Population: 47,904,370 (July 2001 est.)

Languages: Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school

Background: After World War II, a republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a communist-style government was installed in the north. The Korean War (1950-53) had US and other UN forces intervene to defend South Korea from North...

Currency: South Korean won (KRW, KRW (1,134.00 = US$1))

Data from CIA World Factbook. Click on CIA link for more. Click on map or flag for larger images.