Republic of Korea

Taehan Min-guk

CAPITAL: Seoul

FLAG: The flag, called the T'aegukki, shows, on a white field, a central circle divided into two parts, red on top and deep blue below, in the shape of Chinese yin and yang symbols. Broken and unbroken black bars in each of the four corners are variously arranged in sets of three, representing divination diagrams.

ANTHEM: Aegukka (The Song of Patriotism), officially adopted on 15 August 1948.

MONETARY UNIT: The won (W) is the national currency. There are notes of 500, 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 won. W1 = $0.00083 (or $1 = W1,206) as of May 2003.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: Both the metric system and ancient Korean units of measurement are used.

HOLIDAYS: New Year's Days, 1–3 January; Independence Movement Day, 1 March; Labor Day, 10 March; Arbor Day, 5 April; Children's Day, 5 May; Memorial Day, 6 June; Constitution Day, 17 July; Liberation Day, 15 August; Armed Forces Day, 1 October; National Foundation Day...