ABSTRACT
According to the New Millennium Dictionary of Korean Language and Culture, Korea is an old nation with a long history of more than 4000 years (Suh, 2003). As in the case of any country with a long history, Korean history is not a peaceful one—it has been marked by a succession of struggles by outsiders to gain control of the Peninsula and Koreans kept fighting to recover their sovereignty. After the Korean War (1950–1953) and the nationwide movement for democracy, it finally established a bona fide democratic regime and the economy has developed at speeds no other country has outstripped. As was testified by Huntington (2000), just within the period of 40 years or so after the war, South Korea has become an industrial giant with the 14th largest economy in the world, multinational corporations, major exports of automobiles, electronic equipment, and other sophisticated manufactures. It is a wonder—and some would even describe it as a miracle—to achieve such an economic feat for a country with its small land divided into South and North Korea, and only limited natural resources. The answer to such an extraordinary development may be found in their unique culture, as was suggested by Huntington.
