The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula A peninsula is a piece of land that is nearly surrounded by water but connected to mainland via an isthmus. Word origin: Latin paenīnsula : paene, almost + īnsula, island in East Asia East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms. Geographically and geopolitically, it covers about 12,000,000 km2 (4,600,000 sq mi), or about 28 percent of the Asian continent, about 15 percent bigger than the area of Europe, though some categorize Tibet, Xinjiang, and Mongolia as. It extends southwards for about 684 miles (1,100 km) from continental Asia Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it accounts for 60% of the world's current human population. It is located chiefly in the eastern and northern hemispheres into the Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure. There is currently a dispute at the United (also called There is a dispute over using the name "Sea of Japan" to refer to the sea bordered by Russia, Japan, North Korea, and South Korea. Although Sea of Japan, or equivalent translations, are commonly used in international productions, North and South Korea are proposing different names the East Sea) on the east, the East China Sea The East China Sea is a marginal sea east of China. It is a part of the Pacific Ocean and covers an area of 1,249,000 km². In China, the sea is called the East Sea to the south, and the Yellow Sea The Yellow Sea is the name given to the northern part of the East China Sea, which is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It is located between mainland China and the Korean peninsula. Its name comes from the sand particles from Gobi Desert sand storm that turn the surface of the water golden yellow during sunset and can be seen while sailing or to the west, the Korea Strait The Korea Strait is a sea passage between South Korea and Japan, connecting the East China Sea and the Sea of Japan in the northwest Pacific Ocean. The strait is split by the Tsushima Island into the western channel and the Tsushima Strait connecting the first two bodies of water.

Until the end of World War II World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all of the great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. The war involved the mobilization of over 100 million military personnel, making it the most widespread war in history, Korea Korea is a civilization, formerly unified nation, and geographic area currently composed of two sovereign states located on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. It borders China to the northwest, and Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait was a single political entity whose territory roughly coincided with the Korean Peninsula. Since the cessation A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of an armed conflict in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces of the Korean War The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korea and South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea) with major hostilities beginning on June 25, 1950, pausing with an armistice signed on July 27, 1953. North Korea has since unilaterally withdrawn from that armistice, having announced its intent to do so on May 27, 2009 in 1953, the northern half has been occupied by North Korea ^ b. Kim Jong-il is the nation's most prominent leading figure and government figurehead, although he is neither the head of state nor the head of government; his official title is Chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea, a position which he has held since 1994, while the southern half has been occupied by South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (Korean: 대한민국, pronounced [tɛːhanminɡuk̚] ( listen)) and often referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. Also known as the "Land of the Morning Calm", it is neighbored by China to the west and Japan to the east,.

The northern boundaries for the Korean Peninsula are commonly (and tacitly) taken to coincide with today's political borders between North Korea and her northern neighbors, China China has one of the world's oldest and continuous civilizations, consisting of states and cultures dating back more than six millennia.[citation needed] It has the world's longest continuously used written language system,[citation needed] and is viewed as the source of many major inventions. Historically, China's cultural sphere has extended (1,416 km along the provinces of Jilin Jilin (Chinese: 吉林; pinyin: Jílín; Wade-Giles: Chi-lin; Mandarin IPA: [tɕilin]; Postal map spelling: Kirin; Manchu: Girin ula), is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the northeastern part of the country. Jilin borders North Korea and Russia to the east, Heilongjiang to the north, Liaoning to the south, and Inner and Liaoning Liaoning (simplified Chinese: 辽宁; traditional Chinese: 遼寧; pinyin: Liáoníng) is a northeastern province of the People's Republic of China. Its one-character abbreviation is Liao (辽 pinyin: liáo)) and Russia Russia (pronounced /ˈrʌʃə/ ; Russian: Россия, pronounced [rʌˈsʲijə]), officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation(Russian: Российская Федерация​ (help·info), Rossiyskaya Federatsiya), is a country in northern Eurasia (Europe and Asia together). It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 (19 km). These borders are formed naturally by the rivers Yalu/Amnok The Yalu River or the Amnok River (Korean) is a river on the border between China and North Korea. The Chinese name comes from a Manchu word meaning "the boundary between two countries". The Korean name is the Korean pronunciation of the same Chinese characters and Tumen/Tuman/Duman The Tumen or Tuman River is a 521 km-long river that serves as part of the boundary between China, North Korea, and Russia, rising in Mount Baekdu and flowing into the Sea of Japan. Taking this definition, the Korean Peninsula (including its islands) has an area of 220,847 km2 (85,270 sq mi).

