South Korea

== Demographics ==
{{Main|Demographics of South Korea}}
{{See also|Koreans|List of cities in South Korea}}
[[File:Population density of South Korea provinces.png|thumb|Population density of South Korea provinces]]
In 2022, South Korea's population was estimated to be around 51.7 million by [[Statistics Korea]], with continuing decline of working age population and [[total fertility rate]].<ref name="Kostat2016">{{cite web|url=http://kostat.go.kr/portal/english/news/1/17/1/index.board?bmode=download&bSeq=&aSeq=333103&ord=1|format=PDF|title=Population Projections for Provinces (2013~2040)|work=Statistics Korea|date=16 April 2016|access-date=20 May 2016|archive-date=27 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927225248/http://kostat.go.kr/portal/english/news/1/17/1/index.board?bmode=download&bSeq=&aSeq=333103&ord=1|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="KOSIS2015">{{cite web|url=http://kosis.kr/eng/|title=Major Indicators of Korea|work=Korean Statistical Information Service|access-date=9 September 2016|archive-date=6 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506185826/http://kosis.kr/eng/|url-status=live}}</ref> In a further indication of South Korea's dramatic decline in fertility, in 2020 the country recorded more deaths than births, resulting in a population decline for the first time since modern records began.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/04/world/asia/south-korea-population.html|title=As Birthrate Falls, South Korea's Population Declines, Posing Threat to Economy|last=Gladstone|first=Rick|website=[[The New York Times]]|date=4 January 2021|access-date=5 January 2021|archive-date=4 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104222029/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/04/world/asia/south-korea-population.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/world-news/south-korea-is-facing-a-crisis-of-extinction-and-its-not-due-to-norths-nukes/first-fall-in-population/slideshow/80111040.cms|title=South Korea is facing a crisis of extinction and it's not due to North's nukes|website=The Economic Times|date=5 January 2021|access-date=12 December 2021|archive-date=29 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129041235/https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/world-news/south-korea-is-facing-a-crisis-of-extinction-and-its-not-due-to-norths-nukes/first-fall-in-population/slideshow/80111040.cms|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2021, the fertility rate stood at just 0.81 children per woman.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2021/01/03/national/socialAffairs/population-decline-korea-aging-society/20210103165800619.html|title=Korea marks first-ever decline in registered population|date=3 January 2021|access-date=28 March 2024|archive-date=3 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210103232912/https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2021/01/03/national/socialAffairs/population-decline-korea-aging-society/20210103165800619.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The country is noted for its population density, which was an estimated {{convert|514.6|/km2}} in 2022,<ref name="Kostat2016" /> more than 10 times the global average. Aside from micro-states and city-states, South Korea is the world's third most densely-populated country.<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0V0ODQAAQBAJ&q=%E2%80%9CI+came+here+expecting+the+Third+World+and+I+just+can%E2%80%99t+get+over+it.%E2%80%9D&pg=PA41|title=The New Koreans: The Story of a Nation|first=Michael|last=Breen|date=4 April 2017|publisher=Macmillan|via=Google Books|isbn=978-1-4668-7156-4|access-date=28 March 2024|archive-date=28 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231028004334/https://books.google.com/books?id=0V0ODQAAQBAJ&q=%E2%80%9CI+came+here+expecting+the+Third+World+and+I+just+can%E2%80%99t+get+over+it.%E2%80%9D&pg=PA41|url-status=live}}</ref> Most South Koreans live in urban areas because of rapid migration from the countryside during the country's quick economic expansion in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/33.htm|title=South Korea|work=CIA Country Studies|access-date=22 April 2006|archive-date=27 September 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060927122442/http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/33.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the 2005 census, Seoul had a population of {{Nowrap|10 million}} inhabitants. The [[Seoul National Capital Area]] has {{Nowrap|24.5 million}} inhabitants (about half of South Korea's entire population) making it the world's second largest metropolitan area. Other major cities include [[Busan]] ({{Nowrap|3.5 million}}), [[Incheon]] ({{Nowrap|3.0 million}}), [[Daegu]] ({{Nowrap|2.5 million}}), [[Daejeon]] ({{Nowrap|1.4 million}}), [[Gwangju]] ({{Nowrap|1.4 million}}) and [[Ulsan]] ({{Nowrap|1.1 million}}).<ref>Populations for all cities {{As of|2005|lc=y}}, {{cite web|url=http://kosis.kr/eng/database/database_001000.jsp?listid=B&subtitle=Population,%20Household |title=Summary of Census Population (by administrative district/sex/age) |work=NSO Database |access-date=11 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101005082140/http://kosis.kr/eng/database/database_001000.jsp?listid=B&subtitle=Population%2C%20Household |archive-date=5 October 2010}}</ref>
[[File:Korea Chuseok 31logo (8046078268).jpg|thumb|Koreans in traditional dress]]

