Koreatown

During much of recorded history, the Korean Peninsula was united under one Korean kingdom. Today, the Korean Peninsula is home to two nations: (1) the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and (2) the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea). Koreans share one of the world’s longest continual cultural and linguistic [Page 1009]heritages. They can trace their verbal and written communication tradition back more than 4,000 years. Both culturally and racially, those living on the Korean Peninsula are among the most homogeneous in the world. Other than the approximately 20,000 Chinese, nearly everyone living in South and North Korea is of Korean decent. Family ties are considered extremely important. Mixed marriages are uncommon. This has led, over time, to the development of intense national loyalties, ...