NIE ACTIVITY
Geography Connections
This yearlong series is presented in collaboration with the Connecticut Geographic Alliance. For more information about NIE visit www.courantnie.com or call 241-3847.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Hanguel Day is celebrated every October 9th to honor Korea’s national alphabet, which
was created in 1446.
Seoul, Korea
• There are 364 performing arts venues in Seoul and 31, 245 performances are presented
yearly! Seoul comes in at third place for the number of performances presented yearly
following New York and Paris.
Original by:
Billie M. Kapp, CGA
• Seoul hosted the 1988 Summer Olympics, and Korea was the first Asian country to host
the World Cup Football Championships.
• About 21% of all Koreans have “Kim” as a family name. Koreans one-syllable family name
comes first followed by their given name (usually two syllables).
Revised by: Allyson Lubs,
West Broad Street School &
CGA
Country/City View –
When you look at a map of
the Korean peninsula, you
notice that it is divided into two
countries near the 38th parallel.
North Korea and South Korea.
The city of Seoul, surrounded by
eight mountains, is located in the
northwest part of South Korea and is the capital
of that country. Seoul was formally established in
1394 and is the largest city in population. It has
three times the population of Korea’s second city
Busan.
The Han River divides the city in two. Before the
Korean War, which was fought from 1951-1953,
smaller ships could navigate the 37 miles up the
river to Seoul. The demilitarized zone that now
divides Korea extends through part of the mouth
of the river. This creates a problem for shipping.
Japan occupied Korea during World War II,
and the Korean War followed that war. Seoul
was devastated during the Korean War, but it
is now a rebuilt modern city where machinery
and chemicals are manufactured. Some of
our clothing is made in Seoul. Computers and
consumer electronics are also made there.
Seoul is a city full of cultural offerings. At the
ancient Palace you can watch a reenactment
of a royal wedding or visit the National Folk
Museum. On the birthday of Buddha, a paper
lantern parade lights up the night in Seoul. A
restored village of traditional Korean style houses
offers mask dances and traditional folk songs.
MAP IT OUT
Koreans love sports: football, badminton,
squash and golf are popular. Taekwondo
is the national sport, and the world
headquarters of this game are in Seoul.
TAKE 5
Location: Seoul is located at 37’00’ N
and 127’30’ E. The total area of South
Korea is: 99,720 sq km, with land at
96,920 sq km and water at 2,800 sq
km.
Place: Eastern Asia, southern half of
the Korean Peninsula bordering the
East Sea and the Yellow Sea
Human Environment Interaction: Current
issues in their environment include
air pollution in large cities; acid rain;
water pollution from the discharge of
sewage and drift net fishing.
Movement: Subway is a common
form of transportation in Seoul, in
fact it has one of the busiest subway
systems in the world. Trains also
provide the opportunity for the people
of South Korea to move about their
country.
Region: North Korea borders to the
north and a 2,413 km coastline
surrounds South Korea. Their climate
is temperate, with rainfall heavier in
the summer than winter. Their terrain
is mostly hills and mountains with
wide coastal plains in west and south.
Korea is one of a series of peninsulas that cross the map west to east (or east to west
depending on your point of view) from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. The
geographical term is derived from the Latin meaning “almost island.” It is a body of land
that is bordered by water on three sides and connected to the mainland. In our country
Florida is easily recognized as a peninsula as is Cape Cod, cape being a term that can be used as a peninsula. On a map of the world label the following peninsulas:
• Iberian (western end of Eurasia’s large peninsulas)
• Kamchatka (eastern end of large
peninsulas on Eurasian land mass)
• Cape York
• Jutland Peninsula
• Anatolian Peninsula
• Arabian Peninsula
• Malay Peninsula
• Labrador Peninsula
• Mitten Shaped Lower
• Peninsula of Michigan
• Baja Peninsula
• Valdes Peninsula
• India (so large it is called a subcontinent)
What other peninsula can you name?
What do you call a body of water surrounded on three sides by land?
What advantages would you have if you lived on a peninsula? What might the disadvantages be?
Source of Information:
National Geographic Student Atlas
Community Connections:
Products often come from South Korea, especially when they have to do with technology. For
example, computers and phones are often exported from Korea to the United States and other
parts of the world. Recently, South Korea’s Samsung Electronics overtook Nokia as the world’s
top handset maker. (Hartford Courant, South Korea: Samsung Overtakes Nokia as World’s Top
Handset Vendor: Strategy Analytics, 4.26.12)
Take a look at today’s Courant to find countries that have exports that have been record breaking
and/or made a difference in the technology of our day-to-day lives. What are positive aspects to
gaining technology from other countries as well as negatives?
NEXT PAGE - MAY 24th
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