South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK) (Korean: 대한민국, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul. South Korea lies in a temperate climate region with a predominantly mountainous terrain. Its territory covers a total area of 100,032 square kilometers and has a population of over 50 million.[5]
Archaeological findings show that the Korean Peninsula was occupied by the Lower Paleolithic period.Korean history begins with the founding of Gojoseon in 2333 BC by the legendary Dan-gun. Following the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea under Silla 668 AD, Korea went through the Goryeo Dynasty and Joseon Dynasty as one nation until the end of the Korean Empire in 1910, when Korea was annexed by Japan. After liberation and occupation by Soviet and U.S. forces at the end of World War II, the nation was divided into North and South Korea. The latter was established in 1948 as a democracy. A war between the two Koreas ended in an uneasy cease-fire. After the war, the South Korean economy grew significantly and the country was transformed into a major economy and a full democracy.
South Korea is a presidential republic consisting of sixteen administrative divisions and is a developed country with a very high standard of living. It has the fourth largest economy in Asia and the 15th largest in the world
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_South_Korea