The population has been shaped by international migration. After World War&nbsp;II and the division of the Korean Peninsula, about four million people from North Korea crossed the border to South Korea. This trend of net entry reversed over the next 40 years because of emigration, especially to North America through the United States and Canada. South Korea's total population in 1955 was {{Nowrap|21.5 million}},<ref>"[http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/33.htm South Korea&nbsp;– Population Trends] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060927122442/http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/33.htm |date=27 September 2006 }}". [[Library of Congress Country Studies]].</ref> and has more than doubled, to 50 million, by 2010.<ref name="chosun1">{{cite news|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/02/01/2010020100263.html |title=Korea's Population Tops 50 Million |newspaper=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |date=1 February 2010 |access-date=25 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430113522/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/02/01/2010020100263.html |archive-date=30 April 2010}}</ref>

South Korea is considered one of the most ethnically homogeneous societies in the world with ethnic Koreans representing approximately 96% of total population. Precise numbers are difficult to estimate since statistics do not record ethnicity, given that many [[Korean diaspora|immigrants are ethnically Korean]] themselves, and some South Korean citizens are not ethnically Korean.<ref name="Korean Statistical Information Service">{{cite web |url=http://kosis.kr/eng/statisticsList/statisticsList_01List.jsp?vwcd=MT_ETITLE&parentId=A#SubCont |title=Population by Census (2016) |publisher=Korean Statistical Information Service |access-date=11 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180228195947/http://kosis.kr/eng/statisticsList/statisticsList_01List.jsp?vwcd=MT_ETITLE&parentId=A#SubCont |archive-date=28 February 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The percentage of foreign nationals has been growing rapidly since late 1990s.<ref>Choe Sang-Hun (2 November 2009). [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/02/world/asia/02race.html?_r=3 "South Koreans Struggle With Race"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701092108/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/02/world/asia/02race.html?_r=3 |date=1 July 2017 }}. ''The New York Times''.</ref> {{As of|2016}}, South Korea had 1,413,758 foreign residents, 2.75% of the population;<ref name="Korean Statistical Information Service" /> however, many of them are ethnic Koreans with a foreign citizenship. For example, [[Chinese people in Korea|migrants from China (PRC)]] make up 56.5% of foreign nationals, but approximately 70% of the Chinese citizens in Korea are {{lang|ko-Latn|[[Koreans in China|Joseonjok]]}} ({{lang|ko|조선족}}), PRC citizens of Korean ethnicity.<ref name="ChosunIlbo20090806">{{Cite news|newspaper=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |date=6 August 2009 |access-date=18 October 2009 |title=More Than 1 Million Foreigners Live in Korea (According to the article, approximately 443,566 people are considered to be Chinese residents in South Korea with Korean ethnicity.) |url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/08/06/2009080600243.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090909061931/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/08/06/2009080600243.html |archive-date=9 September 2009}}</ref> In addition, about 43,000 English teachers from [[English-speaking world|English-speaking countries]] reside temporarily in Korea.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/11/117_56212.html |title=Foreign Teachers Unenthusiastic Over Culture Course |author=Kang Shin-Who |work=[[The Korea Times]] |location=Seoul |date=26 November 2009 |access-date=18 February 2010 |archive-date=4 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100204114211/http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/11/117_56212.html |url-status=live }}</ref> South Korea has one of the highest rates of growth of foreign born population, with about 30,000 foreign born residents obtaining South Korean citizenship every year since 2010.

Large numbers of ethnic Koreans live overseas, sometimes in Korean ethnic neighborhoods also known as [[Koreatown]]s. The four largest diaspora populations can be found in [[Koreans in China|China]] (2.3 million), the [[Korean Americans|United States]] (1.8 million), [[Koreans in Japan|Japan]] (0.85 million), and [[Korean Canadians|Canada]] (0.25 million).