The peninsula is called Chosŏn Pando (hangul Hangul (pronounced /ˈhɑːŋɡʊl/, or Korean [haːn.ɡɯl] , in Korean: 한글 Hangeul/Han'gŭl (in South Korea) or 조선글 Chosŏn'gŭl/Joseongeul (in North Korea)) is the native alphabet of the Korean language, as distinguished from the logographic Sino-Korean hanja system. It was created in the mid-fifteenth century, and is now the official:조선반도}} ) in North Korea ^ b. Kim Jong-il is the nation's most prominent leading figure and government figurehead, although he is neither the head of state nor the head of government; his official title is Chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea, a position which he has held since 1994 and Han Bando (hangul Hangul (pronounced /ˈhɑːŋɡʊl/, or Korean [haːn.ɡɯl] , in Korean: 한글 Hangeul/Han'gŭl (in South Korea) or 조선글 Chosŏn'gŭl/Joseongeul (in North Korea)) is the native alphabet of the Korean language, as distinguished from the logographic Sino-Korean hanja system. It was created in the mid-fifteenth century, and is now the official:한반도}} ) in South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (Korean: 대한민국, pronounced [tɛːhanminɡuk̚] ( listen)) and often referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. Also known as the "Land of the Morning Calm", it is neighbored by China to the west and Japan to the east, due to the different names for Korea There are various names of Korea in use today, derived from ancient kingdoms and dynasties. The modern English name Korea is an exonym derived from the Goryeo period and is used by both North Korea and South Korea in international contexts. In the Korean language, the two Koreas use different terms to refer to the nominally unified nation: Chosŏn.

Contents

Physical geography

Main articles: Geography of North Korea North Korea is located in east Asia on the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. North Korea shares a border with three states, including China along the Amnok River, Russia along the Duman River, and South Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone. The Yellow Sea and the Korea Bay are off the west coast and the Sea of Japan is off the east coast and Geography of South Korea South Korea is located in East Asia, on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula jutting out from the far east of the Asian land mass

Mountains cover 70 percent of the Korean Peninsula and arable plains are generally small and far in between the successive mountain ranges. The peninsula becomes more mountainous towards the north and the east, with the highest mountains (including Baekdu Mountain Baekdu Mountain, also known as Changbai Mountain in China, is a volcanic mountain on the border between North Korea and China, located at 42°00′24″N 128°03′18″E / 42.00667°N 128.055°E. At 2,744 m , it is the highest mountain of the Changbai mountain range to the north and Baekdudaegan mountain range to the south. It is also the which stands at 2,744 m or 9,003 feet) found in the north.

The peninsula has 8,460 kilometres of coastline, and the south and west coasts are highly irregular in particular; most of the 3,579 islands off the peninsula are found along the south and the west coasts.

Climate

The climate of the Korean Peninsula differs dramatically from north to south. The southern regions experience a relatively warm and wet climate similar to that of Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south. The characters which make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which, affected by warm ocean waters including the East Korea Warm Current. The northern regions experience a colder and to some extent more inland climate, in common with Manchuria Manchuria is a historical name given to a vast geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria either falls entirely within China, or is divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast China , and historically referred as Manju or Bukbang (북방) in Korean and Guandong (. For example, the annual precipitation of the Yalu River The Yalu River or the Amnok River (Korean) is a river on the border between China and North Korea. The Chinese name comes from a Manchu word meaning "the boundary between two countries". The Korean name is the Korean pronunciation of the same Chinese characters valley (600 mm) is less than half of that on the south coast (1500 mm). [1] Likewise, there is a 20 °C difference in January temperature between the peninsula's southern and northern tips.

The entire peninsula, however, is affected by similar general patterns, including the East Asian monsoon The East Asian monsoon is a monsoonal flow that carries moist air from the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean to East Asia. It affects approximately one-third of the global population, and the countries China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, etc. It is driven by temperature differences between the Asian continent and the Pacific Ocean. The in midsummer and the frequent incidence of typhoons in autumn. The majority of rainfall takes place during the summer months, with nearly half during the monsoon alone. Winters are cold, with January temperatures typically below freezing outside of Jeju Island Jeju-do is the only special autonomous province of South Korea, situated on and coterminous with the country's largest island. Jeju-do lies in the Korea Strait, southwest of Jeollanam-do Province, of which it was a part before it became a separate province in 1946. Its capital is the city of Jeju. Winter precipitation is minimal, with little snow accumulation outside of mountainous areas.

