KaesongKaesong (UKkeɪˈsɒŋ, USkeɪˈsɔːŋ; kɛsʌ̹ŋ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close to the border with South Korea and contains the remains of the Manwoldae palace. Called Songdo while it was the ancient capital of Goryeo, the city prospered as a trade centre that produced Korean ginseng. Kaesong now functions as North Korea's light industry centre.
Korean Demilitarized ZoneThe Korean Demilitarized Zone () is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula near the 38th parallel north. The demilitarized zone (DMZ) is a border barrier that divides the peninsula roughly in half. It was established to serve as a buffer zone between the countries of North Korea and South Korea under the provisions of the Korean Armistice Agreement in 1953, an agreement between North Korea, China, and the United Nations Command. The DMZ is long and about wide.
Gyeonggi ProvinceGyeonggi Province (, kjʌ̹ŋ.ɡi.do̞) is the most populous province in South Korea. Seoul, the nation's largest city and capital, is in the heart of the area but has been separately administered as a provincial-level special city since 1946. Incheon, the nation's third-largest city, is on the coast of the province and has been similarly administered as a provincial-level metropolitan city since 1981. The three jurisdictions are collectively referred to as Sudogwon and cover , with a combined population of over 26 million - amounting to over half (50.
SillaSilla (; ɕiɭ.ɭa; Old Korean: 徐羅伐 Syerapel, 斯羅火 Sïrapïr; RR: Seorabeol; IPA: shʌ̹ɾa̠bʌ̹ɭ), alternatively Shilla, was a Korean kingdom that existed between 57 BCE – 935 CE and located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Silla had the lowest population of approximately 850,000 people (170,000 households), which was significantly smaller than those of Baekje (3,800,000 people) and Goguryeo (3,500,000 people).
History of KoreaThe Lower Paleolithic era on the Korean Peninsula and in Manchuria began roughly half a million years ago. The earliest known Korean pottery dates to around 8000 BC, and the Neolithic period began after 6000 BC, followed by the Bronze Age by 2000 BC, and the Iron Age around 700 BC. Similarly, according to The History of Korea, the Paleolithic people are not the direct ancestors of the present Korean people, but their direct ancestors are estimated to be the Neolithic People of about 2000 BC.
GoguryeoGoguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) (; ko̞ɡuɾjʌ̹; : high castle; Old Korean: Guryeo) also later known as Goryeo (; ko.ɾjʌ; : high and beautiful; Middle Korean: 고ᇢ롕〮, Gowoyeliᴇ), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of modern day Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most of the Korean Peninsula, large parts of Manchuria and parts of eastern Mongolia and Inner Mongolia as well as Russia.
GoryeoGoryeo (; ko.ɾjʌ) was a Korean state founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unification" by Korean historians as it not only unified the Later Three Kingdoms but also incorporated much of the ruling class of the northern kingdom of Balhae, who had origins in Goguryeo of the earlier Three Kingdoms of Korea.
Korean shamanismKorean shamanism or Mu-ism () is a religion from Korea. It is also called rr () in Korean. Scholars of religion have classified it as a folk religion. There is no central authority in control of the religion and much diversity exists among practitioners. The rr religion is polytheistic, promoting belief in a range of deities. Both these deities and ancestral spirits are deemed capable of interacting with living humans and causing them problems.
