized ancestor worship, and delegated the duties of ritual master to the head of the male lineage, that is, to the father and husband. Confucianism is a familial religion (Lee 1990). As Confucianism took hold, the ideal of male superiority within the patrilineal family became more prominent in the late Chosun dynasty than it had been during the early Chosun dynasty (1392–1650) (Park and Cho 1995a).

Values and functions of the family. The family is the basic component of social life in Korea, and its perpetuation has been of paramount importance under patriarchal Confucianism. In a Confucian patriarchal family, the family as an entity takes precedence over its individual members, and the family group is inseparably identified with the clan. The most important function of family members is to maintain and preserve the household within the traditional Confucian system (Lee 1960). Society became organized around two principles: that males shall dominate females and that elders shall dominate the young (Kim 1993). Growing old in Korea had advantages for both women and men, for age was respected. According to this perspective, women were often self-assertive and highly valued, as the family finance managers, decisionmakers in family matters, and educators of children (Brandt 1971; Osgood 1951).

Traditionally, the ideal family type in Korea was a patrilocal stem family. The stem family typically consists of two families in successive generation, a father and mother living in the same household with married oldest son, his wife, and their children. The eldest son generally inherited the family estates. The other sons were expected to live in separate residences after their marriages (Cho and Shin 1996). The central familial relationship was not that between husband and wife, but rather between parent and child, especially between father and son. At the same time, the relationships among family members were part of a hierarchy. These relationships were characterized by benevolence, authority, and obedience. Authority rested with the (male) head of the household, and differences in status existed among the other family members (Park and Cho 1995a).

Marital roles and women's roles. During the Shilla and Koryo period, among commoners, couples entered freely into marriage with their chosen partners (Choi 1971). This changed, however, during the Chosun dynasty; strict rules were imposed on the selection of partners, and all marriages were arranged. Naehun (Instruction for Women), compiled by the mother of King Seongjong in 1475, was the most important and influential textbook used to teach proper Confucian roles to girls and married women. The book emphasized the basics of womanly behavior such as chastity, and it prepared girls for their future functions as moral guardians of the domestic sphere and providers for the physical needs of their families. The book also elaborated on a married woman's role, including being a self-sacrificing daughter-in-law, an obedient and dutiful wife, and a wise and caring mother (Kim 1993; Deuchler 1983).

Based on Confucian values, families observed strict gender differentiation in married life. Traditional Korean women's responsibility was restricted to the domestic sphere. As an inside master, the woman established her own authority and became a financial manager, symbolized by the right to carry the family keys to the storage areas for rice and other foods (Kim 1992; Lee 1990). Also, husbands and wives strictly observed a hierarchical relationship. A wife would sacrifice herself completely to serve her husband and family in an exemplary manner. In accordance with the rule of three obediences, a woman was required to obey her father, husband, and son, in that order. Under this system of severe discrimination, women of the Chosun Dynasty were confined to the home. Nevertheless, the position of women, at least those with children, was not hopeless. Just as women occupied a subordinate position in relation to men, children were subordinate to their parents and were required to revere their mothers as well as their fathers (Choi 1982a; Park and Cho 1995a).

Traditionally, Korean society considered divorce and remarriage deviant and problematic family events. Only the husband had the right to divorce his wife; if he did so, she had to be expelled from her family-in-law according to the traditional marital code that held the husband's authority and absolute power to govern his wife. A husband could legally divorce his wife when she committed the following seven faults (chilchul); being disobedient to one's parents-in-law; not giving birth to a son; committing adultery; expressing jealousy of the concubine; contracting a serious illness; and being garrulous or thievish.

Three exceptions (sambulgeo), however, prohibited a husband from expelling a wife who committed the above faults: The husband was not allowed to divorce his wife if she spent more than a three-year mourning period for her parents-in-law; if she had no place to return after the divorce; or if she married in poverty and contributed to the wealth and the social position of the family. The woman was forced to serve the husband's family after her husband died. Thus, people blamed remarried women for denigrating the reputation of their kin as well as themselves. Although a husband could not divorce under these circumstances, he could make an alternative arrangement. If, for example, a wife bore no son, it was common for the couple to adopt one or for the husband to keep a concubine.

It was customary for a man seeking remarriage to select a spinster from a lower-class family, because women who had been married before were socially unacceptable. Also, according to the patriarchal norm, Korean women were socialized to break their relationships with birth families and be thoroughly absorbed into families-in-law, and to assimilate their traditions. This meant that a woman whose first marriage was to a previously married man occupied a very humble position. These women were likely to want their own children to insure marital stability and secure their own position in the family.

Parent-child relationships. One of the most important doctrines of Confucianism was the requirement that children be dutiful to their parents. Filial piety has been the highest moral principle of the parent-child relationship and has greatly influenced the Korean family system. It guided the socialization of children enforced the moral rule that adult children should obey and serve their elderly parents and to repay them for their work as parents by looking after them for the rest of their lives (Chung and Yoo 2000). Thus, the stem family began to be considered an ideal type.

But what constituted filial behavior changed from the Shilla to the Chosun Dynasty. In Samganghangsil, the most important expression of filial

piety during the Shilla Dynasty was supporting the material needs of elderly parents. In contrast, in the Koryo and Chosun periods, filial piety was best demonstrated in formal and ritual services, such as funeral services and worship in the Koryo and nursing in the Chosun period (see Table 2). In particular, nothing was as important as worshiping of the spirits of one's ancestors as well as one's parents in the period of Chosun (Chung and Yoo 2000).

Contemporary Korean Families

The tremendous demographic changes, as well as changes in the family makeup itself, make it very hard to grasp the characteristics of the contemporary Korean family. Korea's traditional culture, including its religious heritage, was seriously undermined during Japan's colonial rule of Korea (1910–45) and during the Korean War (1950–53). Further complicating the question, since the 1960s, within a single generation, Korea has been transformed from an agrarian to an industrialized urban society. The adoption of not only Western science and technology, but also Western culture, has played a decisive role in bringing about this transformation. Swept into the country on the tides of westernization, industrialization, and economic development, Protestantism has taken root and expanded its reach (Park and Cho 1995a; Yoon 1964). All of these societal forces have transformed the traditional value system and demographic characteristics of Korean families.

Population and household composition. The industrialization of the 1960s accelerated the regional relocation of the population. The urban population has grown from 28 percent of the total population in 1960 to 74 percent in 1990 and to 81 percent in

2000 (KNSO 2000). Since 1945, the number of households has constantly increased, but the average number of people per household has decreased from 5.7 in 1960, to 4.5 in 1980, 4.16 in 1985, 3.77 in 1990, and 3.34 in 1995. During the same period, the difference in average family size between urban and rural areas disappeared because of changes in the nuclear family and the increase in the number households consisting of a single person.

Since 1960, the number of nuclear families in rural areas increased more rapidly than it did in urban areas because young rural adults migrated into cities (KNSO 1970, 1980, 1995). In particular, the increase in life expectancy and decrease in filial responsibility led to more elderly people (over sixty-five) living by themselves, an increase of 16.0 percent between 1990 and 1995. The elderly represented 7.1 percent of Korea's population in 2000 (KNSO 2000).

Families with two generations cohabiting comprised 73.7 percent of the total population in 1995 (see Table 2). The number of households that consisted of childless married couples increased (see Table 3). At the same time, the percentage of stem families, three-generation families cohabiting, decreased. Thus, the traditional extended family system is changing to that of the conjugal family composed of a couple and their children.

But this phenomenon does not mean that Korean nuclear family is seen as an ideological construct (Chang 1997). Because the Korean people still cherish the ideal image of the extended family, modified nuclear families are more popular in reality. Economic factors also play a role (Kweon 1998). A strong discrepancy, then, is evident between the ideal images of the extended family, commonly cherished by Korean people, and the actual reality of Korean families.

Fertility. During this same period, the birth rate in Korea dropped. This drop is explained by a massive family-planning program by the government that began in 1962, more women pursuing higher education, and more women working outside the home. In 2000, the college and university enrollment was 60.7 percent of women and 99.1 percent of men of college age (Ministry of Education 2000). Because of all these factors, the total fertility rate (the number of children a woman has if her childbearing rate follows national averages) has decreased to 1.4 in 1999 from 2.7 in 1980 and 6.0 in 1960.

Even as the fertility rate dropped, the sex ratio at birth showed unique features. In patriarchal societies, more male children are born. This demographic trend may be due to the societal preference for sons over daughters, which pressures couples to produce children until they have more sons than daughters. For example, the sex ratio at birth was 109.5 men per 100 women in 1970, reached a record high in 1995 of 113.2, and decreased to 109.6 in 1999. Still higher ratios have been reported from large cities such as Taegu and Pusan (Park and Cho 1995b). Moreover, the number of males born increases with the number of conceptions. From this perspective, Larson, Chung, and Gupta (1998) pointed out, even though the total fertility rate is declining, preference of male offspring and patriarchy are strong predictors of second, third, and fourth conceptions.