South Korea's birth rate was the world's lowest in 2009,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/05/113_45496.html |title=South Korea's birthrate world's lowest |work=[[The Korea Times]] |location=Seoul |author=Kim Rahn |date=22 May 2009 |access-date=25 April 2010 |archive-date=5 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505171033/http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/05/113_45496.html |url-status=live }}</ref> at an annual rate of approximately 9 births per 1000 people.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-south/ |title=South Korea |work=[[CIA World Factbook]] |date=26 June 2009 |access-date=7 February 2011 |archive-date=29 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210129003620/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-south/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Fertility saw some modest increase afterwards,<ref>[http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/08/24/7/0503000000AEN20110824003900320F.HTML "Childbirths in S. Korea grow 5.7 pct in 2010"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120526020904/http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2011/08/24/7/0503000000AEN20110824003900320F.HTML |date=26 May 2012 }}</ref> but dropped to a new global low in 2017,<ref>{{cite news |title=South Korea's fertility rate is the lowest in the world |url=https://www.economist.com/asia/2018/06/30/south-koreas-fertility-rate-is-the-lowest-in-the-world |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=24 November 2019 |date=30 June 2018 |archive-date=23 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190123223517/https://www.economist.com/asia/2018/06/30/south-koreas-fertility-rate-is-the-lowest-in-the-world |url-status=live }}</ref> with fewer than 30,000 births per month for the first time since records began<ref>{{cite web |title=S. Korea's childbirth tally drops to another historic low in October |url=https://pulsenews.co.kr/view.php?year=2018&no=805398 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190123040242/https://pulsenews.co.kr/view.php?year=2018&no=805398 |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 January 2019 |access-date=24 November 2019 |date=27 December 2018 }}</ref> and less than 1 child per woman in 2018.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fertility rate dips below 1 in 2018: official |url=https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2019/01/119_262267.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190130015554/https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2019/01/119_262267.html |url-status=dead |website=[[The Korea Times]] |access-date=24 November 2019 |archive-date=30 January 2019 |date=January 2019 }}</ref> The average [[life expectancy]] in 2008 was 79.10 years,<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2102.html CIA&nbsp;– The World Factbook 2008] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528191952/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2102.html |date=28 May 2014 }}&nbsp;– Rank Order&nbsp;– Life expectancy at birth</ref> (which was 34th in the world<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html |title=The World Factbook |publisher=CIA |access-date=10 August 2013 |archive-date=29 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229134543/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>) but by 2015 it had increased to around 81.<ref>[http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN Life expectancy at birth, total (years) |Data |Table] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010232815/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN |date=10 October 2017 }}. Data.worldbank.org. Retrieved 20 June 2016.</ref> South Korea has the steepest decline in working age population of the OECD nations.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://thediplomat.com/2014/02/south-koreas-japanese-mirror/ |title=South Korea's Japanese Mirror |last1=Leipziger |first1=Danny |date=6 February 2014 |magazine=The Diplomat |access-date=6 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140211114438/https://thediplomat.com/2014/02/south-koreas-japanese-mirror/ |archive-date=11 February 2014 }}</ref>

{{Largest cities of South Korea|class=info}}

=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in South Korea}}
[[File:SeoulNatlUnivMainGateAtNight.jpg|thumb|[[Seoul National University]] is considered to be the most prestigious university in South Korea.]]

A centralized administration in South Korea oversees the process for the education of children from kindergarten to the third and final year of high school. The school year is divided into two semesters, the first of which begins at the beginning of March and ends in mid-July, the second of which begins in late August and ends in mid-February. The country adopted a new educational program to increase the number of their foreign students through 2010. According to the [[Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (South Korea)|Ministry of Education, Science and Technology]], the number of scholarships for foreign students in South Korea would have (under the program) doubled by that time, and the number of foreign students would have reached 100,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.education-blog.net/2008/08/28/south-korea-now-open-for-foreign-students|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190322134334/http://www.education-blog.net/2008/08/28/south-korea-now-open-for-foreign-students/|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 March 2019|title=South Korea Now Open For Foreign Students|publisher=Education-blog.net|date=28 August 2008|access-date=25 April 2010}}</ref>

