South Korea (Republic of Korea) is the more successful of the two Koreas in both economic and political terms. Even the Asian economic crisis of 1997–1998, which hit badly, was weathered successfully, and when the next crisis came along in 2007, South Korea coped better than many other countries. This economic strength, taken with the steady progress of democratization since 1987, indicates that when the peninsula is eventually reunified, as one day it probably will be, a new unified Korea will follow the South Korea model rather than that of North Korea. This fourth edition of Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Korea contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 700 cross-referenced entries on important personalities as well as aspects of the country’s politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the Republic of Korea.

This detailed, scholarly history of Korea is a comprehensive political and socioeconomic history from 57 B.C. to modern times, including North and South Korea. Specializing in Korean industrial structure, economic planning, and administration, the author presents a concise yet readable historical approach to a greater understanding of Korea's position in East Asia. The author, a political scholar and experienced linguist, bases his text on primary Korean and Japanese sources, thus providing much information previously unavailable to English-speaking people. Ancient Korea is covered in the first chapter, "The Three Kingdoms," and also in the six subsequent chapters dealing with feudalism, land reform, and early Korean social structure. The thirteen succeeding chapters bring the history to modern times. They include a valuable account of Japanese colonial policy and the struggle for independence of the Korean people; the Korean War, its development, offensives, and counteroffensives; factionalism; the politics of Syngman Rhee and his twelve years of one-man rule; the background of the student revolutions; foreign relations; nationalism and neutrality; and the important comparative studies concerning Communism and the governments of North and South Korea. The concluding chapter deals with the future of Korea and its role in rapidly changing East Asia.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1954.

This dictionary presents a balanced and objective view of South Korea, providing a long perspective and covering varied aspects of South Korean life. Domestic, political, and social events, foreign affairs, economic and cultural developments, and the men and women who have influenced the country's history are reviewed in the more than 400 entries, many of which are new or have been updated from the first edition. The dictionary's chronology and historical narrative, also updated, cover the entire history of Korea for the benefit of readers who have little or no knowledge of the overall history of the Korean people. The extensive bibliography has been updated to include the most current and best books, journals, and websites, making this a valuable reference source for the scholar, student, and general reader.

Taking the history of Japan and Korea and their environmental interactions from late Pleistocene down to about 1870 AD, this work aims to make a convincing case for viewing the two countries together, looking at their pre-industrial experiences.