Marriage, divorce, and remarriage rates. Today, customs governing marriage have changed dramatically. Young women and men mingle freely in parks and on the street, and far fewer parents choose mates for their children (Lee 1997). More and more people are postponing marriage, and the marriage rate is decreasing (see Figure 1). The average age of marriage for women in 1999 was 26.3 years; for men it was 29.1 years, higher than at any previous time. Comparing these figures to those of 1980 shows a very rapid increase; at that time, the ages were 24.1 and 27.3, respectively. These facts reflect the higher educational attainment of women and their increased participation in the job market.

From 1948, when the democratic consitution was adopted, in Korea divorce has been based on fault, or the assessment of blame against one of the spouses. Typically, both partners would be accused of committing adultery, desertion, or physical and mental cruelty; other grounds were cruel and inhuman treatment by in-laws, abandonment for two or more years, or long imprisonment for a felony. Thus, the changing pattern of divorce and remarriage can be seen as a symbol of a changing Confucian tradition.

After 1911, the earliest year for which statistics are available, Korea witnessed a steadily increasing divorce rate except for the years from 1946 to 1966, a period that included the Korean War and post-World War II industrialization. Since the 1970s, the crude divorce rate has increased significantly every ten years, almost doubling from 0.67 per 1,000 population in 1970, to 1.16 in 1980 and again to 2.6 in 1999 (NSO 2000; see figure 2).

Divorce patterns in recent years have changed in several ways. First, the average duration of a marriage was 10.1 years in 1998 because of an increase in the number of couples who remained married for more than fifteen years. Second, divorce increased with 1997 financial crisis; in more cases, both parties agreed to part because of financial problems. Third, couples now divorce less often because of conflict with kin and more often for marital incompatibility. This suggests that conjugal ties have become more crucial in maintaining a marriage, while the traditional kin relationships have declined in importance (Chung and Yoo 1999).

Social changes such as alternatives to traditional marriage, the declining stigma attached to divorce, and the rising standard for happiness in marriage have occurred in Korea. Women's growing independence, the product of feminist ideas and employment outside the home, have significantly contributed to a continued rise in the divorce rate.

As the divorce rate rose, so did the number of remarriages, a figure that has grown continuously since the 1970s (Figure 1). Remarriage, however, has also changed (Figure 3). The proportion of men who married a woman who had never been married, the dominant remarriage type until the 1980s, has dropped from 48.2 percent in 1970 to 34.4 percent in 1998. During the same period, the proportion of remarriages in which both parties were remarrying for the second time increased from 41.2 percent to 52.2 percent. And the proportion also increased of women who had been married before and married, for their second marriage, men who had not been married before; these grew from 10.6 percent to 25.8 percent during the same period (KNSO 1999). Korean society thus seems more accepting of the egalitarian remarriage norm and less prone to traditional attitudes that discriminated against women. The change is not universal; some of the traditional negative images of remarried families still strongly persist in Korean society (Leem 1996; Yoo et al. 1998).

Women's Labor Force Participation

One of the biggest changes from the past is the increasing number of women in the work force. Dual-income families, in which both partners work either in full time or part time, now represent 60 percent of families in Korea (KNSO 1997). Since 1987, the number of married women who were employed outside the home has exceeded the number of employed unmarried women.

These figures do not reflect the complete picture. Although most working women take jobs out of economic necessity (Korean Women's Development Center 2000; KNSO 2000), their contributions are not valued because men still play authoritarian roles in the family. In addition, the greatest cause of stress for employed women is society's expectation that they have complete responsibility for the raising of children. Women experience conflict about their dual roles and also feel overload of roles (Chung 1997; Ha and Kim 1996; Kim and Kim 1994; Ko 1994). The double standard continues in Korean society. Although Korean husbands prefer working wives (Chungang Daily, March 15, 1989), 26 percent of women office workers are forced to resign their jobs upon marriage (Choson Daily, January 9, 1991). Although many young husbands want working wives because they contribute to the family's finances, these same husbands still regard their wives' work as part-time. Although women's labor force participation rates are increasing, the reality is that most of housework and the rearing of children are left to women in Korean households (Chung 1997; Kim 1999).

Conclusion

Significant changes have occurred in recent times to the structure and dynamics of family life in Korea, yet some of the old patterns persist. In terms of structure, Korean families are very similar to those of Western countries. But Koreans' attitudes differ greatly from those of Westerners because of the society's dualistic mentality. For instance, Korean society includes both progressive and conservative trends, coexisting with the Western and Asian mentalities; a dual class system with the emergence of the middle and the poor classes alongside a very powerful rich class; a division among the generations, as with individualism of the younger generations nurtured on Western culture and the traditional patriarchy of older generations; and a duality between family centered on the relationships of couples and children and society composed of collective families centered on adults. Finally, Korean society shows discrepancies between action and mindset. Although many Koreans have a Western mentality, their actions reflect a very conservative tendency, which grows even more pronounced with age (Chung 1999). The Korean family is in transition, and one result of these opposing forces is confusion.

Despite these changes, family laws and policies in Korea still represent the traditional value systems in many aspects. Countering this have been recent movements toward improving individual and women's rights. The family law reform in 1991, for example, included an asset partition claim right for women and visitation rights for noncustodial parents. Also, new family law entitles a divorced woman to a share of the couple's property based on the extent of her contribution to it. Furthermore, custody of the children, which used to be automatically awarded to the father upon divorce, will now be decided in court. Drastic changes in the property inheritance system include eliminating discrimination against daughters. When her husband dies, a childless widow will be entitled to half of the inheritance, with the other half going to the husband's parents. The law was abolished that prohibited a woman's remarriage until six months after the end of a former marriage. However, the new family law does not completely abolish the controversial head-of-the-family system, which Confucians lobbied to preserve. More political and legal support is needed for the welfare of elderly and children, as well as for types of families that remain in the minority, such as singles, homosexuals, and remarried couples.

See also:Asian-American Families; Buddhism; Confucianism; Ethnic Variation/Ethnicity

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HYUNSOOK CHUNG

Korea

Recipes

1 GEOGRAPHIC SETTING AND ENVIRONMENT

The Korean Peninsula is a large finger of land that extends south from the northeastern border of China into the ocean parallel to Japan. It is surrounded by the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea. Until World War II (1939–1945), Korea was a single country. After World War II, Korea was divided in half to form the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (known as North Korea) with a communist form of government, and the Republic of Korea (known as South Korea) with a democratic form of government.

Both North Korea and South Korea have problems with air and water pollution, and both governments have passed laws to control pollution. Higher elevations are found in North Korea, while South Korea has fertile plains suitable for agriculture in its southern region. The climate supports agriculture, and South Korea grows enough rice to support its population. The main rivers, the Han and the Kum, help to provide adequate water supply for the agricultural lands.

2 HISTORY AND FOOD

Since the country was divided into North Korea and South Korea, the government of North Korea has not welcomed outsiders. Because of this, information about its food and the cooking style of its people is not readily available. Most of the descriptions and recipes included here come from South Korea, although the same foods are probably enjoyed by North Koreans and people of Korean descent living anywhere in the world.

The seas surrounding the Korean peninsula—the Yellow and East China seas, and the Sea of Japan—provide not only many types of seafood, like tuna, king crab and squid, but moisture for the fertile soil needed to grow rice and grains.

For centuries, the Koreans have eaten the products of the land and sea. They began growing grains thousands of years ago, and rice cultivation was introduced to some parts of the country around 2000 b.c. During this time they also grew millet (a type of grass grown for its edible seed), soybeans, red beans, and other grains. They cured and pickled fish, were skilled in making wine and bean paste, and often used honey and oil in cooking.

Chinese and Japanese invasions during the fourteenth through twentieth centuries gave rise to a culinary influence on Korea that remains today. Like the Chinese and Japanese, Koreans eat rice with almost every meal and use chopsticks. Eating with chopsticks means the food is usually cut up into little pieces that are easy to pick up. Food cut this size cooks fast, which cuts down on the use of fuel.

Unlike China and Japan, however, Korea was never a tea-drinking nation. Historically, China and Japan had to boil their water for it to be fit to drink. Korea's water was pure, which led them to discover other beverages, such as ginseng and ginger drinks (made from herbs of the same name), wines, and spirits. Soo Chunkwa (ginger drink) is often served on joyous occasions during the winter, and especially at New Year's.

Soo Chunkwa (Ginger Drink)

Ingredients

• ½ pound ginger (the actual root, not powdered)
• 10 cups cold water
• ¾ pound dried jujubes (red dates used in sweet dishes), or substitute brown dates
• 1 jar (16-ounce) of honey
• Pine nuts (can be found at the local supermarket)
• Cinnamon

To prepare jujubes

Note: This step applies only if jujubes are being used. Skip this step if using dates.

1. Wash the jujubes under cold running water.
2. Place them in 4 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Cook for 30 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Procedure

1. Wash, but do not peel the ginger.
2. Slice it paper-thin.
3. Place the ginger in a large pot and add 10 cups cold water.
4. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 2½ hours.
5. Scoop out all of the ginger with a slotted spoon and throw it away.
6. Heat the ginger water to boiling again, and add the honey.
7. Boil on high heat for 5 to 10 minutes or until the honey has been completely dissolved.
8. Let the ginger water cool to drinking temperature (just warm).
9. Place a jujube (or date) at the bottom of each glass.
10. Add the ginger water; top each glass with 2 pine nuts and sprinkle with a dash of powdered cinnamon.