Biology

Surveys of Korean flora have identified more than 3,000 species on the peninsula, of which more than 500 are endemic Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a particular geographic location, such as a specific island, habitat type, nation, or other defined zone. To be endemic to a place or area means that it is found only in that part of the world and nowhere else. For example, many species of lemur are endemic to the island of Madagascar. Physical,. The peninsula's floristic provinces are commonly divided between warm-temperate, temperate In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally mild, rather than extreme hot or cold. But in continental areas, such as central North America the variations between summer and winter can be extreme. In regions traditionally, and cold-temperate zones. The warm-temperate zone prevails over the southern coast and islands, including Jeju-do Jeju-do is the only special autonomous province of South Korea, situated on and coterminous with the country's largest island. Jeju-do lies in the Korea Strait, southwest of Jeollanam-do Province, of which it was a part before it became a separate province in 1946. Its capital is the city of Jeju. It is typified by a large number of broad-leaved evergreens. The temperate zone covers the great majority of the peninsula, away from the southern coast and high mountains. It is dominated by the Korean pine The tree species Pinus koraiensis is commonly called Korean Pine. It is native to eastern Asia, Manchuria, far eastern Russia, Korea and central Japan. In the north of its range, it grows at moderate altitudes, typically 600-900 m, whereas further south, it is a mountain tree, growing at 2,000-2,600 m altitude in Japan. It is a large tree, and various broad-leaved deciduous trees. Cold-temperate vegetation is found along the peninsula's northern fringe and in the high mountains, including the upper reaches of Hallasan Hallasan is a shield volcano on Jeju Island of South Korea. Hallasan is the highest mountain of South Korea. The area around the mountain is a designated national park, the Hallasan National Park . Hallasan is commonly considered to be one of the three main mountains of South Korea, with Jirisan and Seoraksan being the other two on Jeju. Evergreens in this area include larch Larches are conifers in the genus Larix, in the family Pinaceae. They are native to much of the cooler temperate northern hemisphere, on lowlands in the far north, and high on mountains further south. Larches are among the dominant plants in the immense boreal forests of Russia and Canada and juniper Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the mountains of Central America. Much of this vegetation is shared with Manchuria.

Geology

The terrain of the Korean Peninsula is rumpled, covered with low mountains. Most rocks are of Precambrian The Precambrian is an informal name for the supereon comprising the eons of the geologic timescale that came before the current Phanerozoic eon. It spans from the formation of Earth around 4500 Ma (million years ago) to the evolution of abundant macroscopic hard-shelled animals, which marked the beginning of the Cambrian, the first period of the origin, although isolated pockets of Paleozoic The Paleozoic or Palaeozoic Era (from the Greek palaios , "old" and zoe (ζωή), "life", meaning "ancient life") is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon. The Paleozoic spanned from roughly 542 to 251 million years ago (ICS, 2004), and is subdivided into six geologic periods; from oldest to, Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era is one of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon. The division of time into eras dates back to Giovanni Arduino, in the 18th century, although his original name for the era now called the "Mesozoic" was "Secondary" . Lying between the Paleozoic and the Cenozoic, "Mesozoic" means "middle, and Cenozoic The Cenozoic Era (pronounced /ˌsiːnɵˈzoʊɪk/, /ˌsɛnəˈzoʊɪk/) (meaning "new life" (Greek καινός (kainos), "new", and ζωή (zoe), "life"), is the most recent of the three classic geological eras and covers the period from 65.5 million years ago to the present. It is marked by the Cretaceous–Tertiary rock can also be found.

There are no active volcanoes on the peninsula. However, Baekdu Mountain Baekdu Mountain, also known as Changbai Mountain in China, is a volcanic mountain on the border between North Korea and China, located at 42°00′24″N 128°03′18″E / 42.00667°N 128.055°E. At 2,744 m , it is the highest mountain of the Changbai mountain range to the north and Baekdudaegan mountain range to the south. It is also the in the north and Hallasan in the south have crater lakes A crater lake is a lake that forms in a volcanic crater, such as a maar, or in a caldera. Sometimes the latter are called caldera lakes, but often this distinction is not made. Crater lakes covering active volcanic vents are sometimes known as volcanic lakes, and the water within them is often acidic, saturated with volcanic gases, and cloudy with, indicating that they were active not long ago. Furthermore, hot springs A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are hot springs all over the earth, on every continent and even under the oceans and seas indicative of low-level volcanic activity are widespread throughout the peninsula. Roughly two earthquakes are recorded per year, but few have any major impact.

Notes

  1. ^ KOIS 2003, p. 17.

References

See also

Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. It is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation, from which uploaded files can be used across all Wikimedia projects in all languages, including Wikipedia, Wikibooks, Wikisource and Wikinews, or downloaded for offsite use, as all of the content is either in the has media related to: Korean Peninsula