South Korea is one of the top-performing Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in reading literacy, mathematics and sciences with the average student scoring 519, compared with the OECD average of 492, placing it ninth in the world. The country has one of the world's highest-educated labor forces among OECD countries.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/news/international/21711247-reforming-education-slow-and-hard-eminently-possible-what-world-can-learn?spc=scode&spv=xm&ah=9d7f7ab945510a56fa6d37c30b6f1709 |title=What the world can learn from the latest PISA test results |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |date=10 December 2016 |access-date=14 September 2017 |archive-date=22 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180322025125/https://www.economist.com/news/international/21711247-reforming-education-slow-and-hard-eminently-possible-what-world-can-learn?spc=scode&spv=xm&ah=9d7f7ab945510a56fa6d37c30b6f1709 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/education/ |title=Education OECD Better Life |publisher=OECD |access-date=29 May 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160531152015/http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/education/ |archive-date=31 May 2016 }}</ref> The country is well known for its highly feverish outlook on education, where its national obsession with education has been called "education fever".<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2094427-2,00.html |title=South Korea: Kids, Stop Studying So Hard! |magazine=Time |last=Ripley |first=Amanda |date=25 September 2011 |access-date=1 December 2016 |archive-date=11 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190311163011/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2094427-2,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20151208175803561 |title=The overeducated generation |last=Habibi |first=Nader |date=11 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161118100808/http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20151208175803561 |archive-date=18 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.saveourschools.com.au/national-issues/south-korea-education-success-has-a-dark-side |title=South Korea's Education Success Has a Dark Side |last=Cobbold |first=Trevor |date=14 November 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161118102555/http://www.saveourschools.com.au/national-issues/south-korea-education-success-has-a-dark-side |archive-date=18 November 2016}}</ref> This obsession with education has catapulted the resource-poor nation consistently atop the global education rankings. In 2014, South Korea ranked second worldwide (after Singapore) in the national rankings of students' math and science scores by the OECD.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/11/south-korean-seniors-have-been-preparing-for-today-since-kindergarten/508031/ |title=Why South Korea Is So Fixated With the College-Entrance Exam |last=Diamond |first=Anna |website=[[The Atlantic]] |date=17 November 2016 |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-date=19 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619113236/https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/11/south-korean-seniors-have-been-preparing-for-today-since-kindergarten/508031/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Higher education is a serious issue in South Korean society, where it is viewed as one of the fundamental cornerstones of South Korean life. Education is regarded with a high priority for South Korean families, as success in education is often a source of honor and pride for families and within South Korean society at large, and is seen as a fundamental necessity to channel one's [[social mobility]] to ultimately improve one's socioeconomic position in South Korean society.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.uned.ac.cr/ocex/images/stories/SINAES_1103_%20by%20LJY%201.pdf |title=Vocational Education and Training in Korea: Achieving the Enhancement of National Competitiveness |last=Lee |first=Ji-Yeon |date=26 September 2014 |publisher=KRIVET |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220214903/http://www.uned.ac.cr/ocex/images/stories/SINAES_1103_%20by%20LJY%201.pdf |archive-date=20 December 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2012/1110/Drive-for-education-drives-South-Korean-families-into-the-red |title=Drive for education drives South Korean families into the red |journal=Christian Science Monitor |last=Strother |first=Jason |date=10 November 2012 |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-date=27 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327034517/https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2012/1110/Drive-for-education-drives-South-Korean-families-into-the-red |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:KAIST fountains view.jpg|thumb|[[KAIST]] main campus in [[Daejeon]]]]

In 2015, the country spent 5.1% of its GDP on all levels of education—roughly 0.8 percentage points above the OECD average of 4.3%.<ref>{{cite web |title=Korea |publisher=OECD |url=http://gpseducation.oecd.org/Content/EAGCountryNotes/KOR.pdf |access-date=16 August 2019 |archive-date=15 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190815222742/http://gpseducation.oecd.org/Content/EAGCountryNotes/KOR.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> A strong investment in education, a militant drive to achieve academic success, as well as the passion for scholarly excellence has helped the resource-poor country rapidly grow its economy over the past 60 years from a war-torn land to a prosperous, developed country.<ref name="ICEF">{{cite web |url=http://monitor.icef.com/2014/01/high-performance-high-pressure-in-south-koreas-education-system/ |title=High performance, high pressure in South Korea's education system |publisher=ICEF Monitor |date=23 January 2014 |access-date=29 May 2016 |archive-date=9 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709074408/http://monitor.icef.com/2014/01/high-performance-high-pressure-in-south-koreas-education-system/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Language ===
{{Main|Korean language|Korean dialects}}
[[File:Koreandialects.png|thumb|200px|Dialects of the Korean language]]
Korean is the official language of South Korea and is classified by most linguists as a [[language isolate]]. It incorporates a significant number of [[Loanword|loan words]] from Chinese. Korean uses an indigenous writing system called [[Hangul]], created in 1446 by [[Sejong the Great|King Sejong]], to provide a convenient alternative to the [[Classical Chinese]] [[Hanja]] characters that were difficult to learn and did not fit the Korean language well. South Korea still uses some Chinese Hanja characters in limited areas, such as print media and legal documentation.

