North Korea

Coordinates: 40°00′N 127°00′E / 40.000°N 127.000°E / 40.000; 127.000

North Korea ( listen), officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK; Chosŏn'gŭl: 조선민주주의인민공화국; hancha: 朝鮮民主主義人民共和國; MR: Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk), is a country in East Asia, in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. The name Korea is derived from the Kingdom of Goguryeo, also spelled as Koryŏ. The capital and largest city is Pyongyang. North Korea shares a land border with China to the north and northwest, along the Amnok (Yalu) and Tumen rivers, and a small section of the Tumen River also forms a border with Russia to the northeast. The Korean Demilitarized Zone marks the boundary between North Korea and South Korea.

Korea was annexed by the Empire of Japan in 1910. After the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II in 1945, Korea was divided into two zones by the United States and the Soviet Union, with the north occupied by the Soviets and the south by the Americans. Negotiations on reunification failed, and in 1948 two separate governments were formed: the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the north, and the Republic of Korea in the south. An invasion initiated by North Korea led to the Korean War (1950–53). Although the Korean Armistice Agreement brought about a ceasefire, no official peace treaty was ever signed. Both states were accepted into the United Nations in 1991.

North

North is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. North is one of the four cardinal directions or compass points. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west.

Etymology

The word north is related to the Old High German nord, both descending from the Proto-Indo-European unit ner-, meaning "down" (or "under"). (Presumably a natural primitive description of its concept is "to the left of the rising sun".)

The Latin word borealis comes from the Greek boreas "north wind, north", which, according to Ovid, was personified as the son of the river-god Strymon, the father of Calais and Zetes. Septentrionalis is from septentriones, "the seven plow oxen", a name of Ursa Maior. The Greek arktikos is named for the same constellation, and is the derivation of the English word "Arctic".

Other languages have sometimes more interesting derivations. For example, in Lezgian, kefer can mean both 'disbelief' and 'north', since to the north of the Muslim Lezgian homeland there are areas formerly inhabited by non-Muslim Caucasian and Turkic peoples. In many languages of Mesoamerica, "north" also means "up". In Hungarian the word for north is észak, which is derived from éjszaka ("night"), since above the Tropic of Cancer, the Sun never shines from the north.

Korea

Korea, called Chosŏn (Korean: 조선; Hanja: 朝鮮) in North Korea and Hanguk (Korean: 한국; Hanja: 韓國) or Daehanminkuk (Korean: 대한민국; Hanja: 大韓民國) in South Korea, is an East Asian territory that is divided into two distinct sovereign states: North Korea, formally the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and South Korea, formally the Republic of Korea (ROK). Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by China to the northwest and Russia to the northeast. It is separated from Japan to the east by the Korea Strait and the Sea of Japan .

Korea emerged as a singular political entity after centuries of conflict among the Three Kingdoms of Korea, which were unified as Silla (57 BC – AD 935) and Balhae (AD 698 – 926). The united Silla was eventually succeeded by Goryeo in 935 at the end of the Later Three Kingdoms period. Goryeo, which gave name to the modern exonym "Korea", was a highly cultured state and created the Jikji in the 14th century. The invasions by the Mongol Empire in the 13th century, however, greatly weakened the nation, which forced it into vassalage. After the Yuan dynasty's collapse, severe political strife followed. Goryeo eventually fell to an uprising led by General Yi Seong-gye, who established Joseon in 1388.

Masikryong Ski Resort

Masikryong Ski Resort (Korean: 마식령 스키 리조트) is a ski resort at the summit of the 1,360-metre (4,460 ft) Taehwa Peak (Korean: 대황산) some 20 kilometres (12 mi) outside Wonsan City in Kangwon Province, North Korea. According to the official project plan, the first stage of the 2,430-square-kilometre (940 sq mi) development cost USD 35,340,000 (£21 million; €25.5 million) and included construction of a luxury hotel, ice rink, swimming pool and restaurants. Official revenue forecasts suggest that 5,000 people will visit each day, generating an estimated annual income of USD 18,750,000 (£11.1 million/€13.5 million). The Masikryong (literally, horse-resting pass) project was initiated by the North Korean government as part of a drive to "make people not only possess strong physiques and sound mentality, but also enjoy their sports and cultural lives in a world’s advanced condition." Despite political tensions with neighbouring South Korea, leaders in the north hope to host some events at the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in Pyeongchang. Constructed in just ten months, North Korea's only ski resort is part of a drive by leader Kim Jong-un to increase foreign tourist numbers from 200,000 to 1 million per annum by 2016.

Kim Jong-un

Kim Jong-un (Korean pronunciation: [kimd͜zɔŋɯn]; born 8 January 1983; also romanized as Kim Jong-eun, Kim Jong Un or Kim Jung-eun) is the supreme leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly referred to as North Korea. He is the son of Kim Jong-il (1941–2011) and the grandson of Kim Il-sung (1912–1994). He was officially declared the supreme leader following the state funeral of his father on 28 December 2011 and holds the titles of First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, Chairman of the Central Military Commission, Chairman of the National Defence Commission, Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army and presidium member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea. He is the third and youngest son of Kim Jong-il and his consort Ko Yong-hui.

From late 2010, Kim Jong-un was viewed as heir apparent to the leadership of the nation, and following his father's death, he was announced as the "Great Successor" by North Korean state television. At Kim Jong-il's memorial service, Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly Kim Yong-nam declared that "Respected Comrade Kim Jong-un is our party, military and country's supreme leader who inherits great comrade Kim Jong-il's ideology, leadership, character, virtues, grit and courage". On 30 December 2011, the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea formally appointed Kim as the Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army. In April 2012, the 4th Party Conference elected him to the newly created post of First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea.