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See Also
See Again
© Getty Images
0 / 31 Fotos
The Korean War
- The Korean War was fought between North Korea and South Korea from 1950 to 1953. The conflict forever changed the makeup of the Korean Peninsula.
© Getty Images
1 / 31 Fotos
Korean Armistice Agreement
- The Korean Armistice Agreement was an armistice that brought about a complete cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. Signed on July 27, 1953, all parties sought to make an agreement that would suspend open hostilities, arrange the release and repatriation of prisoners of war, and establish a separation of forces.
© Getty Images
2 / 31 Fotos
Dividing lines drawn
- The Armistice Agreement created a Military Demarcation Line (MDL). But to properly separate combat forces, both sides withdrew 1.24 miles (2 km) from the MDL to form a 2.48- mile (4 km) wide Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) near the 38th parallel, which runs 149 miles (241 km) across the width of the Korean Peninsula. However, no peace treaty was ever signed, thus the Korean Peninsula technically remains in a state of war.
© Shutterstock
3 / 31 Fotos
Separate ways
- After 1953, North Korea and South Korea took dramatically divergent paths—and the differences couldn't be more stark.
© Shutterstock
4 / 31 Fotos
South Korea governance
- South Korea is a full democracy. Its people benefit from regular rotations of power and robust political pluralism. In fact, according to the V-Dem Institute, South Korea was in 2023 the third most electoral democratic country in Asia.
© Shutterstock
5 / 31 Fotos
North Korea governance
- North Korea, on the other hand, falls under the supreme leadership of its founding Kim dynasty, around the Juche ideology. Juche, which roughly translates as "self-reliance," is a political philosophy whose core idea is that North Korea is a country that must remain separate and distinct from the world, dependent solely on its own strength and the guidance of a near-godlike leader.
© Shutterstock
6 / 31 Fotos
Yoon Suk Yeol
- South Korea's current president is Yoon Suk Yeol. He has held the position since 2022.
© Getty Images
7 / 31 Fotos
Kim Jong-Un
- Kim Jong-Un has been supreme leader of North Korea since 2011, succeeding his father Kim Jong II. Kim Jong-Un is the grandson of Kim Il Sung, who was the founder and first supreme leader of North Korea.
© Getty Images
8 / 31 Fotos
South Korea population numbers
- The population of South Korea is approximately 51.74 million.
© Shutterstock
9 / 31 Fotos
North Korea population numbers
- North Korea's population is currently around 25.97 million.
© Getty Images
10 / 31 Fotos
Seoul
- The capital city of South Korea is Seoul, its largest city, with a population of 9,988,000.
© Shutterstock
11 / 31 Fotos
Pyongyang
- Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea. The city's current population is 3,183,000.
© Shutterstock
12 / 31 Fotos
South Korea time difference
- South Korea follows Korean Standard Time (GMT+9).
© Getty Images
13 / 31 Fotos
North Korea time difference
- North Korea follows its own Pyongyang Time, which is also GMT+9. In other words, both Koreas are on the same time.
© Getty Images
14 / 31 Fotos
Language of South Korea
- The South Korean standard language, or Pyojuneo, is the South Korean standard version of the Korean language. It uses the Hangul alphabet, created in December 1443 CE by the Joseon-era King Sejong the Great (1397–1450).
© Getty Images
15 / 31 Fotos
Language of North Korea
- North Korea's official language is Korean (Munhwao). Munhwao was adopted as the standard in 1966 after Kim Il Sung coordinated an effort to purify the Korean language from English, Japanese, and Russian, and create a dialect known as "cultural language."
© Getty Images
16 / 31 Fotos
South Korean industry
- South Korean industry includes the production of automobiles (Hyundai operates the world's largest integrated automobile manufacturing facility, in Ulsan) and the manufacture of electronics, notably appliances made by Samsung.
© Getty Images
17 / 31 Fotos
South Korean industry
- Tourism is also a significant driver of economic growth in South Korea. In 2023, the country welcomed approximately 11 million inbound visitors.
© Shutterstock
18 / 31 Fotos
North Korean industry
- The economy of North Korea is a centrally planned economy. Industrial output in the country includes the production of steel and heavy machinery.
© Getty Images
19 / 31 Fotos
North Korean industry
- The production of chemicals and electronics, as well as shipbuilding, also help bolster the economy. The most common destination for the exports of North Korea is China.
© Getty Images
20 / 31 Fotos
South Korean currency
- The official currency of South Korea is the Korean Republic won.
© Shutterstock
21 / 31 Fotos
North Korean currency
- The official currency of North Korea is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea won, or the Korean People's won.
