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South Korea
A high-tech powerhouse in East Asia, South Korea rose from the ashes of the Korean War to become the world's 12th-largest economy — a transformation known as the 'Miracle on the Han River.' The capital Seoul is a megacity of 10 million, blending ancient palaces with cutting-edge technology. South Korea's cultural influence through K-pop, K-dramas, and Korean cuisine has become a global phenomenon.
Major cities: Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Daegu
2024
51.7M
UN
2050
45.1M
UN
2100
21.8M
UN
~2200
7.0M
GPU
~2500
3.0M
GPU
Population51.7M
Fertility (TFR)0.73
Life expectancy84.4
Median age44.5
Infant mortality2.3 per 1,000
Pop. density530/km²
Urbanization81%
Youth share (0-14)11%
Land area97,600 km²
LanguageKorean
ReligionUnaffiliated
HDI0.937 (#20)
RegionAsia
Latest available year is shown in parentheses where the source series varies across indicators. Governance metrics use World Bank percentile ranks; battle deaths and military spending are context variables, not direct fertility drivers.
UN WPP 2024 — verified data through 2100
| Year | Population | TFR | Life Exp. | CBR | CDR | Net Migration | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 19.8M | 6.06 | 22.2 | 39.7 | 47.1 | +147K | -0.7% |
| 1955 | 22.1M | 6.17 | 48.4 | 42.6 | 16.4 | +151K | 2.6% |
| 1960 | 26.1M | 5.99 | 53.8 | 42.1 | 13.0 | +47K | 2.9% |
| 1965 | 29.3M | 4.89 | 55.8 | 33.8 | 11.4 | -146K | 2.2% |
| 1970 | 32.5M | 4.46 | 62.2 | 30.3 | 8.0 | -28K | 2.2% |
| 1975 | 35.9M | 3.31 | 64.7 | 23.4 | 7.0 | -52K | 1.6% |
| 1980 | 38.1M | 2.73 | 64.8 | 22.4 | 7.3 | -148K | 1.5% |
| 1985 | 41.1M | 1.71 | 68.4 | 16.7 | 6.1 | +98K | 1.1% |
| 1990 | 44.1M | 1.60 | 71.0 | 15.5 | 5.7 | +79K | 1.0% |
| 1995 | 45.4M | 1.65 | 73.4 | 15.3 | 5.6 | -208K | 1.0% |
| 2000 | 46.8M | 1.47 | 76.2 | 12.8 | 5.1 | -85K | 0.8% |
| 2005 | 47.9M | 1.12 | 78.4 | 9.0 | 5.1 | -48K | 0.4% |
| 2010 | 48.8M | 1.23 | 80.7 | 9.2 | 5.2 | +52K | 0.4% |
| 2015 | 51.0M | 1.20 | 82.5 | 8.3 | 5.5 | +276K | 0.3% |
| 2020 | 51.9M | 0.81 | 83.7 | 5.2 | 6.1 | +113K | -0.1% |
| 2024Now | 51.7M | 0.73 | 84.4 | 4.7 | 6.9 | +76K | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 51.7M | 0.75 | 84.5 | 4.8 | 7.2 | +66K | -0.2% |
| 2030 | 51.2M | 0.81 | 85.1 | 5.0 | 8.6 | +47K | -0.4% |
| 2035 | 50.3M | 0.88 | 85.6 | 4.9 | 10.0 | +32K | -0.5% |
| 2040 | 48.9M | 0.93 | 86.2 | 4.8 | 11.5 | +20K | -0.7% |
| 2045 | 47.2M | 0.98 | 86.8 | 5.0 | 13.3 | +18K | -0.8% |
| 2050 | 45.1M | 1.03 | 87.3 | 4.7 | 15.3 | +16K | -1.1% |
| 2055 | 42.6M | 1.06 | 87.9 | 4.1 | 17.0 | +15K | -1.3% |
| 2060 | 39.9M | 1.10 | 88.5 | 4.1 | 18.3 | +1K | -1.4% |
| 2065 | 37.1M | 1.13 | 89.0 | 4.4 | 19.2 | +7K | -1.5% |
| 2070 | 34.5M | 1.16 | 89.6 | 4.7 | 19.8 | +3K | -1.5% |
| 2075 | 32.0M | 1.19 | 90.2 | 5.0 | 20.0 | +5K | -1.5% |
| 2080 | 29.7M | 1.21 | 90.7 | 5.2 | 20.3 | +3K | -1.5% |
| 2085 | 27.5M | 1.24 | 91.3 | 5.1 | 20.5 | +1K | -1.5% |
| 2090 | 25.4M | 1.26 | 91.9 | 5.0 | 20.7 | -0K | -1.6% |
| 2095 | 23.5M | 1.28 | 92.5 | 5.1 | 20.5 | -0K | -1.5% |
| 2100 | 21.8M | 1.30 | 93.1 | 5.5 | 19.9 | -1K | -1.4% |