Korea

American  

[kuh-ree-uh, kaw-, koh-] / kəˈri ə, kɔ-, koʊ- /

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.

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Korea British  

/ 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

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Korea Cultural  

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.

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Discover More

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 American and Soviet troops were withdrawn by 1949.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.

Etymology

Origin of Korea

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

Example Sentences

The Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty in 1953, meaning North and South Korea remain technically at war.

From BBC • May 29, 2026

Its shares rose 5.8% in local trading in South Korea.

From Barron's • May 29, 2026

Chinese dissident Dong Guangping reached South Korea in a rubber dinghy after a 30-hour journey, facing immigration charges.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

Sales of beauty products made in Korea hit $2.4 billion in the U.S. over the last year, a 48% year over year growth, according to data from NielsenIQ.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

Our earliest written information about Japan comes from Chinese chronicles, because China developed literacy long before it spread from China to either Korea or Japan.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond