Capital city: Pyongyang
Nationality: Korean
Population: 22,466,481 (July 2003 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 31.1 years; male: 30 years; female: 32.3 years (2003 est.)

Ethnic groups that make up the population: racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese

Religions: traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way )

note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom

Languages: Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school

Literacy rate (Definition: age 15 and over can read and write): Total population: 99%; Male: 99%; Female: 99% (2003 est.)

Legal system: based on German civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Industries & Agriculture:military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism/ rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs

GDP: purchasing power parity - $22.26 billion (2002 est.)

GDP per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,000 (2002 est.)

Currency: North Korean won (KPW)

School system: Education in North Korea can be characterized by its thorough indoctrination programs designed to nurture the students into communist revolutionaries who are equipped with Juche-oriented thought and creativity. North Korean scholars emphasize the importance of Juche Ideology, saying, "Juche Ideology is the guiding principle for carrying out socialist education. It provides the ideological and pedagogical basis of education, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea tries to materialize the guiding principle of the great Juche Ideology in all sectors."

Education is free and compulsory in North Korea for 10 years. In the late 1980s, some 1.5 million pupils were enrolled annually in elementary schools, and another 2.8 million students attended vocational and secondary schools. The principal institution of higher education is Kim Il Sung University (founded in 1946) in P’y 4 ongyang. Total enrollment in some 280 institutions of higher education exceeds 300,000.

Family unit (role of women and children): The family is regarded by North Korean authorities as a "cell," or basic unit of society, but not an economic entity. In the Chosn Dynasty, women were expected to give birth to and rear male heirs to assure the continuation of the family line. Women had few opportunities to participate in the social, economic, or political life of society. There were a few exceptions to limitations imposed on women's roles. For example, female shamans were called on to cure illnesses by driving away evil spirits, to pray for rain during droughts, or to perform divination and fortune-telling.

Misc. interesting facts: Following World War II , Korea was split, with the northern half coming under Communist domination and the southern portion becoming Western-oriented. KIM Chong-il has ruled North Korea since his father and the country's founder, president KIM Il-song, died in 1994. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on international food aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of about 1 million. North Korea 's long-range missile development and research into nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, North Korea repudiated a 1994 agreement that shut down its nuclear reactors and expelled UN monitors, further raising fears it would produce nuclear weapons.

National Holiday: Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)

Constitution: adopted 1948, completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992 and September 1998

Radio stations: AM 16, FM 14, shortwave 12

Handicrafts: The earliest Korean paintings are murals that date back to the Three Kingdoms period. Chinese painting and calligraphy influenced Korean traditional art. During the Koryo period, Buddhist painting became popular and later with the influence of Christian missionaries Korean painting took on features of landscapes and scenes from everyday life.

Unlike western painting, which is life-like and almost like a photograph, Korean painting has no viewing point and the eye is allowed to wander over the painting. There is also no perspective and objects appear out of proportion. The colors in Korean painting are calm and subtle.

Traditional paintings usually consist of landscapes, flowers, birds, portraits and altar portraits of Buddha. The four noble gentleman paintings are called sagunja. The four plants are the plum, orchid, chrysanthemum and bamboo. Confucian scholars painted these during the Chosun dynasty. The plants represent courage, nobleness, productivity and integrity respectively.

Sculpture became popular with the introduction of Buddhism. Buddha sculptures were carved in bronze, wood and stone. These declined in the 14th century when the country adopted Confucianism. Shamanic woodcarvings were found all over Korea. The grandfather stones at Jeju Island are thought to be carvings of guardian spirits.

Korean pottery originally came from China. The Koreans developed their own kind of celadon, a bluish green ceramic that the Chinese came to envy. Buncheong is a Korean creation, a kind of pottery with a grey tinge with simple designs. The Japanese had their eye on this design and forced the potters and their families to live in Japan and work for the Japanese. This sparked the Imjin War.

The Koreans are also famous for their paper products. Hanji is made from hemp or mulberry pulp. It produces a durable material that has been used to make wardrobes, chests, calligraphy desks, and when oiled it can be used to cover floors or to make umbrellas and fans.

Calligraphy or seoye was popular with the educated elite during the Chosun period. It was a form of mental discipline and along with painting and poetry was one of the necessary accomplishments for the cultured gentleman. Four tools are needed for calligraphy, an ink stick, and a stone for grinding, paper and animal-hair brushes. Traditionally, Chinese characters were painted within an imaginary square. The thickness of the ink and the composition are important and the artist could not make any corrections.

References:
CIA Fact book http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ch.html