The Korean language in South Korea has a [[South Korean standard language|standard dialect]] known as the [[Gyeonggi dialect|Seoul dialect]], with an additional four dialects ([[Chungcheong dialect|Chungcheong]], [[Gangwon dialect|Gangwon]], [[Gyeongsang dialect|Gyeongsang]], and [[Jeolla dialect|Jeolla]]) and one language ([[Jeju language|Jeju]]) in use around the country. Almost all South Korean students today learn [[English language education in South Korea|English]] throughout their education.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-south/ | title=Korea, South | date=16 October 2023 | access-date=23 January 2021 | archive-date=29 January 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210129003620/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-south/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/KR/ | title=South Korea &#124; Ethnologue Free | access-date=28 March 2024 | archive-date=9 March 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230309065922/https://www.ethnologue.com/country/KR/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Religion ===
{{Main|Religion in South Korea}}
{{See also|Irreligion in South Korea}}
{{Pie chart
|thumb = right
|caption = Religion in South Korea (2015 census)<ref name="2015 Census">South Korea National Statistical Office's 19th Population and Housing Census (2015): [http://image.kmib.co.kr/online_image/2016/1219/201612191738_61220011145071_1.jpg "Religion organizations' statistics"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010154915/http://image.kmib.co.kr/online_image/2016/1219/201612191738_61220011145071_1.jpg |date=10 October 2017 }}. Retrieved 20 December 2016</ref><ref name="ABC-CLIO">{{cite book |last1=Quinn |first1=Joseph Peter |editor1-last=Demy |editor1-first=Timothy J. |editor2-last=Shaw |editor2-first=Jeffrey M. |title=Religion and Contemporary Politics: A Global Encyclopedia |date=2019 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-4408-3933-7 |page=365 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vt-vDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA365 |access-date=3 June 2020 |chapter=South Korea |archive-date=12 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240412162632/https://books.google.com/books?id=vt-vDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA365 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|label1 = Irreligious
|value1 = 56.1
|color1 = DarkRed
|label2 = [[Protestantism]]
|value2 = 19.7
|color2 = DodgerBlue
|label3 = [[Korean Buddhism]]
|value3 = 15.5
|color3 = Yellow
|label4 = [[Catholicism]]
|value4 = 7.9
|color4 = DarkOrchid
|label5 = Other
|value5 = 0.8
|color5 = Black
}}
According to the results of the census of 2015, more than half of the South Korean population (56.1%) declared themselves not affiliated with any [[organized religion|religious organizations]].<ref name="2015 Census" /> In a 2012 survey, 52% declared themselves "religious", 31% said they were "not religious" and 15% identified themselves as "convinced [[atheism|atheists]]".<ref>WIN-Gallup International: [http://www.wingia.com/web/files/news/14/file/14.pdf "Global Index of Religiosity and Atheism 2012"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021065544/http://www.wingia.com/web/files/news/14/file/14.pdf |date=21 October 2013 }}.</ref> Of the people who are affiliated with a religious organization, most are [[Christianity|Christians]] and [[Korean Buddhism|Buddhists]]. According to the 2015 census, 27.6% of the population were Christians (19.7% identified themselves as Protestants, 7.9% as Roman Catholics) and 15.5% were Buddhists.<ref name="2015 Census" /> Other religions include [[Islam in South Korea|Islam]] (130,000 Muslims, mostly migrant workers from Pakistan and Bangladesh but including some 35,000 Korean Muslims<ref>{{cite news |title= Korea's Muslims Mark Ramadan |work=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |location =Seoul |date=11 September 2008 |url= http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200809/200809110016.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080913195801/http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200809/200809110016.html |archive-date=13 September 2008}}</ref>), the homegrown sect of [[Won Buddhism]], and a variety of indigenous religions, including [[Cheondoism]] (a [[Confucianism|Confucianizing]] religion), [[Jeungsanism]], [[Daejongism]], [[Daesun Jinrihoe]], and others. [[Freedom of religion]] is guaranteed by the constitution, and there is no [[state religion]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.ccourt.go.kr/home/english/welcome/republic.jsp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080323052835/http://www.ccourt.go.kr/home/english/welcome/republic.jsp |archive-date=23 March 2008 |title=Constitution of the Republic of Korea |publisher=[[Constitutional Court of Korea]]}}</ref> Overall, between the 2005 and 2015 censuses, there has been a slight decline of Christianity (down from 29% to 27.6%), a sharp decline of Buddhism (down from 22.8% to 15.5%), and a rise of the unaffiliated population (from 47.2% to 56.9%).<ref name="2015 Census" />

