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South Korea SOCIETY
Population: 1980 census reports total population of
37,448,836. January 1989 estimate 42.2 million. Population in
1985 of two largest cities, Seoul and Pusan, 9.6 million and 3.5
million, respectively. Population growth rate in late 1980s less
than 1 percent.
Language: Korean the national language. No significant
linguistic minorities. Regional dialects of Korean mutually
intelligible with exception of that spoken on Cheju Island.
Written language uses Chinese characters and Korean
han'gul script, or han'gul alone.
Education and Literacy: Adult literacy rate in late
1980s approximately 93 percent. Primary school education
compulsory (grades one through six). Approximately 95 percent of
population age-group in secondary schools (middle and high
schools); 83 percent in academic high schools; 17 percent in
vocational high schools in 1987. About 35 percent of student agegroup attended colleges and universities in 1989--one of world's
highest rates.
Religion: Great diversity of religious traditions
include Buddhism, Confucianism, Ch'ondogyo, Catholicism, and
Protestantism, and as many as 300 new religions incorporating
elements of these mainstream religions. Shamanism oldest
religious tradition.
Health: Increase in life expectancy from 51.1 years for
men and 54.2 years for women in late 1950s to 66 years for men
and 73 years for women in 1990 reflects dramatic improvements in
health conditions. Death rate declined significantly from 13.8
deaths per 1,000 in late 1950s to 6 per 1,000 in 1990. Infant
mortality 23 deaths per 1,000 live births as of mid-1990. Health
personnel and facilities largely concentrated in large cities,
particularly Seoul and Pusan. Serious public health problems
caused by environmental pollution and poor sanitation. No unified
national health insurance system but medical insurance benefits
available to almost all South Koreans.
Data as of June 1990
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