External links

Korea topics
North Korea · South Korea
History
Timeline · List of monarchs · Military history · Gojoseon · Jin · Proto-Three Kingdoms (Buyeo · Okjeo · Dongye · Samhan) · Gaya · Three Kingdoms (Goguryeo · Baekje · Silla) · Unified Silla · Balhae · Later Three Kingdoms · Goryeo (Mongol invasion) · Joseon (Seven Year War) · Korean Empire · Japanese rule (Independence movements · March 1st Movement · Provisional Government) · Division of Korea (USAMGIK) · Korean War · North Korea · South Korea
Politics
North Korea Government (President · Chairman · Premier · Supreme People's Assembly · Presidium) · Elections · Political parties (Workers' Party of Korea) · Human rights · LGBT rights · Nuclear program · Military · Foreign relations · "Juche"
South Korea Government (Constitution · President · Prime Minister · Assembly) · Elections · Political parties · Human rights · LGBT rights · Military · Foreign relations (Sunshine policy)
Economy
North Korea List of companies · Currency · Communications · Transportation · Famine
South Korea List of companies · Chaebol (Samsung · Hyundai · LG · SK) · "Miracle on the Han River" · Currency · 1997 financial crisis · Communications · Transportation · Real estate · Financial services · International rankings
Geography
General Korean Peninsula · Regions · Provinces (historical) · Special cities · Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) · Mountains (Baekdudaegan · Baekdusan · Kumgangsan · Seoraksan · Jirisan · Hallasan) · Islands (Jeju-do) · Rivers (Tumen · Yalu · Han · Nakdong) · Lakes
North Korea Administrative divisions · Cities (Pyongyang)
South Korea Administrative divisions · Cities (Seoul · Busan) · Environment
Demographics
Koreans (list) · Koreatown · Language (Hangul · Hanja) · Names · North Korea · South Korea (Adoptees)
Culture
General Religion (Buddhism · Shamanism · Christianity) · Philosophy · Confucianism · Mythology · Cinema · Drama · Martial arts (Taekwondo · Hapkido) · Ssireum · Swords · Cuisine (Kimchi · Galbi · Bulgogi) · Tea ceremony
Arts Pottery · Painting · Calligraphy · Architecture · Music (Pansori · Arirang) · Literature (Poetry · Sijo · Gasa) · Cinema (Animation · List of films)
North Korea "Juche" · Arirang Festival · Sports · Education · Religion · Tourism
South Korea Korean wave · K-pop · Sports · Education · Religion · Tourism · Marriage
Geography of Asia
Sovereign states

Afghanistan · Armenia1 · Azerbaijan1 · Bahrain · Bangladesh · Bhutan · Brunei · Burma2 · Cambodia · People's Republic of China · Cyprus1 · East Timor3 · Egypt4 · Georgia4 · India · Indonesia · Iran · Iraq · Israel · Japan · Jordan · Kazakhstan4 · North Korea · South Korea · Kuwait · Kyrgyzstan · Laos · Lebanon · Malaysia · Maldives · Mongolia · Nepal · Oman · Pakistan · Philippines · Qatar · Russia4 · Saudi Arabia · Singapore · Sri Lanka · Syria · Tajikistan · Republic of China5 · Thailand · Turkey4 · Turkmenistan · United Arab Emirates · Uzbekistan · Vietnam · Yemen
Dependencies, autonomies, other territories

Aceh · Adjara1 · Abkhazia1 · Akrotiri and Dhekelia · Altai · British Indian Ocean Territory · Buryatia · Christmas Island · Cocos (Keeling) Islands · Guangxi · Hong Kong · Inner Mongolia · Iraqi Kurdistan · Jakarta · Khakassia · Macau · Nagorno-Karabakh · Nakhchivan · Ningxia · Northern Cyprus · Palestine (Gaza Strip · West Bank) · Papua · Sakha · South Ossetia1 · Tibet · Tuva · West Papua · Xinjiang · Yogyakarta
Italics indicates an unrecognised or partially recognised country. 1 Sometimes included in Europe, depending on the border definitions. 2 Officially known as Myanmar. 3 Sometimes included in Oceania, and also known as Timor-Leste. 4 Transcontinental country. 5 Commonly known as Taiwan.

Categories: Peninsulas of Asia | Geography of Korea

 

The above information uses material from Wikipedia and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Some facts may not have been fully verified for accuracy. [Disclaimers]
This page was last archived by our server on Tue Jul 7 18:15:16 2009. [ refresh local cache ]
Displaying this page or its contents does not use any Wikimedia Foundation's resources.
The owners of this site proudly support the Wikimedia Foundation.

[Hide]▼
'Korean Peninsula' News
North Korea: US Rebuked for Escalating Tension on Korean Peninsula - ISRIA
news.google.com
North Korea : US Rebuked for Escalating Tension on Korean Peninsula

ISRIA

The US is pushing the situation on the Korean Peninsula to the brink of a war by massively deploying aggressor armed forces in south Korea and in its ...

Tensions continue to escalate on Korean Peninsula CCTV

Diplomatic means 'sole right way' to solve Korean N-issue China Daily

EU: Statement of the Czech Republic on Behalf of the European ... ISRIA

China Daily  - China Daily  - China Daily

all 55 news articles »
Google News Search: Korean Peninsula,
Fri Jul 3 10:58:27 2009
[Hide]▲