History of South Korea

South Korea has developed into one of Asia's most affluent countries since partition in 1948. The Communist North has slipped into totalitarianism and poverty. The Republic of Korea was proclaimed in August 1948 and received UN-backed support from the US after it was invaded by the North two years later. Following the surrender of Japan, in 1945, the Republic of Korea(Daehan Minguk) was adopted as the legal name for the new country. Since the government only controlled the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, the informal term South Korea was coined, becoming increasingly common in the Western world.