Makes about 10 servings. Soo Chunkwa will keep, refrigerated, for a few days.

3 FOODS OF THE KOREANS

Korea shares many similarities with other Asian cuisines such as the importance of rice and vegetables and cooking methods such as stir-frying, steaming, and braising (food first browned in oil, then cooked slowly in a liquid). As is true of the rest of Asia, Koreans eat far less meat than people in the Western world. Red meat is scarce and very expensive, so it is usually saved for special occasions. Chicken or seafood is more commonly eaten.

Korean food is often very spicy. Red pepper paste, green onion, soy sauce, bean paste, garlic, and ginger are just some of the many seasonings Koreans use to flavor their dishes. The food is served with a bland grain such as rice to cool the heat of the spices.

The Korean way of preparing and eating their dishes makes for healthy eating. Generally speaking, Koreans are thin people. Being overweight is considered a sign of wealth and dignity and seen particularly among the rich, and high officials.

A meal served for a group of people often includes several large dishes and as many as twenty side dishes. Unlike other Asian cuisines, Korean cuisine includes many uncooked vegetables served in the form of salads and pickles. Traditional Korean meals include soup, served hot or cold depending on the season, like kamja guk (kahm-jah gook; potato soup), and hin pap (heen pop; white rice).

Kamja Guk (Potato Soup)

Ingredients

• 2 cans beef or chicken broth
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
• ½ cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 green onion, chopped
• Pinch black pepper

Procedure

1. In a large saucepan, combine broth, potatoes, and carrots.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat, and cover.
3. Reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
4. Add mushrooms, green onions, and black pepper.
5. Stir well and cook for 2 minutes more.
6. Serve hot.

Kimchi (pronounced kim chee), a common spicy Korean side dish, is considered a national dish. Kimchi comes in a variety of flavors depending on family tradition. The main ingredients are cabbage and radish, which are fermented with red chilies, salt, and other vegetables. Kimjang is the traditional Korean custom of making kimchi in the early winter to prepare for the cold months.

Kimchi

Ingredients

• 1 cup medium cabbage, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 cup cauliflower, separated into small pieces
• 2 Tablespoons salt
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, thinly chopped, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated, or ½ teaspoon ground ginger

Procedure

1. Combine cabbage, carrots, and cauliflower in strainer and sprinkle with salt.
2. Toss lightly and set in sink for about one hour and allow to drain.
3. Rinse with cold water, drain well and place in a medium-size bowl.
4. Add onions, garlic, red pepper and ginger.
5. Mix thoroughly.
6. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 days, stirring frequently to mix flavors.
7. Allow kimchi to sit for 1 or 2 days to ferment. The longer it sits, the spicier it will become.

Hin pap (heen pop; white rice) remains the main staple and is the biggest crop produced in South Korea. It can be eaten in many different ways. There are ogokbap (boiled rice mixed with four grains), yakbap (a sweet rice dish), and over fifty varieties of rice cakes.

Hin Pap (White Rice)

Ingredients

• 2 cups short-grain white rice (not instant)
• 2⅔ cups water

Procedure

1. Pour the rice and water into a deep saucepan, and stir to combine.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat.
3. Boil, uncovered, for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir.
4. Cover pan, reduce heat to low, and simmer rice 20 to 25 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.
5. Remove pan from heat.
6. Keep covered for 10 minutes.
7. Fluff with a fork and serve hot.

Serves 6 to 8.

Other common dishes include kalbi (marinated beef short ribs) and sinsollo (a meal of meat, fish, vegetables, eggs, nuts, and bean curd cooked together in broth).

4 FOOD FOR RELIGIOUS AND HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS

Traditional Korean holidays have developed under the influence of the seasons, rural agricultural life, and the religions of Buddhism and Confucianism. As of the twenty-first century, traditional holidays still held significant meaning in the daily lives of the Korean people.

Toasted Sesame Seeds

Toasted sesame seeds are an ingredient in many Korean recipes, such as Chap Ch'ae, Ch'o Kanjang, and Shigumch'i Namul.

Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons sesame seeds

Procedure

1. Measure sesame seeds into a small frying pan (do not add oil).
2. Cook, stirring constantly over medium heat 2 to 4 minutes or until the seeds are golden brown (be careful not to burn).
3. Remove the seeds from heat and pour into a large bowl. Crush with the back of a wooden spoon.

The Lunar New Year, or Sol, is the first day of the new year. Koreans traditionally hold a memorial service for their ancestors, after which they perform sebae, a formal bow of respect, to their elders as a New Year's greeting. The day is always celebrated with a bowl of ttokkuk, or rice cake soup. Other popular foods eaten on Lunar New Year are chapch'ae (noodles with meat and vegetables), pindaettok (mung bean pancakes), and sujonggwa (cinnamon flavored persimmon punch). At weddings, yakshik, a sticky rice ball loaded with chestnuts, jujubes, raisins, and pine nuts to symbolize children, is served.

Chap Ch'ae (Mixed Vegetables with Cellophane Noodles)

Ingredients

• 5 dried black mushrooms (button mushrooms, or one small can of mushrooms may be substituted)
• 1 cup hot water
• 4 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ½ teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
• 4 teaspoons toasted, crushed sesame seeds (see above on how to make)
• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 package cellophane noodles (can be found in the supermarket)
• 6 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into medium strips
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• ½ cup fresh spinach, chopped
• 5 teaspoons sesame oil

Procedure

1. If using dried black mushrooms, put them into a small bowl and pour hot water over them. Soak for 20 minutes or until soft.
2. Marinate chicken: In a medium bowl, combine 2 Tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sugar, garlic, 2 teaspoons sesame seeds, and chicken. Set aside.
3. Prepare noodles: Heat 3 cups of water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the cellophane noodles and return to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to medium to high and cook uncovered, for 5 to 7 minutes or until soft. Drain the noodles and rinse briefly in cold water. Place in large mixing bowl and set aside.
5. Prepare chicken and vegetables: In a large frying pan or wok, heat 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil over high heat for 1 minute.
6. Add chicken mixture and fry, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes or until chicken is white and tender. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to noodles.
7. When pan has cooled, wash and dry it completely.
8. Heat 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil over high heat for 1 minute. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute or until soft.
9. Repeat with remaining vegetables, cooking each one separately. (It is not necessary to wash and dry the pan between vegetables.)
10. Add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sugar, 2 teaspoons sesame seeds and 5 teaspoons sesame oil to noodle mixture and mix well. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 2.

Honoring a family's ancestors is an important part of Korea's heritage. Four generations of ancestors are honored on the day before the anniversary of a person's death. Food is served in dishes with special stands to prevent the plates from touching the table. Food is arranged and combined according to strict ancient customs. For example, at least three different colors of fruits and vegetables are set on the table: red fruits and fish to the east, and white fruits and meat to the west. A special dish that may be served is kujolpan, which is served in a nine-compartment dish. These compartments are filled with nine different kinds of brightly colored meats and vegetables. These foods are wrapped in thin pancakes and eaten at the table.

Another traditional holiday in South Korea is called Yadu Nal, or Shampoo Day, on June 15. Friends and family gather at a stream or waterfall to bathe in the clear water, a ceremony they believe will ward off fevers for the rest of the year. A picnic meal is packed and may include mandu (mahndoo; dumplings), sweet rice cakes, grilled fish or meat, and watermelon.

Mandu (Korean Dumplings)

Ingredients

• ¼ pound ground beef
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
• ½ small onion, peeled and finely chopped
• ¾ cup cabbage, shredded
• ½ cup bean sprouts
• 1 green onion, finely chopped
• 1½ teaspoons black pepper
• Salt, dash
• 25 wonton wrappers (can be found at a supermarket)
• 1 egg

Procedure

1. In a large frying pan or wok, cook meat until brown, mashing with a fork to break into small pieces. Remove meat, using a slotted spoon to drain off fat, and set meat aside in a bowl.
2. Once cool, wash frying pan or wok and dry thoroughly.
3. Heat 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil over high heat for 1 minute.
4. Add onions and cook 2 to 3 minutes or until crisp and tender.
5. Add cabbage and continue to cook, stirring frequently until cabbage is crisp and tender.
6. Add bean sprouts and green onion, mix well, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.
7. Remove pan from the heat and drain vegetable mixture.
8. In a large bowl, combine meat, vegetables, salt and black pepper and mix well to make the filling.
9. Place 1 wonton wrapper on a flat surface and cover remaining wrappers with a damp paper paper towel (not dish towel) so they won't dry out.
10. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Brush all 4 edges of the wonton wrapper with the beaten egg.
11. Place about 1 Tablespoon of the filling mixture just above the center of the wonton wrapper.
12. Fold wrapper in half over filling and press the edges together to seal, forming a dumpling.
13. In a large frying pan or wok, heat 1 cup vegetable oil over medium heat for 1 minute.
14. Carefully place 6 dumplings into oil with tongs and fry 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown.
15. Turn and fry the other side, 2 to 3 minutes.

5 MEALTIME CUSTOMS

There is little difference in what Koreans eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Breakfast, the biggest meal of the day, may include a cold soup, such as oi naeng guk (oh-ee nayng good; cucumber soup), steamed peppers, and saeng son jon (fish patties). Pulgogi (pool-goh-gee; grilled beef) is one of Korea's best-known meat dishes.

Pulgogi (Korean Beef)

In Korea, Pulgogi is prepared on a small grill at the table.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef sirloin
• ½ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup water
• 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 Tablespoon sesame seed
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon ginger
• 3 Tablespoons brown sugar or honey (white sugar may be substituted)

Procedure

1. Before beginning, place meat in the freezer for 10 minutes to make it easier to slice. Slice beef as thinly as possible.
2. Cut meat slices into bite-sized squares. Lightly score the surface of each square to prevent the meat from curling when cooked.
3. Put the meat pieces into a large mixing bowl. Add all the other ingredients, and stir with a wooden spoon to mix everything together.
4. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for several hours (at least one hour) to allow the meat to absorb the flavors of the marinade.
5. Transfer everything to a large saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat until the mixture begins to simmer. Cover and cook about 30 minutes, until the meat has been thoroughly cooked. Stir every 5 minutes to prevent meat from sticking.
6. Serve with rice and kimchi.

Serves 8 to 10.

Ch'o Kanjang (Vinegar Soy Sauce)

Ingredients

• 4 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 3 Tablespoons vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon green onions, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (see recipe)

Procedure

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Stir to dissolve sugar.
2. Vinegar soy sauce will keep up to a week, covered, in the refrigerator.

Lunch could be kamja guk (kahm-jah gook; potato soup) and mixed vegetables with chap ch'ae (chop-chay; cellophane noodles made from mung bean flour). For dinner, perhaps kalbi guk (kahl-bee gook; beef short rib soup), shigumch'i namul (shee-guhm-chee nah-mool; spinach salad), pulgogi (pool-goh-gee; Korean beef), and steamed chicken is eaten. Of course, all three meals would be served with white rice and kimchi. A good Korean cook will try to include five colors at every meal: red, green, yellow, white, and black. Koreans seldom serve dessert, but often eat fresh fruit instead.

Shigumch'i Namul (Korean Spinach)

Ingredients

• ½ cup water
• 1 pound fresh spinach, rinsed with water
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
• 1 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (see recipe)

Procedure

1. In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil.
2. Add spinach, cover, and reduce heat to medium to high. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until bright green.
3. Pour into a strainer. Cool.
4. Gently squeeze out excess water with your hands.
5. Chop spinach and place in a large bowl.
6. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
7. Serve at room temperature.

Serves 6 to 8.

Meals are considered an important event in the day to Koreans and much time is spent in its preparation. In fact, Koreans find eating so important they want to concentrate all of their attention on it, and consider it impolite to talk while eating. They avoid conversation until the end of the meal. At mealtime, the dishes of food are placed in the middle of the table and individual bowls of rice are set in front of each person.

The Korean table setting is much different than the table setting used in the United States. The tables, finished with shiny red or black lacquer, are only 10 inches high. Diners are seated on cushions placed on the floor around the table. Beautiful patterns in mother-of-pearl decorate the tables. When the table is not being used, it is hung on the wall like a picture.

Students carry lunch boxes to school that are quite unlike those of U.S. students. They are little tin boxes with several compartments built into them for chopsticks, rice, dried fish, and other foods. Small children have small chopsticks, and as they grow bigger, they use bigger chopsticks.

For snacks at home, Korean students like to eat fruit, either fresh or dried, and sometimes little cakes made from sugar, honey, dried fruit, and rice flour. They are much less sweet tasting than the cookies and cakes made in the United States. The popular kimchi is always in the kitchen and easy to eat as a snack.

6 POLITICS, ECONOMICS, AND NUTRITION

Almost all Koreans receive adequate nutrition in their diets, with the World Bank reporting that less than 1 percent of the population is malnourished and nearly all have access to adequate sanitation and safe drinking water. Korean farmers grow enough rice to meet the country's needs, and fruit growers produce abundant crops of apples, pears, persimmons, and melons. The main vegetable crops are white radish, known as mu, and cabbage. Both are used in kimchi, the national dish.

7 FURTHER STUDY

Books

Cho, Joong Ok. Homestyle Korean Cooking in Pictures. Tokyo: Japan Publications; New York: Kodansha International/USA through Harper & Row [distributor], 1981.

Duvall, Jill. Chef Ki is Serving Dinner! Danbury, CT: Children's Press, 1997.

Hyun, Judy. The Korean Cookbook. Elizabeth, NJ: Hollym International Corp., 1983.

Loewen, Nancy. Food in Korea. Vero Beach, FL: Rourke Publications, 1991.

Marks, Copeland. The Korean Kitchen: Classic Recipes from the Land of the Morning Calm. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1993.

No, Chin-hwa. Traditional Korean Cooking: Snacks & Basic Side Dishes. Elizabeth, NJ: Hollym International Corp., 1985.

Okwha Chung and Judy Monroe. Cooking the Korean Way. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications, 1988.

Web Sites

KidSight. [Online] Available http://203.241.132.91/forkid/food/food_1.html (accessed March 14, 2001).

Korea Insights. [Online] Available http://korea.insights.co.kr/food/index.html (accessed March 14, 2001).

Life in Korea. [Online] Available http://www.lifeinkorea.com (accessed March 14, 2001).

Working Holiday Association. [Online] Available http://www.workingholiday.com/english/index.html (accessed March 14, 2001).

KOREA

KOREA. Owing to the popularity of Korean barbecue (kalbi and pulgogi ) outside Korea, Korean cuisine is often thought of as meat-based when compared with other Asian cuisines. However, in essence it has for centuries depended largely on vegetables and, to a lesser degree, on seafood. In fact, the consumption of animal products (beef, pork, chicken, eggs, milk, and dairy products) in Korea increased more than twenty times in the last three decades of the twentieth century, mainly due to economic affluence.

Chinese, Japanese, and Western (particularly American and Italian) influences are becoming increasingly visible, especially outside the home. Yogurt and Western-style sweets have become the staples of Korean children, and American fast-food chains (McDonalds, KFC, and Pizza Hut), particularly popular among the youth, are successively enlarging their share of the Korean restaurant market. Koreans of older generations prefer Chinese restaurants, which have been popular for several decades, to the more recent Japanese and Italian establishments. Chinese food is often cooked at home as well.

Yet, despite all these foreign influences, the daily fare of most Koreans, outside or inside the home, still consists of rice, soup, and side dishes—a meal structure that has barely changed for centuries.

The Korean Meal

There are few differences among the food Koreans consume at each meal. Supper is usually more elaborate than breakfast and lunch, but generally speaking, every meal is centered on plain boiled rice (pap ), soup (bouillon-like kuk or a more hearty t'ang ), and pickled vegetables (kimchi ). Side dishes (panch'an ) extend this core, and their number depends on the occasion. Three to five side dishes are the norm in contemporary households.

Stews (tchigae, tchim, chŏn'gol ) and soused or sautéed greens (namul, pokkŭm ) constitute the majority of side dishes, complemented by grilled dishes (kui or sanjŏk ) made of seafood, beef, pork, or chicken. Stews tend to acquire the position of a semi-main dish, as does pulgogi, turning into a center of the meal accompanied by a bowl of rice, smaller panch'an, and dipping sauces. Big-bowl dishes such as fried rice (pokkŭmbap ), beef soup with rice (sŏlŏngt'ang ), and mixed rice (pibimbap ) are served in a similar fashion, with small portions of greens and pickles on the side.

Rice boiled or steamed with beans, other grains, or vegetables may be served instead of plain boiled rice. A variety of wheat and buckwheat noodles (kuksu ) also frequently appear on the Korean table. Noodles are usually served in soupy liquids, while stuffed dumplings (mandu ) can be either steamed, panfried, or simmered in soups (manduguk ). Noodles and dumplings are popular lunch dishes. Flavored rice porridges (chuk ) are less commonplace than rice, noodles, and dumplings, but still retain a notable place in Korean cuisine.

Chili pepper, sesame (seed and oil), garlic, and spring onions, along with soy sauce (kanjang ), soybean paste (toenjang ), and red bean paste (koch'ujang ) constitute what might be called a Korean "flavoring principle." The combination of all or a selection of these ingredients gives Korean dishes their characteristic taste. Ginger, semi-sweet rice wine (ch'ŏngju ), and honey or sugar are the other crucial components of the Korean flavor.

Kimchi

Pickled vegetables, generally referred to by the name of kimchi, are the most basic, indispensable element of every Korean meal. Neither a feast nor a most meager fare would be complete without it. For centuries kimchi was the sole side dish to accompany the staple of Korea's poor, whether it was barley, millet, or, for the fortunate few, rice. It was also a fundamental meal component in affluent households. Three kinds of kimchi were always served, regardless of how many side dishes were to appear on the table. To a contemporary Korean, rice and kimchi are the defining elements of a minimal acceptable meal. Yet, it is kimchi, not rice, that is regarded as the symbol of Korean culture.

