People & Culture of South Korea

Korea's population is one of the most ethnically and linguistically homogenous in the world. Except for a small Chinese community (about 20,000), virtually all Koreans share a common cultural and linguistic heritage. With 48.85 million people, South Korea has one of the world's highest population densities. Major population centres are located in the northwest, southeast, and in the plains south of the Seoul-Incheon area. Half of the population actively practices religion. Among this group, Christianity and Buddhism are Korea’s dominant religions. The Korean society remains highly imbued with Confucian values and beliefs. The remaining 1% of the population practice Shamanism which is a type of traditional spirit worship and Chondogyo which is a traditional religion.

The Korean language is spoken by more than 65 million people living on the peninsula and its outlying islands as well as 5.5 million Koreans living in other parts of the world. The fact that all Koreans speak and write the same language has been a crucial factor in their strong national identity.
The contemporary culture in South Korea that we witness developed from the traditional culture of Korea. Since the 1948 division of Korea, it has developed separately from North Korea’s culture. Popular music is popular in South Korea and many Korean pop stars and groups are well known in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Karaoke is also common in South Korea. Korean television and especially the short form dramatic mini-series colloquially called "dramas" by Koreans have become extremely popular outside of Korea. The popularity of such Korean dramas has driven Korean stars to fame and has done much to boost the image and prestige of Korean popular culture.

The hanbok is the national South Korean costume and has been handed down in the same form for men and women for hundreds of years. Western wear entered Korea during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953 and during the rapid industrialization in the 1960s and 1970s. However, the use of hanbok is declining and in fact, many hanbok lovers are campaigning to revitalize hanbok and have updated styles to better fit modern work environments. As for South Korean cuisine, rice remains the staple of most Koreans. However, many prefer Western-style food.