South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK) (lang-ko????, IPA-kot??hanmin?uk?pronKo_pronunciation_of_dae-han-min-guk.ogg), is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China (Peoples Republic of 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.

Archaeological findings show that the Korean Peninsula was occupied by the Lower Paleolithic period (Lower Paleolithic). Korean history begins with the founding of Gojoseon in 2333 BC (Before Christ) 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 (Division of Korea) 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 (Korean War) between the two Koreas ended in an uneasy cease-fire, and the border between the two nations is currently the most heavily-fortified in the world. After the war, the South Korean economy (Economy of South Korea) grew significantly and the country was transformed into a major economy (G-20 major economies) and a full democracy (Democracy Index).

South Korea is a presidential (presidential system) republic consisting of sixteen administrative divisions (Administrative divisions of South Korea) and is a developed country with a very high standard of living (List of countries by Human Development Index). It has the fourth largest economy in Asia and the 15th largest (List of countries by GDP (nominal)) in the world nominally and the 13th largest by purchasing power parity. The economy is export-driven, with production focusing on electronics, automobile (Automotive industry)s, ship (Shipbuilding)s, machinery, petrochemicals and robotics. South Korea is a member of the United Nations, WTO, OECD and G-20 major economies. It is also a founding member of APEC and the East Asia Summit.