There are hundreds of varieties of kimchi. Every region, village, and even family used to cherish its own special recipe, applying slightly different preparation methods and using slightly different ingredients. Napa cabbage (Brassica chinensis or Brassica pekinensis ) made into paech'u kimchi is the most common type, followed by radishes (Raphanus sativus ) made into kkaktugi kimchi. Basically, vegetables are placed for several hours in brine, washed with fresh water, and drained. Then, flavorings such as ginger, chili pepper, spring onions, garlic, and raw or fermented seafood are added, and the mixture is packed into pickling crocks and allowed to age.

Since the 1960s, when factory-made kimchi appeared on the market for the first time, the number of urban families who continue to make their own kimchi has gradually diminished. With the rising consumption of meat and seafood, and the popularization of Western-style food, the quantity of kimchi consumed by Koreans has declined as well. An average Korean consumes approximately forty pounds of kimchi on a yearly basis.

Yet, kimchi is still considered to be the most important element of the Korean meal and quintessentially Korean by Koreans and foreigners alike. Despite this cultural symbolism, kimchi has evolved relatively recently to the form we know today. The so-called "white kimchi "(paek kimchi ), which is still popular in the early twenty-first century, resembles most closely the original version.

The addition of chili pepper came about in the mid-eighteenth century and gave kimchi its characteristic red color and pungent taste. Fermented seafood (chŏtkal ), which has been included in the pickling from the late nineteenth century onward, not only enriched the taste of kimchi, but also increased its regional diversity. While at the end of the seventeenth century only eleven types of kimchi were classified, the regional variety of chŏtkal (some regions use shellfish, others anchovies or other kinds of fish) contributed to the development of several hundred varieties of kimchi. The type of vegetables that are pickled also changed. Gourd melon, cucumber, and eggplant have been used since ancient times; today napa cabbage and radish are the most common varieties.

The Table Setting

With a few exceptions, all components of the meal are on the table at one time. A set of a spoon and metal chop-sticks is used while eating. Rice, soup, and other liquids are eaten with the former, side dishes with the latter. Soup and rice are served in individual bowls, but side dishes are often shared by more than one diner. Nowadays, bowls are usually made of stoneware, steel, or plastic, but for special occasions white porcelain tableware is used. In the past, the upper classes dined from brass bowls in the winter and porcelain ones during the hot summer months. A silver set of chopsticks and a spoon was considered most elegant. Less affluent sections of the population generally dined from earthenware, using wooden chopsticks and spoons. According to Korean etiquette, it is considered inelegant to lift bowls from the table. They stay on the table during the entire meal, unlike in the rest of East Asia, where it is customary to lift bowls up to the mouth while eating.

The majority of restaurants in Korea have two dining areas: one with Western-style tables and chairs, and one with an elevated floor where customers seated on cushions dine at low tables. Similarly, most Korean households use Western-style tables with chairs on a daily basis (the table is usually placed in the kitchen), but share meals at a low table with short legs, seated on cushions laid on the floor, when guests are entertained.

The most traditional dining setting is a small table designed for one or two persons. In upper-class households, there was no common dining room and such tables were laid in the kitchen and carried out to different parts of the house, where family members dined, divided according to age, gender, and position. Such dining arrangements reflected the hierarchical ideology of premodern Korea. The shared dining table with short legs became popular in the early decades of the twentieth century and by the 1960s spread all over the country, widely replacing the ubiquitous individual table. This transition was followed by the diffusion of Western-style table and chairs in the 1980s. Yet, even today, traditional tables designed for one are still used in some restaurants, student apartments, and average Korean households.

Food and Drink for Special Occasions

From the fifteenth century onward, Confucianism began to replace Buddhism as the strongest cultural influence in Korea. Various festivals and their celebration in Korea are closely related either to Buddhism or to Confucianism. These events are always marked by special food, with noodles, red beans, and many kinds of rice cakes playing a prominent role in festive meals and snacks. Because Korean meals traditionally did not include desserts, festivals were among the few occasions when sweet snacks were served, except in upper-class families, where sweet afternoon snacks were regularly prepared.

Throughout the ages, each festival food has acquired a symbolic meaning or a function that justifies its use at a specific occasion. Noodles, for example, are appropriate for birthdays because they symbolize long life. Red-bean porridge (p'atchuk ) with sweet rice balls (kyŏngdan ) eaten on the day of the winter solstice is said to prevent colds and drive away ghosts. Colorful rice cake (mujigae ttŏk ) is prepared for a child's first birthday in the hope that the child will enjoy a wide range of accomplishments.

Certain occasions are inseparable from the food that is served during their celebration. The Harvest Moon Festival (Ch'usŏk ), for example, is unimaginable without pine needle–scented rice cakes (songp'yŏn ), and lunar New Year's Day celebrations (Sŏllal ) would not be complete without rice cake soup (ttŏkkuk ). "How many bowls of rice cake soup have you eaten?" is a polite way of asking about someone's age, as if failing to eat a bowl of rice cake soup would deprive a person from a complete New Year's experience.

Garnishing (komyŏng ) is taken very seriously in traditional Korean cooking and becomes especially pronounced in festival food. Three-color garnish is made with egg yolk (yellow), egg white (white), and Korean watercress (green). Five-color garnish includes these with the addition of chili pepper threads (red) and stone-ear mushrooms (black).

Drinks are another medium used to celebrate special occasions. Porich'a, scorched-rice tea made by boiling water over the rice that sticks to the bottom of the cooking pot, used to be the most important daily beverage in Korea. Today, along with water, it remains an important drink to accompany meals. For celebrations, most Koreans drink either soju or beer. Soju is a kind of distilled liquor made of grain or sweet potatoes, with an alcohol content of up to 45 percent. Although it is often claimed to have been introduced to Korea in the thirteenth century through trade with the Mongols and Chinese, it is not clear whether the contemporary version has any connection with its ancestor apart from the name. Beer was introduced by the Japanese in the late nineteenth century and began to be produced on a large scale in the early 1930s.

A large variety of homemade wines (which are strictly speaking ales) flavored with ginseng, pine needles, chrysanthemum, cherry, plum, or apricot blossoms, herbs, and fruits were popular before the turn of the twentieth century. The ban on homemade wines during the Japanese colonial period (1910–1945) had a devastating effect on this part of the Korean tradition. The use of rice for wine making continued to be prohibited after the liberation, due to the shortage of rice. The ban on rice wine was lifted in 1971, and various efforts have been undertaken since to revive local wine making in Korea. In 1985, for example, the government designated many traditional wines as cultural assets. Makkŏlli, a milky rice wine with an alcohol content of 6 to 8 percent, also known under the name "farmer's wine" (nongju ), is one of the most popular alcoholic drinks in contemporary Korea.

Alcohol is never drunk in Korea without elaborate snacking. Practically all side dishes can be served for this purpose and are called anju at such occasions. Anju can be small like French hors d'oeuvres or Spanish tapas but are not always small. Stews and large savory pancakes (chŏn ), including vegetables, meat, and seafood, are typical snacks to accompany drinking.

The Historical Overview

The foundation of Korean cuisine was formed between the seventh and thirteenth centuries, with important modifications taking place in the eighteen and nineteenth centuries. As was the case with other aspects of Korean culture, Korean cuisine developed under the strong influence of its powerful neighbor—China. As in adjoining regions of East Asia, rice and fermented soybean products (soy sauce, soybean paste, and soybean curd) occupy a prominent place in the diet of the Korean people. The "rice–soup–side dishes" structure of the meal and the use of chopsticks to consume it are other indicators of the impact that Chinese civilization exerted on Korean food-ways. The emphasis on five elements in Korean cuisine, for example, five flavors (salty, sweet, sour, hot, and bitter) and five colors of garnish, has Chinese origins as well. It should be emphasized, however, that despite this heritage, Korean cuisine has developed into a distinctive entity of its own, with more differences from Chinese cuisine than similarities to it.

The technology of rice cultivation was brought to the northern parts of the Korean peninsula from China, probably late in the second millennium b.c.e., but rice became a staple of the Korean diet only in the Silla period (668–935 c.e.). In fact, before the second half of the twentieth century, rice was not a staple for everyone, but was rather a symbol of wealth. The old phrase "white rice with meat soup," for example, connotes the good life, while tacitly acknowledging that not everyone could afford either rice or meat. Millet, barley, and buckwheat accompanied by kimchi and vegetable soup were the daily fare of the majority of the Korean population.

Vegetarian Buddhist influences in Korea did not, apart from the clergy, have much impact on food habits. Beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and various types of game were regularly consumed by the Korean upper classes. Still, before the economic growth of the 1970s, the eating of meat was a luxury for the common people in Korea. Farmers, who formed the majority of the Korean population, rarely ate meat except for three days in summer when dog stew was served and a special day in winter when sparrow, wild boar, or wild rabbit was prepared. In both cases, the eating of meat was intended to strengthen physical resistance to extreme weather conditions (Walraven, 2002).

The techniques for making wine and chang (a semi-liquid predecessor of soy sauce and soybean paste) were also introduced from China, and by the seventh century were already highly advanced. This was also the time when fermented seafood (chŏtkal ) developed, along with vegetables preserved in salt. The latter eventually evolved into kimchi pickles.

