South Korea
South Korea is officially known as Taehan Min'guk (Republic of Korea). This country is in northeastern Asia and occupies the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. South Korea is bounded on the north by North Korea; on the east by the East Sea (Sea of Japan); on the south bye the Korea Strait, which also separates it from Japan; and on the west by the Yellow Sea. It has a total area of 38,328 square miles, including many offshore islands in the south and west, and the largest is Cheju. The state of South Korea was established in 1948 succeeding the post-World War II distribution of the penisula between the occupying forces of the United States in the south and the Union of Soviet Republics (USSR) in the north. The capital of South Korea is Seoul which is also the largest city.The current version of the South Korean flag was adopted in 1984, but the basic design has been used since the country's founding is 1948. The Buddhist yin-yang symbol represents the unity of opposites, and the white background represents purity. The black markings symbolize three cycles, with opposites in each cycle opposing one another(reading clockwise from the upper left): summer, autumn, winter, spring, south, west, north,
In 1995 nearly one-half of the people in South Korea did not claim a religion. Buddhism claimed more adherents than any other religion in South Korea. Confucianism, which is more a moral philosophy than a religion, is a more prominent element in Korean life than its somewhat small number of adherents would recommend. Christian missionaries were first permitted in Korea in 1882 and by 1995 the Christian population skyrocketed to 11.8 million, three quarters of them were Protestants. Other important influences include Ch'endogyo, a religion founded in the mid-19th century that fuses elements of Confucianism and Daoism. Mixed deciduous and coniferous forests cover about three-quarters of the land, but have been lessened of use as fuel. Predominate species include pine, maple, elm, poplar, fir and aspen. Bamboo, laurel, and evergreen oak are found in the southern coastal areas. Large mammals, such as tigers, leopards, bears, and lynx, used to be common throughout the Korean Peninsula, but these animals have virtually disappeared form South Korea due to deforestation and poaching. The country's strong and distinct cultural heritage is respected by the Korean people, and efforts are made by the government to encourage and preserve the traditional arts. Several museums are located in Seoul, including the National Museum, with its extensive collection of Korean cultural and folklore relics; branches of the national museums are located in eight other major cities. Martial Arts is a strong part of Koreas culture and the main martial art is Tae-Kwon-Do this mean foot fist way. Tae-Kwon-Do originated many years ago in ancient Korea which was divided into three kingdoms, the smallest of which was Silla. Silla, which was established in 57 BC, was constantly being invaded by the larger more powerful neighbor to the north and west over a period of 1000 years. Around 540 AD King Chin-Hung called together the youth and patriots to form a military organization known as the Hawarang-Do. The Hawarang-Do was responsible for transforming and intensifying Silla's common method of foot fighting and added hand techniques which included a blend of hard and soft as well as linear and circular techniques
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1490
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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