© Shutterstock
22 / 31 Fotos
South Korean entertainment
- South Korea is often termed the "Hollywood of the East." Its entertainment industry is huge, with South Korean K-pop, film and television productions, and video games exported around the globe.
© Shutterstock
23 / 31 Fotos
North Korean entertainment
- Western-style entertainment is nonexistent. Furthermore, the government bans figure-hugging jeans, miniskirts, and even certain hair styles, such is the conservative view towards fashion.
© Shutterstock
24 / 31 Fotos
South Korean internet and telecommunications
- South Korea enjoys wide, unrestricted use of the internet. Likewise, mobile devices are ubiquitous across the entire nation.
© Shutterstock
25 / 31 Fotos
North Korean internet and telecommunications
- In the North, only members of public and educational services are allowed to surf the World Wide Web—and then only under strict controls. Smartphone use is permitted, though tightly regulated and monitored.
© Shutterstock
26 / 31 Fotos
South Korean military power
- According to the Global Firepower Index (GFI), South Korea is ranked fifth out of 145 countries as a global military power.
© Shutterstock
27 / 31 Fotos
North Korean military power
- North Korea is ranked 36 of 145 out of the countries considered for the annual Global Firepower review. However, with 29.9% of the North Korean population actively serving in it, the country's armed forces is the second largest military organization in the world, with about 1,280,000 active personnel in its ranks and another 600,000 in reserve, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
© Shutterstock
28 / 31 Fotos
South Korea National Day
- Both countries celebrate a national day—but on different days. In South Korea, National Day falls on August 15.
© Shutterstock
29 / 31 Fotos
North Korea National Day
- North Korea observes its national day on September 9. It's one of the few occasions when the country allows itself a splash of color. Sources: (Investopedia) (DW) (United Nations Command) (V-Dem) (Time) (Macrotrends) (Statista) (The National Interest) (GFI) (IISS) See also: What were the jobs of choice in the 19th century, and those nobody wanted?
© Shutterstock
30 / 31 Fotos
© Getty Images
0 / 31 Fotos
The Korean War
- The Korean War was fought between North Korea and South Korea from 1950 to 1953. The conflict forever changed the makeup of the Korean Peninsula.
© Getty Images
1 / 31 Fotos
Korean Armistice Agreement
- The Korean Armistice Agreement was an armistice that brought about a complete cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. Signed on July 27, 1953, all parties sought to make an agreement that would suspend open hostilities, arrange the release and repatriation of prisoners of war, and establish a separation of forces.
© Getty Images
2 / 31 Fotos
Dividing lines drawn
- The Armistice Agreement created a Military Demarcation Line (MDL). But to properly separate combat forces, both sides withdrew 1.24 miles (2 km) from the MDL to form a 2.48- mile (4 km) wide Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) near the 38th parallel, which runs 149 miles (241 km) across the width of the Korean Peninsula. However, no peace treaty was ever signed, thus the Korean Peninsula technically remains in a state of war.
© Shutterstock
3 / 31 Fotos
Separate ways
- After 1953, North Korea and South Korea took dramatically divergent paths—and the differences couldn't be more stark.
© Shutterstock
4 / 31 Fotos
South Korea governance
- South Korea is a full democracy. Its people benefit from regular rotations of power and robust political pluralism. In fact, according to the V-Dem Institute, South Korea was in 2023 the third most electoral democratic country in Asia.
© Shutterstock
5 / 31 Fotos
North Korea governance
- North Korea, on the other hand, falls under the supreme leadership of its founding Kim dynasty, around the Juche ideology. Juche, which roughly translates as "self-reliance," is a political philosophy whose core idea is that North Korea is a country that must remain separate and distinct from the world, dependent solely on its own strength and the guidance of a near-godlike leader.
© Shutterstock
6 / 31 Fotos
Yoon Suk Yeol
- South Korea's current president is Yoon Suk Yeol. He has held the position since 2022.
© Getty Images
7 / 31 Fotos
Kim Jong-Un
- Kim Jong-Un has been supreme leader of North Korea since 2011, succeeding his father Kim Jong II. Kim Jong-Un is the grandson of Kim Il Sung, who was the founder and first supreme leader of North Korea.
© Getty Images
8 / 31 Fotos
South Korea population numbers
- The population of South Korea is approximately 51.74 million.
© Shutterstock
9 / 31 Fotos
North Korea population numbers
- North Korea's population is currently around 25.97 million.
© Getty Images
10 / 31 Fotos
Seoul
- The capital city of South Korea is Seoul, its largest city, with a population of 9,988,000.
© Shutterstock
11 / 31 Fotos
Pyongyang
- Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea. The city's current population is 3,183,000.
© Shutterstock
12 / 31 Fotos
South Korea time difference
- South Korea follows Korean Standard Time (GMT+9).
© Getty Images
13 / 31 Fotos
North Korea time difference
- North Korea follows its own Pyongyang Time, which is also GMT+9. In other words, both Koreas are on the same time.
© Getty Images
14 / 31 Fotos
Language of South Korea
- The South Korean standard language, or Pyojuneo, is the South Korean standard version of the Korean language. It uses the Hangul alphabet, created in December 1443 CE by the Joseon-era King Sejong the Great (1397–1450).
© Getty Images
15 / 31 Fotos
Language of North Korea
- North Korea's official language is Korean (Munhwao). Munhwao was adopted as the standard in 1966 after Kim Il Sung coordinated an effort to purify the Korean language from English, Japanese, and Russian, and create a dialect known as "cultural language."
© Getty Images
16 / 31 Fotos
South Korean industry
- South Korean industry includes the production of automobiles (Hyundai operates the world's largest integrated automobile manufacturing facility, in Ulsan) and the manufacture of electronics, notably appliances made by Samsung.
© Getty Images
17 / 31 Fotos
South Korean industry
- Tourism is also a significant driver of economic growth in South Korea. In 2023, the country welcomed approximately 11 million inbound visitors.
© Shutterstock
18 / 31 Fotos
North Korean industry
- The economy of North Korea is a centrally planned economy. Industrial output in the country includes the production of steel and heavy machinery.
© Getty Images
19 / 31 Fotos
North Korean industry
- The production of chemicals and electronics, as well as shipbuilding, also help bolster the economy. The most common destination for the exports of North Korea is China.
© Getty Images
20 / 31 Fotos
South Korean currency
- The official currency of South Korea is the Korean Republic won.
© Shutterstock
21 / 31 Fotos
North Korean currency
- The official currency of North Korea is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea won, or the Korean People's won.
© Shutterstock
22 / 31 Fotos
South Korean entertainment
- South Korea is often termed the "Hollywood of the East." Its entertainment industry is huge, with South Korean K-pop, film and television productions, and video games exported around the globe.
© Shutterstock
23 / 31 Fotos
North Korean entertainment
- Western-style entertainment is nonexistent. Furthermore, the government bans figure-hugging jeans, miniskirts, and even certain hair styles, such is the conservative view towards fashion.
© Shutterstock
24 / 31 Fotos
South Korean internet and telecommunications
- South Korea enjoys wide, unrestricted use of the internet. Likewise, mobile devices are ubiquitous across the entire nation.
© Shutterstock
25 / 31 Fotos
North Korean internet and telecommunications
- In the North, only members of public and educational services are allowed to surf the World Wide Web—and then only under strict controls. Smartphone use is permitted, though tightly regulated and monitored.
© Shutterstock
26 / 31 Fotos
South Korean military power
- According to the Global Firepower Index (GFI), South Korea is ranked fifth out of 145 countries as a global military power.
© Shutterstock
27 / 31 Fotos
North Korean military power
- North Korea is ranked 36 of 145 out of the countries considered for the annual Global Firepower review. However, with 29.9% of the North Korean population actively serving in it, the country's armed forces is the second largest military organization in the world, with about 1,280,000 active personnel in its ranks and another 600,000 in reserve, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
© Shutterstock
28 / 31 Fotos
South Korea National Day
- Both countries celebrate a national day—but on different days. In South Korea, National Day falls on August 15.
© Shutterstock
29 / 31 Fotos
North Korea National Day
- North Korea observes its national day on September 9. It's one of the few occasions when the country allows itself a splash of color. Sources: (Investopedia) (DW) (United Nations Command) (V-Dem) (Time) (Macrotrends) (Statista) (The National Interest) (GFI) (IISS) See also: What were the jobs of choice in the 19th century, and those nobody wanted?
© Shutterstock
30 / 31 Fotos
The differences between North and South Korea
One peninsula, two countries
© Getty Images
Following the end of fighting in the Korean War in 1953, the Korean Peninsula was effectively halved, divided by a demilitarized zone that sliced the nation in two.
Two countries emerged, North Korea and South Korea. In the decades since, the south has become a thriving democracy and economic powerhouse. In contrast, the north is today one of the most isolated countries in the world, a communist dictatorship ruling over an impoverished people and a tightly controlled economy. Many of the differences are stark in their appearance. Others are more subtle. And with unification remaining a seemingly insurmountable goal, the two Koreas are as distant now as they were 70 years ago.
But what exactly are the differences between North Korea and South Korea? Click through and learn more about this divided land.
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