Chili pepper was brought to Korea at the end of the sixteenth century, most probably via Japan. It became widely cultivated a century later and by the twentieth century was an integral part of Korean cuisine. As well as being an indispensable component in kimchi making, chili pepper contributes to the flavoring of the majority of Korean dishes through chili pepper powder (koch'u karu ) and red bean paste (koch'ujang ). Both are not only used extensively in the kitchen but often appear on the table as a relish.

It should be mentioned that the extensive use of chili pepper, and consequently the pungent taste of Korean cooking, was not originally characteristic of all Korea, but rather a feature of the Kyŏngsang province occupying the southeastern part of the peninsula. The diet of the southwestern provinces and the territory covering contemporary North Korea used to feature less spicy dishes than was the case in Kyŏngsang. Urbanization and the development of modern transport and communication networks led to the gradual decline of regional differences in the Korean diet. These differences, however, have by no means completely disappeared. Ch'ŏrwŏn, for example, is famous for makkŏ lli wine, Ch'unch'ŏn for its chicken barbecue (talkkalbi ), and Hamhung province for its cold noodles (naengmyŏn ). The cooking of the southwestern provinces tends to be generally less spicy than the rest of the country. Chŏlla province, in particular, tenaciously retains its culinary distinctiveness.

Along with a gradual decline in regional differences and the democratization of the Korean foodways, the twentieth century marked the time of the modernization of production, processing, distribution, and consumption of food in Korea. This started during the Japanese occupation and continued in South Korea after the Korean War (1950–1953).

The Japanese introduced modern farming techniques and Western-style food processing. The railway system and the highway network erected by the colonizer led to the centralization of markets and modernization of retailing. Japanese and Korean physicians created the foundation of Korean dietetics, and affluent Korean women got acquainted with the Western science of nutrition through Western-inspired Japanese home economics education.

After the Korean War, South Korea continued to modernize under the strong influence of the United States. American dietary influences have become particularly visible since the 1980s but have not been widely welcome. While foreign products are desirable for the status and novelty they impart, the Korean people generally disapprove of the country's growing reliance on food imports (Pemberton, 2002; Bak, 1997). The increasing consumption of meat, for example, led to a rise in the number of livestock in Korea, making this mountainous country with almost no pasture largely dependent on imported feedstuffs. This and similar issues play an important role in the dietary consciousness of the Korean population today.

See also China; Condiments; Fermented Beverages Other than Wine or Beer; Places of Consumption; Rice; Soup; Southeast Asia; Soy; Wine, Nongrape .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bak, Sangmee. "McDonald's in Seoul: Food Choices, Identity, and Nationalism." In Golden Arches East: McDonald's in East Asia, edited by James L. Watson. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1997.

Chu, Young-ha. "Origin and Change in Kimch'i Culture." Korea Journal (Summer 1995): 18–29.

Kim, Joungwon, ed. Korean Cultural Heritage. Vol. 4, Traditional Lifestyles. Seoul: Korea Foundation, 1994.

Kim, Kwang-ok. "Contested Terrain of Imagination: Chinese Food in Korea." In Changing Chinese Foodways in Asia, edited by David Y. H. Wu and Tan Chee-beng. Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 2001.

Pemberton, Robert W. "Wild-gathered Foods as Countercurrents to Dietary Globalisation in South Korea." In Asian Food: The Global and the Local, edited by Katarzyna Cwiertka with Boudewijn Walraven. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2001.

Walraven, Boudewijn C. A. "Bardot Soup and Confucians' Meat: Food and Korean Identity in Global Context." In Asian Food: The Global and the Local, edited by Katarzyna Cwiertka with Boudewijn Walraven. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2001.

Katarzyna J. Cwiertka

Korea. The history of Buddhism in Korea can conveniently be divided into six periods.

The Three Kingdoms Period (c.1–668)

Buddhism was introduced into the Korean peninsula at a time when the local tribes were first consolidating into three large kingdoms (Koguryŏ, Paekche, and Silla), and when Chinese religion, writing, calendrics, and so forth were making inroads into Korean culture. Official histories give the date of Buddhism's introduction as 372 ce, when a Chinese monk arrived in Koguryŏ as an emissary of the Chinese court bringing scriptures and images. Buddhism reached Silla by the 5th century ce, but the fact that the local élites already knew something of its teachings leads scholars to believe that it had already penetrated the peninsula through more informal channels prior to its official reception.

The Unified Silla Period (668–918)

Silla, originally the smallest and most isolated of the three kingdoms, came to prominence in the 6th century. During this time, Buddhism became the official religion of the court under King Pŏphung (r. 514–39), who used it as part of an ideological campaign to justify the newly established institution of kingship. This factor, plus the absorption of the more fully sinicized populations of Paekche and Koguryŏ, led to increased ties with China, and delegations of young men went there to study Buddhism. The Unified Silla period also marked one of the high points of Korean Buddhist art. The early part of this period, extending to the year 780, was marked by a peace and stability that enabled intellectuals to travel, practise, and explore Buddhist doctrines. During this time, scholar-monks such as Wŏnhyo (617–86), Ŭisang (625–702), and Wŏnch'uk (631–96) travelled to China and worked with eminent masters and translators, returning to Korea to share their accomplishments and learning. Through their efforts, Korean Buddhism absorbed scholastic forms of Buddhist thought such as Hua-yen (Kor., Hwaŏm), consciousness-only (Skt., vijñapti-mātra; Chin., Wei-shih; Kor., Yusik), and tathāgata-garbha thought, and also took in more popular forms, most notably Pure Land (Kor., Chŏngt'o). Wŏnhyo in particular contributed to the systematization of scholastic Buddhism into an overarching structure called ‘t'ong pulgyo’ or ‘unified Buddhism’, and disseminated Pure Land practice widely among the commoners after his return to lay life. During this period in China, the Ch'an, or meditation, school began its ascent to prominence, and its methods and teachings began filtering into Korea during the 7th century. However, it was during the period of instability and upheaval at the end of the Silla period beginning about 780 that the Ch'an school, known in Korea as Sŏn, came into its own. During this period many students of Hwaŏm and other intellectual schools began travelling to China to study Sŏn meditation, and they established the so-called ‘nine mountains’ (Kor., kusan), or nine prominent monastic centres of Sŏn recognized by the government. These institutions, along with the five officially sanctioned schools of doctrinal study, gave Korean Buddhism its designation as the ‘five schools and nine mountains’ (ojong kusan), or ‘five doctrinal and two meditation schools’ (ogyo yangjong).

The Koryŏ Period (918–1392)

Buddhism continued to dominate national religious life during the early Koryŏ period. T'aejo, the dynasty's founder, even left instructions to his heirs stating that the success of the nation depended upon the vitality of Buddhism. With government backing, the monasteries acquired extensive tracts of agricultural land, engaged in banking, and even retained private militias to protect their interests. Such extensive material resources allowed the publication of the entire known Buddhist canon between 1210 and 1231. When the woodblocks from this first printing were destroyed by Mongol invasions in 1232, a new set of blocks was ordered, which were completed between 1236 and 1251. Some 81,000 of these blocks remain stored at the Haein-sa on Mt. Kaya in southern Korea, and represent a cultural and religious legacy unique in the world. Buddhism's political and economic power led many people into the ranks of the clergy for very worldly reasons, leading to increasing corruption. In addition, the schools of doctrinal study and meditation had difficulty defining their unity, and often quarrelled loudly and publicly. This situation called forth efforts at reform and definition, led in the early Koryŏ by Ŭich'ŏn (1055–1101) and later by Chinul (1158–1210). The former, a prince of the royal court, remained too hostile to Sŏn to have much success, but the latter, through both scholarship and meditative attainment, did bring some degree of unity to the scene. He drew upon the Chinese master Tsung-mi's (780–841) pioneering work to effect his synthesis, and promulgated the latter's formula ‘sudden enlightenment followed by gradual practice’ as the norm. He also spread the method of kōan practice among Sŏn adherents. Later figures such as T'aego Pou (1301–82) built upon Chinul's work and, after travelling in China, brought the Lin-chi school of Ch'an (Kor., Imje) into Korea. However, despite the efforts of these figures, Buddhism in the latter part of the Koryŏ went into a decline as corruption and decadence worsened, and these prepared the scene for Buddhism's formal suppression under the Yi dynasty.

The Ch'osŏn Period (1392–1910)

The fall of Koryŏ in 1392 and its replacement by the heavily pro-Confucian Yi dynasty spelt the end of Korean Buddhism's golden age and the beginning of a period of persecution and declining influence that lasted 518 years. As each ruler ascended the throne, stronger and stronger anti-Buddhist measures went into effect. These included a halt to new temple construction; restrictions on ordinations; the actual closing of monasteries in urban areas and their gradual restriction to isolated mountain sites; and a proscription on travel by monks and nuns, which eventuated in their being forbidden from entering cities altogether. On the intellectual and institutional front, the panoply of doctrinal and meditative schools in existence at the end of the Koryŏ was reduced to only two: doctrine and Sŏn. By the end of the period, only the latter remained.

