韩国英文简介

1、South Korea is a land of striking contrasts. Rugged, forested mountains cover muchof the country. Bustling cities and farms crowd the country s few lowland areas. Thousands of islands dot the long, indented coastline.In the early 1900s, mostSouth Koreans worked on farms growing rice, thecountry s ma

2、in food crop. Since the 1960s, South Koreans have built many factories and modernized their farms. Today, South Korea is home to one of Asia s largest economies.Facts About South KoreaRepublic of KoreaSeoulKorean49,200,000 people24thSeoul, Busan, Daegu38,300 square miles99,300 square kilometers 106t

3、hMt. Halla6,398 feet/1,950 metersSouth Korean wonOfficial nameCapitalOfficial languagePopulationRank among countries in populationMajor citiesAreaRank among countries in areaHighest pointCurrencyWHERE IS SOUTH KOREA?South Korea is one oftwo countries on the Korean Peninsula. This fingerof land stick

4、s out from China, between the East Sea (Sea of Japan) and the Yellow Sea. South Korea lies on the southern part of the peninsula.The country of North Korea lies to the north and shares a border with China.In ancient times, the steep mountains of the Korean Peninsula and the surrounding seas sealed i

5、t off from the Asian mainland. Few wanderers traveled into Korea. The ancient tribes of Korea didnt mix much withanyone else. As a result, the Korean Peninsula has just one main ethnic group Korean. Koreans speak six forms, ordialects , of the Koreanlanguage.BORROWING FROM CHINAIn the past, Chinese

6、culture had a strong influence on the Korean Peninsula. Koreans welcomed the ideas of Confucius, a great Chinese teacher who lived about 2,500 years ago. Confucius taught people torespect their elders and honor their ancestors. Grave Visiting Dayremains an important holiday in South Korea. Families

7、spend the day at the cemetery, decorating their ancestors graves.Many Koreans practice an ancient Chinese religion called Daoism. Daoism teaches people to live simply and fit in with nature. Koreans learned about the Buddhist religion from the Chinese, too.BLENDED RELIGIONSIn Korea, new religions do

8、 not replace older ones. Koreans often blend beliefs from several religions, such as Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, and Christianity. In the 1970s, a Korean preacher named Sun Myung Moon created a new religion called the Unification Church. His religion has spread to many other parts of the world.T

9、HE KOREAN ALPHABETFor centuries, Koreans used the Chinese writing system. Chinese writing uses characters that stand for ideas instead of sounds. In the 1400s,Korean kings decided Korea needed its own writing system. In 1446, a team of Korean scholars introduced a new alphabet called Han-gul. In Han

10、-gul, each mark stands for a sound rather than an idea. Koreans still use Han-gul as their writing system.ONE KOREAOne kingdom ruled the Korean Peninsula from AD668 until 1948, although it was conquered a few times. Korea was a province of China for several centuries. In 1910, Korea came under the r

11、ule of the Japanese. Then, in World War II (1939-1945), Japan was defeated. The victors included the United States and the Soviet Union.TWO KOREASThe Soviet Union, a communist country, and the United States, quickly becameenemies. They could not agree on the future of Korea. In 1948, they divided th

12、e Korean Peninsula into two countries.A communist government took over in North Korea. Under communism, everyone works for the government. The government owns all the land and businesses. South Korea became a capitalist country. Under capitalism, citizens are allowed to own land and private business

13、es.THE KOREAN WARIn 1950, North Korean troops invaded South Korea. They hoped to unite the Korean Peninsula by force. The United Nations (UN) sent troops to stop the North Korean army. Most of the soldiers were Americans. China, a huge communist country, helped North Korea. The Korean Wardevastated

14、Koreas cities and killed millions of Korean people.In 1953, the two sides agreed to stop fighting. They never signed a peace treaty. Instead, each side stationed troops along a thin strip of land separating the two countries. This strip of land is called the “demilitarized zone, ” or DMZ. To this da

15、y, no one may set foot in the DMZ.As a result, the DMZhas becomea refuge for wild animals and migrating birds.THE RISE OF SOUTH KOREAAfter the war, South Koreaprospered. Many factories were built. Seoul,South Korea s capital, grew into the worlds fourth biggest city. Infact, nearly one- fourth of South Koreas 49 million people live in Seoul.Today, South Korea makes goods such as clothes, televisions, radios, telephones, automobiles, and steel. South Korea ships its manufactured goods all over the world.During the late 20th cent