South Korea: General presentation

Total Population: 51,628,117

Natural Increase: -0.2%

Density: 530 Inhabitants/km²

Urban Population: 81.4%

Population of main cities: Seoul (10,011,000); Busan (3,459,900); Incheon (3,029,300); Daegu (2,468,300); Daejeon (1,494,000); Gwangju (1,480,300); Suwon (1,235,100); Ulsan (1,168,500); Goyang (1,078,900); Yongin (1,078,600); Changwon (1,059,900)

Ethnic Origins: The population of South Korea is the most ethnically homogeneous in the world, with 96.6% of the population of Korean origin and 3.4% of foreign nationals. Among the largest groups of foreign nationals, Chinese nationals account for 43.5%, followed by 11.1% Vietnamese, 10.2% Thai and 4.4% from the United States. (Statistics Korea)

Official Language: Korean

Other Languages Spoken: None

Business Language(s): English; however, businesspeople often read English better than they can speak it.

Religion: Population with religion: 53.1%. Among those who are religious: Buddhism (43.0%), Christianity (34.5)%, Catholicism (20.6%), other (1.9%).

Area: 100,430 km²

Type of State: South Korea is a presidential republic. It is composed of 9 provinces and 6 cities with autonomous administration (Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon).

Type of Economy: High-income economy, OECD member, emerging financial market.
Economic model focused heavily on exports

HDI*: 0.898/1

HDI (World Rank): 17/188

Telephone Code:
To call from South Korea, dial 001, 002, 008, 00365, 00700
To call South Korea, dial +82

Internet Suffix: .kr

Computers: 57.6 per 100 Inhabitants

Telephone Lines: 61.9 per 100 Inhabitants

Internet Users: 84.1 per 100 Inhabitants

Access to Electricity: 100% of the Population