The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula located in East Asia. It extends
southwards for about 1,100 km (680 mi) from continental Asia into the
Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan to the east and
the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the two bodies
of water.The peninsula's names, in Korean, Chinese and Japanese, all
share the same origin, that being Joseon, the old name of Korea under
the Joseon Dynasty and Gojoseon even longer before that. In North
Korea's standard language, the peninsula is called ChosÅ n Pando
(Korean: ì¡°ì„ ë°˜ë „; Hanja: æœ é®®å Šå³¶; RR: Joseon Bando), while
in China it is called CháoxiÇŽn Bà ndÇŽo (æœ é²œå Šå²›/æœ é®®å Šå³¶).
In Japan, it is either ChÅ senhantÅ (Kanji: æœ é®®å Šå³¶ / Hiragana:
㠡ょ㠆㠛ã‚"ã ¯ã‚"㠨㠆) or KanhantÅ (South Korean-specific only)
(Kanji: éŸ"å Šå³¶ / Hiragana: ã ‹ã‚"ã ¯ã‚"㠨㠆). In Vietnam, it is
called Bán Ä'ảo Triá» u Tiên. Meanwhile, in South Korea, it is
called Hanbando (Korean: í•œë°˜ë „; Hanja: éŸ"å Šå³¶), referring to
the Samhan, specifically the Three Kingdoms of Korea, not the ancient
confederacies in the southern Korean Peninsula. They both use "Korea"
as part of their official English names, which is a name that comes
from the Goryeo (or KoryÅ , in North Korea) dynasty (ê³ ë ¤;
高麗).Until the end of World War II, Korea was a single political
entity whose territory roughly coincided with the Korean Peninsula. In
August 1945, the Soviet Union declared war on Imperial Japan, as a
result of an agreement with the United States, and liberated Korea
north of the 38th parallel. U.S. forces subsequently moved into the
south. By 1948, as a product of the Cold War between the Soviet Union
and the United States, Korea was divided into two regions, with
separate governments. Both claimed to be the legitimate government of
all of Korea, and neither accepted the border as permanent. The
conflict escalated into open warfare when North Korean
forcesâ€"supported by the Soviet Union and Chinaâ€"moved into the
south on 25 June 1950. Since the Armistice Agreement ended the Korean
War in 1953, the northern section of the peninsula has been governed
by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, while the southern
portion has been governed by the Republic of Korea.The northern
boundaries for the Korean Peninsula are commonly taken to coincide
with today's political borders between North Korea and its northern
neighbors, China (1,416 km (880 mi) along the provinces of Jilin and
Liaoning) and Russia (19 km (12 mi)). These borders are formed
naturally by the rivers Amnok and Duman. Taking this definition, the
Korean Peninsula (including its islands) has an area of 220,847 km2
(85,270 sq mi).
southwards for about 1,100 km (680 mi) from continental Asia into the
Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan to the east and
the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the two bodies
of water.The peninsula's names, in Korean, Chinese and Japanese, all
share the same origin, that being Joseon, the old name of Korea under
the Joseon Dynasty and Gojoseon even longer before that. In North
Korea's standard language, the peninsula is called ChosÅ n Pando
(Korean: ì¡°ì„ ë°˜ë „; Hanja: æœ é®®å Šå³¶; RR: Joseon Bando), while
in China it is called CháoxiÇŽn Bà ndÇŽo (æœ é²œå Šå²›/æœ é®®å Šå³¶).
In Japan, it is either ChÅ senhantÅ (Kanji: æœ é®®å Šå³¶ / Hiragana:
㠡ょ㠆㠛ã‚"ã ¯ã‚"㠨㠆) or KanhantÅ (South Korean-specific only)
(Kanji: éŸ"å Šå³¶ / Hiragana: ã ‹ã‚"ã ¯ã‚"㠨㠆). In Vietnam, it is
called Bán Ä'ảo Triá» u Tiên. Meanwhile, in South Korea, it is
called Hanbando (Korean: í•œë°˜ë „; Hanja: éŸ"å Šå³¶), referring to
the Samhan, specifically the Three Kingdoms of Korea, not the ancient
confederacies in the southern Korean Peninsula. They both use "Korea"
as part of their official English names, which is a name that comes
from the Goryeo (or KoryÅ , in North Korea) dynasty (ê³ ë ¤;
高麗).Until the end of World War II, Korea was a single political
entity whose territory roughly coincided with the Korean Peninsula. In
August 1945, the Soviet Union declared war on Imperial Japan, as a
result of an agreement with the United States, and liberated Korea
north of the 38th parallel. U.S. forces subsequently moved into the
south. By 1948, as a product of the Cold War between the Soviet Union
and the United States, Korea was divided into two regions, with
separate governments. Both claimed to be the legitimate government of
all of Korea, and neither accepted the border as permanent. The
conflict escalated into open warfare when North Korean
forcesâ€"supported by the Soviet Union and Chinaâ€"moved into the
south on 25 June 1950. Since the Armistice Agreement ended the Korean
War in 1953, the northern section of the peninsula has been governed
by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, while the southern
portion has been governed by the Republic of Korea.The northern
boundaries for the Korean Peninsula are commonly taken to coincide
with today's political borders between North Korea and its northern
neighbors, China (1,416 km (880 mi) along the provinces of Jilin and
Liaoning) and Russia (19 km (12 mi)). These borders are formed
naturally by the rivers Amnok and Duman. Taking this definition, the
Korean Peninsula (including its islands) has an area of 220,847 km2
(85,270 sq mi).
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