Christianity is South Korea's largest organized religion, accounting for more than half of all South Korean adherents of religious organizations. There are approximately 13.5 million Christians in South Korea today; about two thirds of them belonging to Protestant churches, and the rest to the Catholic Church.<ref name="2015 Census" /> The number of Protestants had been stagnant throughout the 1990s and the 2000s but increased to a peak level throughout the 2010s. Roman Catholics increased significantly between the 1980s and the 2000s but declined throughout the 2010s.<ref name="2015 Census" /> Christianity, unlike in other East Asian countries, found fertile ground in Korea in the 18th century, and by the end of the 18th century it persuaded a large part of the population, as the declining monarchy supported it and opened the country to widespread [[proselytism]] as part of a project of Westernization. The weakness of Korean [[Korean shamanism|Sindo]], which—unlike Japanese [[Shinto]] and [[Chinese folk religion|China's religious system]]—never developed into a national religion of high status,<ref>Ogata, Mamoru Billy (1984). ''A Comparative Study of Church Growth in Korea and Japan: With Special Application to Japan''. Fuller Theological Seminary. pp. 32 ff.</ref> combined with the impoverished state of [[Korean Buddhism]], (after 500 years of suppression at the hands of the Joseon state, by the 20th century it was virtually extinct) left a free hand to Christian churches. Christianity's similarity to native religious narratives has been studied as another factor that contributed to its success in the peninsula.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://koreamosaic.net/articles/syncretism.pdf |title=Christianity, Shamanism, and Modernization in South Korea |last=Kim |first=Andrew Eungi |date=Spring–Summer 2000 |access-date=8 June 2013 |journal=[[CrossCurrents]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110190338/http://koreamosaic.net/articles/syncretism.pdf |archive-date=10 January 2014}}</ref> The [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese colonization]] of the first half of the 20th century further strengthened the identification of Christianity with [[Korean nationalism]], as the Japanese coopted native Korean Sindo into the Nipponic [[Shinto in Korea|Imperial Shinto]] that they tried to establish in the peninsula.<ref name="Korean Social Sciences Journal">''Korean Social Sciences Journal'', '''24''' (1997). Korean Social Science Research Council. pp. 33–53</ref> Widespread Christianization of the Koreans took place during State Shinto,<ref name="Korean Social Sciences Journal" /> after its abolition, and then in the independent South Korea as the newly established military government supported Christianity and [[Anti-shamanism movement in Korea|tried to utterly oust]] native Sindo.

