Korea

[kuh-ree-uh, kaw-, koh-]

noun

1. a former country in East Asia, on a peninsula southeast of Manchuria and between the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea: a kingdom prior to 1910; under Japanese rule 1910–45; now divided at the 38th parallel into North Korea and South Korea.

2. Democratic People's Republic of Korea, official name of North Korea.

3. Republic of Korea, official name of South Korea.

Korea

/ kəˈriːə /

noun

1. Japanese name (1910–45): Chosen. a former country in E Asia, now divided into two separate countries, North Korea and South Korea. Korea occupied the peninsula between the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and the Yellow Sea: an isolated vassal of Manchu China for three centuries until the opening of ports to Japanese trade in 1876; gained independence in 1895; annexed to Japan in 1910 and divided in 1945 into two occupation zones (Russian in the north, American in the south), which became North Korea and South Korea in 1948 See North Korea South Korea

Korea

1. Historic region consisting of North Korea and South Korea; peninsula off northeastern China separating the Yellow Sea and Sea of Japan, two arms of the Pacific Ocean.

Korea was under Japanese rule in the early twentieth century. At the end of World War II, Korea was divided at the thirty-eighth parallel of north latitude into two zones, with troops of the Soviet Union in the north and troops of the United States in the south. By 1948, two separate governments had emerged, the communist Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the north and the noncommunist Republic of Korea in the south. American and Soviet troops were withdrawn by 1949. The Korean War (1950–1953) began when North Korean forces invaded South Korea. Forces of the United Nations under General Douglas MacArthur aided South Korea, whereas Chinese forces aided North Korea.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Korea¹

First recorded in 1610–20; from Korean Goryeo, Koryŏ

Example Sentences

The Bank of Korea is expected to hold its policy rate steady at 2.50% for a fourth consecutive time, as well as raise growth forecasts.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

After Taiwan's relaxation, only China, Hong Kong, Macau, Russia, and South Korea have specific import control measures for Japanese food products, the agency said.

Read more on Barron's

In this book, Stern takes us with him on his travels to Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Italy and Spain to discover the common factors behind the high life-expectancy rates these countries share.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

It has a track record in Vietnam for building industrial parks, whose tenants include South Korea’s LG Group, according to KinhBac’s website.

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Her parents ran a flower shop after immigrating from South Korea.

Read more on Los Angeles Times