The Japanese Annexation (1910–45)

In August 1910, the Japanese government officially annexed Korea and made it part of a wider sphere of colonial influence outside of the constitutional protections it offered its own citizens. Ironically perhaps, this development helped bring to an end Buddhism's long exile from the mainstream of Korean life. Since the Japanese saw Buddhism as a point of contact with Korean culture, they demanded, and received, the lifting of many of the restrictions imposed on the clergy during the long Ch'osŏn period. Monks and nuns could freely travel and enter cities once again, and new temples could be constructed closer to population centres. At the same time, however, the Japanese exerted pressure on Korean monks and nuns to abandon their distinct ways of life and practice in order to adopt Japanese Buddhist practices, and to give up their institutional independence in order to submit themselves to Japanese Buddhist schools and lineages. The most contentious issues concerned clerical marriage and the addition of wine and meat to the diet, trends that had marked Japanese Buddhist life for some time. Some monks (though no nuns) adopted the new style, while others resisted, thus setting the stage for the conflicts that ensued when the Japanese withdrew in 1945.

1945–Present

In 1945 the country was divided in two at the 38th parallel and in 1948 the communist Democratic People's Republic of North Korea was declared in the north and the pro-USA Republic of Korea was founded in the south. Since that time Buddhism has been completely suppressed in the north. In the south, with the restoration of native rule in 1945, an intense conflict broke out between monks who had taken wives and abandoned many of the normal monastic precepts, and those who had not. These latter insisted upon the full restoration of celibacy and the strict enforcement of traditional Korean rules, and they further insisted that the former group be ejected from monastic properties, which would then be turned over to their control. The latter group, consolidated under the now-dominant Chogye Order, eventually won out after several court battles, legislative victories, and open hostilities. Thus, after a painful transition period, married monks left the monasteries, and monastic life returned to pre-Japanese practices. Since then, the Chogye Order has overseen the revival and revitalization of Korean Buddhism. Some bitterness broke out in the late 1980s and early 1990s between Buddhists and Christians (the latter group having grown dramatically over the last century), leading to the burning of some Buddhist temples, but overall, Buddhism has once again taken its place as an integral part of Korean society.

Korea A country whose history in the twentieth century was subject to the relations between its powerful neighbours, China, Russia/Soviet Union, and Japan. To avoid any confrontation, it chose to isolate itself during the nineteenth century, though towards the end of that period it came under increasing pressure from the imperialist powers of Britain, Japan, and the USA to open its borders to missionary and commercial activity. Following the Japanese victory in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–5, it became subject to growing Japanese infuence. Japanese domination was confirmed by its victory in the Russo-Japanese War (1904–5). Korea became a Japanese protectorate in 1905, and a colony in 1910. Japanese exploitation and the absence of political or even human rights for Koreans triggered the growth of a variety of independence movements. Declarations of independence were made by students and other movements in 1918–19, while the March First Movement for national independence, which was brutally repressed, nevertheless resulted in the first large-scale mobilization of the masses.

As a result, in April 1919 a provisional government (in exile) was formed in Shanghai (China), under the leadership of Syngman Rhee. From 1934, Communist-inspired and Soviet-supported partisans under Kim Il Sung began a guerrilla campaign against Japanese occupation. In response, Japanese rule became more repressive, with a new policy to crush Korean culture and traditions: in the late 1930s, the use of the Korean language was forbidden, while clothing had to be Japanese. During World War II, almost a million Koreans were deported as virtual slave labour for Japanese firms, while others were forced to fight in the Japanese armed forces. Meanwhile, the Cairo Conference between the USA, Britain, and China in 1943 established Korean independence as an Allied goal consequent on the defeat of Japan in World War II. On 8 August 1945 the Soviet Union attacked Japan, with the Red Army quickly moving into northern Korea. This forced the USA to agree to joint occupation of the country in preparation for independence, with the territory north of the 38th Parallel under Soviet control, and the southern half under US administration. The USA, USSR, and UK signed the Moscow Agreement on 27 December 1945, which outlined a framework for the joint administration of the country and the creation of an independent state. However, this was never carried out.

Because of the developing Cold War, the Soviet and US administrations became mutually hostile, each trying to establish a system of government after its own image. While the Communists in the north under their leader, Kim Il Sung, carried out a popular land reform in 1946, in early 1948 the USA (under the auspices of the UN) sponsored elections for a national assembly. These elections were nationwide in theory, but only allowed to take place in the southern half of the country in practice. Thus, on 15 August 1948 the Republic of Korea (South Korea) was proclaimed, with Syngman Rhee as President. In turn, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) was created on 9 September 1948, under the leadership of Kim Il Sung. As each country claimed sovereignty over the whole of Korea, the relationship between the two countries deteriorated rapidly. Within a year, the USSR and the USA withdrew their forces from North and South Korea respectively, leaving behind a well-organized Communist army hardened by years of partisan warfare in the north, and a rather more incoherent army, founded as the Korean Constabulary, in the south.

Kim Il Sung finally received permission from Stalin to attack and invade South Korea in spring 1950. The Korean War devastated the country, through tremendous loss of life and other human cost, as well as economic devastation, including the destruction of 85 per cent of Korea's industrial capacity. Subsequently, the countries were separated by a demarcation line, which was extended by a 2 km (1.5 mile) demilitarized zone on either side. The border was hermetically sealed, with all lines of communication cut, thus making contact between separated relatives or friends impossible.

In subsequent decades, negotiations about possible reunification failed, while the relationship between the two halves was extremely tense, owing to the idiosyncratic government style of Kim Il Sung on the one hand and the fragile nature of the South Korean polity on the other. As the latter became more stable, tentative talks were held in the late 1980s in which the subject of reunification was discussed. However, reunification remained an impossibility during the lifetime of Kim Il Sung. His death in 1994, as well as the collapse of the Soviet Union, reopened questions about the viability of the North Korean regime. Ironically, from 1995 this increased rather than reduced tensions, as the North Korean government became even more bellicose in an effort to hide its own weaknesses. Manifestations of North Korea's aggressiveness did not diminish. Kim Dae Jong's commitment to reconciliation was frequently frustrated, not least by Kim Jong Il's decision, in late 2002, to resume North Korea's nuclear energy programme.

KOREA

Since Korea was occupied by Japan during the period 1910 to 1945, it has looked to that country for its models of psychiatric thought, which, from that time, have been largely organically based descriptions. The earliest known Korean analyst was Sung Hee Kim, who trained under Kosawa Heisaku in Japan from 1940-45. He returned to Korea to become professor of psychiatry at Chonham University Medical School but did not initiate a local training program. This came later, after the Korean War, which brought American psychiatrists to Korea who taught depth psychology. That, together with the return of a few of the many Korean doctors who had gone to the United States to study psychiatry, led to the introduction of psychoanalysis as a formal system of thought.

However, prevailing systems of thought had already given rise to a set of cultural practices which have their own preventative and curative effects on individuals in times of distress (Chang and Kim, 1973). These included Shamanism and its concomitant belief that man's misfortune results from an improper relation to the spirit world. A qualified mediator or mutang performs the ritual of the goot through which relations are harmonized. Prior suffers become qualified as shamans through their close rapport with spirits and their children are said to inherit these abilities. There is also a long tradition of folk medicine, consisting of herbal remedies, acupuncture, and moxa, all introduced from China and still prevalent today.

In seeking help, Korean patients are like those in other Asian countries in seeking multiple treatments for a single complaint, and they tend to somatize psychological problems (see Psychoanalysis and China, this volume). In attempting to develop a culturally relevant approach to psychotherapy the pioneering analysts devoted a good deal of their time to studying traditional cultural practices (religions, myths, folk dramas, and literature) from the viewpoint of orthodox theory.

One outcome of this endeavour was a revision of Freud's conception of the Oedipus complex, such that its resolution involves sublimation of incestuous wishes to hyoa, the Korean term for filial piety. This is based upon a reciprocity between generations such that respect accorded by the children is balanced bythe understanding and responsibility of the parents (Kim, 1978). Another project has made use of the prevalence of Taoist beliefs about illness being due to an excess of exertion in thought or action. This has led some neo-Freudian analysts to develop a "Taoistic psychotherapy" which emphasizes an acceptance rather than a refusal of one's inner conflicts, and transcends them by training the mind towards a more positive outlook (Kim, 1996).

Not until the 1970s did Korean clinicians seek formal ties with the International Psychoanalytic Association. Cho Doo-Young, trained at Cornell and New York, organized the Korean Psychoanalytic Study Group which has since developed into the Korean Psychoanalytic Study Group. It is orthodox Freudian in orientation and has about 50 members. Two other organizations, the Korean Academy of Psychotherapy (neo-Freudian and Taoist with about 80 members) and the Korean Association of Jungian Psychology (with 30 members), are actively pursuing a culturally relevant psychoanalytic practice.

Since the 1980s, orthodox psychoanalytic interests in Korea have diminished, in line with other parts of the world, in the wake of a rising interest in biologically based explanations of psychological disturbance. A lack of Korean training has meant that those interested in being trained have had to go abroad, where the differences in language and cultural understanding have traditionally (in the West) been viewed as resistance but which might become the wellspring for future developments in cultural psychoanalytic theory (Fisher, 1996).