[[File:KOCIS Korea YeonDeungHoe 20130511 05 (8733836165).jpg|thumb|left|[[Buddha's Birthday]] celebration in Seoul]]
Among Christian denominations, [[Presbyterianism in South Korea|Presbyterianism]] is the largest. About nine million people belong to one of the hundred different Presbyterian churches; the biggest ones are the [[Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDong)|HapDong Presbyterian Church]], [[Presbyterian Church of Korea (TongHap)|TongHap Presbyterian Church]] and the [[Kosin Presbyterian Church in Korea|Koshin Presbyterian Church]]. South Korea is also the second-largest missionary-sending nation, after the United States.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/003/16.28.html |title=Missions Incredible |last=Moll |first=Rob |work=Christianity Today |date=1 March 2006 |location=Carol Stream, IL |access-date=17 February 2009 |archive-date=25 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125053444/http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/march/16.28.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Buddhism was introduced to Korea in the 4th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.buddhismtoday.com/english/world/country/027-korea.htm |title=Buddhism in Korea |work=Korean Buddhism Magazine |location=Seoul |year=1997 |access-date=17 February 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090426080342/http://www.buddhismtoday.com/english/world/country/027-korea.htm |archive-date=26 April 2009}}</ref> It soon became a dominant religion in the southeastern kingdom of Silla, the region that hitherto hosts the strongest concentration of Buddhists in South Korea. In the other states of the Three Kingdoms Period, Goguryeo and Baekje, it was made the state religion respectively in 372 and 528. It remained the state religion in Later Silla and Goryeo. It was later suppressed throughout much of the subsequent history under the unified kingdom of Joseon, which officially adopted a strict [[Korean Confucianism]]. Today, South Korea has about 7 million Buddhists,<ref name="2015 Census" /> most of them affiliated to the [[Jogye Order]]. Most of the [[National Treasure (South Korea)|National Treasures of South Korea]] are Buddhist artifacts.

=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in South Korea}}
[[File:Life expectancy in North Korea and South Korea.svg|thumb|Development of life expectancy in North Korea and South Korea]]
South Korea has a [[universal health care]] system.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/social-issues-migration-health/health-at-a-glance-2015_health_glance-2015-en#page26 Health at a Glance 2015 |OECD READ edition] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180207185357/http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/social-issues-migration-health/health-at-a-glance-2015_health_glance-2015-en#page26 |date=7 February 2018 }}. Keepeek.com. Retrieved 20 June 2016.</ref> According to the Health Care Index ranking, it has the world's best healthcare system as of 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ireland |first=Sophie |date=27 April 2021 |title=Revealed: Countries With The Best Health Care Systems, 2021 |url=https://ceoworld.biz/2019/08/05/revealed-countries-with-the-best-health-care-systems-2019/ |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-date=17 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417211824/https://ceoworld.biz/2019/08/05/revealed-countries-with-the-best-health-care-systems-2019/ |url-status=live }}</ref> South Korean hospitals have advanced medical equipment and facilities readily available, ranking 4th for [[MRI]] units per capita and 6th for [[CT scanner]]s per capita in the OECD.<ref>{{in lang|fr}} [http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/social-issues-migration-health/health-at-a-glance-2015_health_glance-2015-en#page28 Health at a Glance 2015 |OECD READ edition] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180207185357/http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/social-issues-migration-health/health-at-a-glance-2015_health_glance-2015-en#page28 |date=7 February 2018 }}. Keepeek.com. Retrieved 20 June 2016.</ref> It also had the OECD's [[List of countries by hospital beds|second largest number of hospital beds per 1000 people]] at 9.56 beds. [[Life expectancy]] has been rising rapidly and South Korea [[List of countries by life expectancy|ranked 6th in the world for life expectancy]] at 83.5 years in 2023.<ref>{{cite web |date=19 May 2016 |title=Life expectancy increased by 5 years since 2000, but health inequalities persist |url=https://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/health-inequalities-persist/en/ |publisher=WHO |access-date=28 March 2024 |archive-date=22 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422083122/http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/health-inequalities-persist/en/ |url-status=live }}</ref> It also has the [[List of countries by life expectancy|third highest health adjusted life expectancy]] in the world.<ref>{{cite web |title=WHO – World Health Statistics 2016: Monitoring health for the SDGs |url=https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/Annex_B/en/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160523041026/http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/Annex_B/en/ |archive-date=23 May 2016 |website=WHO}}</ref> [[Suicide in South Korea]] is the [[List of countries by suicide rate|12th highest in the world]] according to the [[World Health Organization]], as well as the highest suicide rate in the [[OECD]].<ref>{{cite AV media |date=13 March 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ikx0T9wMWXg |title=Why South Korea has high suicide rates |publisher=KOREA NOW |via=[[YouTube]] |access-date=7 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808001505/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ikx0T9wMWXg |archive-date=8 August 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.MHSUICIDEASDR?lang=en |title=Suicide rates, age standardized – Data by country |publisher=[[World Health Organization]] |year=2015 |access-date=13 April 2017 |archive-date=18 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018170407/http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.MHSUICIDEASDR?lang=en |url-status=live }}</ref>