Geoffrey H. Blowers

Bibliography

Chang, S.C. and Kim. K.I. (1973). Psychiatry in South Korea. American Journal of Psychiatry 130, 6. 667-669.

Fisher, Charles P. (1996). Panel Report: Psychoanalysis in the Pacific Rim. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 77, 373-377.

Kim, K.I. (1978). The Oedipus complex in our changing society; with special reference to Korea. Neuropsychiatry (Seoul) 7 (1), 97-103.

——. (1996). Traditional therapeutic issues in psychiatric practice in Korea. Paper read in a Transcultural Psychiatry symposium of the Xth World Congress of Psychiatry, August 23.

Korea became, against the wishes of its population, a Japanese protectorate in 1905 and was annexed by Japan in 1910 when the king was forced to abdicate. Resistance to Japanese occupation increased after 1919 and from 1925 onwards was mostly controlled by a number of communist factions outside and within Korea.

The Japanese wrought an industrial revolution in Korea and in 1937 a process of assimilating the 23.5 million population began after a Japanese general, Minami Jiro, had been appointed governor-general the previous year. The Korean language and literature were banned from schools, and Koreans were even ordered to change their names to Japanese ones. In 1938 a ‘volunteer’ system began conscripting Korean youths; in 1939 Korean labour began being employed overseas; and in 1942 conscription for the Japanese Army was started. The nationalists and communists in China also raised army units from Korean patriot groups who had taken refuge there. Those who joined the nationalists were formed into a single military force in 1941, headed by Yi Pom-sok, and one of its units took part in the Burma campaign. The communist bands, based at Siking in north-west China, were led by Kim Il-sung, North Korea's first post-war political leader.

As the war progressed Japanese exploitation of Korea increased. The country was stripped of its rice production, cattle were confiscated, and metal objects of all kinds were seized for the war effort. This exploitation caused unrest, forcing the Japanese to increase their military presence in the country, from 46,000 troops in 1941 to 300,000 by 1945. By the end of the war 2.6 million Koreans were engaged in forced labour in Korea and ‘thousands of sociopathic Koreans were recruited to serve in the ranks of the repressive police. Korea became a slave-labor camp under armed guard’ ( R. Whelan, Drawing the Line: the Korean War 1950–1953, London, 1990, p. 22). Some 723,000 Koreans were also sent overseas as were tens of thousands of women who were forced to act as comfort women for Japanese troops. Many Koreans were sent to work in Japan and by January 1945 made up 32% of the labour force there. Perhaps as much as a quarter of the total casualties at Hiroshima were Koreans.

At the Cairo conference in November 1943 (see SEXTANT) it was agreed by China, the UK, and the USA that Korea should become independent ‘in due course’. With this Stalin concurred and at the Yalta conference in February 1945 (see ARGONAUT) a form of trusteeship, first raised by Roosevelt with Eden in early 1943, was discussed between the major powers, but was never implemented.

After the USSR declared war on Japan in August 1945 (see Japanese–Soviet campaigns), Soviet forces mounted a number of small amphibious operations north of the 38th Parallel (see Map 58) and the Soviet Twenty-Fifth Army advanced into Korea from China. As agreed with the USA (which had suggested the 38th Parallel as a dividing line), the Soviets then occupied north Korea while General John Hodge's 24th US Corps, which landed on 8 September from Okinawa, occupied south Korea. Syngman Rhee (1875–1965), who had been associated with an ineffective Korean provisional government formed in China in 1919, became president of the Republic of Korea in 1948.

Bibliography

Cumings, B. , The Origins of the Korean War (Princeton, 1981).

Korea Peninsula in e Asia, separating the Yellow Sea from the Sea of Japan. The rivers Yalu and Tumen form most of its n border with China.

Land and climate

The e seaboard is mountainous, rising in the ne to 2744m (9003ft) at Mount Paektu. The mountains descend in the w to coastal lowlands. The traditional capital, Seoul, lies close to the 38th-parallel border between North Korea and South Korea. The Korean archipelago lies off the s coast and includes the province of Cheju-do. North Korea experiences long and severe winters but warm summers. South Korea has a more tropical climate with occasional typhoons in the rainy months (July–August).

History

Korea's calendar starts in 2333 bc. China was a dominant influence. The first native Korean state was established in the 1st century ad, and Korea unified under the Silla dynasty in the 7th century. Mongols invaded Korea in 1231, and the country eventually capitulated. The Yi dynasty ruled Korea from 1392 to 1910. Early in the Yi period, Seoul became the new capital and Confucianism became the official religion. In the 17th century, Korea was a semi-independent state, dominated by the Manchu dynasty. A long period of isolationism followed. In the late 19th century, Korea became more active in foreign affairs, due to the growing power of Japan. After the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05), Korea was effectively a Japanese protectorate, and was formally annexed in 1910. Japan's enforced industrialization of Korea caused widespread resentment. Following Japan's defeat in World War II, Korea divided into two zones of occupation: Soviet forces n of the 38th Parallel, and US forces s of the line. Attempts at reunification failed, and in 1948 two separate regimes were established: the Republic of Korea in the s and the Democratic People's Republic in the n. In June 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea. The ensuing Korean War (1950–53) resulted in millions of deaths and devastated the peninsula. An uneasy truce has prevailed ever since. Attempts at reunification continue.

Korea (Chosŏn, Taehan) Only called Korea in the West from the 1890s, Korea being the Western name for the Koryŏ dynasty (918–1392). Korea had first been united in 668, but Koryŏ, the successor to, and new shortened name for, the Kingdom of Koguryŏ, was founded in 918 by General Wang Kŏn who established a new unified kingdom in 935 by defeating the Kingdoms of Paekche and Silla. However, the ancient Kingdom of Chosŏn was founded as far back as 2333 bc and this name was re‐adopted for the country in 1392 when the Confucian Yi (also known as Chosŏn) dynasty came to power. It ruled until the Japanese annexed the country in 1910, although it had become a Japanese protectorate five years earlier; the Japanese spelling was Chosen. During the next 35 years every effort was made to extinguish the Korean identity under the slogan Nissen Ittai ‘Japan and Korea as One’. To accept the surrender of Japanese forces in Korea in 1945, Soviet troops occupied the northern half of the country and American troops the southern half; without the Koreans being consulted, the country was partitioned along the 38th parallel (38° north), an arbitrary, but supposedly temporary, line that split the peninsula roughly in two. In 1948 two separate, and rival, states were proclaimed. Koryŏ may be translated as ‘High and Beautiful’. Chosŏn, the ancient Chinese name and still used by the North Koreans, means ‘(Land of the) Morning Calm’ from cho ‘morning’ and sŏn ‘calm’ or ‘freshness’. The South Koreans use Taehan ‘Great Han’ from tae ‘great’ or ‘big’, Han being another name for Korea and the Korean people. To symbolize the country's independence from China, this name was adopted in 1897 by the decree of Emperor Kojong (d. 1907). See North Korea and South Korea.

KOREA. A country of East Asia, currently divided into North Korea and South Korea. The Korean language is agglutinative and usually regarded as a Uro-Altaic language. Ancient Korean was written in a script called idu, in which Chinese characters were used to represent Korean sounds as well as meanings (similar to the present-day Japanese kanji). In the 15c, an alphabet of 11 vowel and 17 consonant symbols (reduced later to 10 and 14) was devised and used for popular literature, while classical Chinese continued in use for official and scholarly purposes. Although banned during the last decade of the Japanese occupation, this system (known as han-gul) was revived and is used on its own or, to a lesser degree, in a mixed script with Chinese characters read as Korean words. English has had a considerable influence on the structure of the modern language. Over the last 40 years, English has generally been assigned as many school hours as Korean for students aged 12–18, and is in the main an analytical grammatical exercise that has affected the study and use of Korean, resulting in adjustments made to some Korean constructions so as to align them more closely with English: for example, greater use of the optional plural particle -tul. Although this is not a strict equivalent of the English plural inflection -s, many think that it is or should be. After the Korean War and partition, the need for English declined in North Korea but increased in the South, where it is the main foreign language. Almost all students have three years of it, and the 80% who attend high school have six years. There are many private English institutes, one for students preparing for college entrance examinations the other for people who want to speak the language. See EAST ASIAN ENGLISH, HAWAIIAN.

Korea A region of eastern Asia forming a peninsula between the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea, now divided along the 38th parallel into South KOREA and North KOREA. Possessed of a distinct national and cultural identity and ruled from the 14th century by the Korean Yi dynasty, Korea has suffered from its position between Chinese and Japanese spheres of influence. Chinese domination was ended by the Sino-Japanese War (1894–95) and after the Russo-Japanese War a decade later the country was finally annexed by Japan in 1910. After the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II, the northern half of the country was occupied by the Soviets and the southern half by the Americans. Separate countries were created in 1948 and two years later the Northern invasion of the South resulted in the Korean War (1950–53). A 250 km-long demilitarized zone was established between the two countries at the end of hostilities but both North Korea and South Korea were some time in recovering from the devastation caused by military operations. While North Korea remains under Communist rule, South Korea is now one of the most rapidly growing industrial nations in the world.

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