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The Korea Strait is a sea passage
Strait

A strait or straits is a narrow, navigable channel of water that connects two larger navigable bodies of water. It most commonly refers to a channel of water that lies between two land masses, but it may also refer to a navigable channel through a body of water that is otherwise not navigable, for example because it is too shallow, or...
 between South Korea
South Korea

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea , ), often referred to as Korea and the "names of Korea#Revival of the names", is a Semi-presidential system republic in East Asia, located in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula....
 and Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, connecting the East China Sea
East China Sea

The East China Sea is a marginal sea east of China. It is a part of the Pacific Ocean and covers an area of 1,249,000 km?. In China, the sea is called the East Sea....
 and the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan

The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea....
 in the northwest Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portugal explorer Ferdinand Magellan....
. The strait is split by the Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 into the western channel and the Tsushima Strait
Tsushima Strait

is the eastern channel of the Korea Strait, which lies between Korea and Japan, connecting the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.The Tsushima Strait is the broader eastern channel to the east and southeast of Tsushima Island, with the Japanese islands of Honshu to the east and northeast, and Kyushu and the Goto Islands to the south and south...
 (eastern channel).

he north it is bounded by the southern coast of the Korean peninsula
Korean Peninsula

The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula in East Asia. It extends southwards for about 684 miles from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan on the east, the East China Sea to the south, and the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the first two bodies of water....
, and to the south by the southwestern Japanese islands of Kyushu
Kyushu

or Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its Japanese Archipelago. Its alternate ancient names include Kyukoku , Chinzei , and Tsukushi-no-shima ....
 and Honshu
Honshu

or Honshu is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait....
. It is about 200 km (120 miles) wide and averages about 90 to 100 meters (300 ft) deep.

Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 divides the Korea Strait into the western channel and the Tsushima Strait.






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The Korea Strait is a sea passage
Strait

A strait or straits is a narrow, navigable channel of water that connects two larger navigable bodies of water. It most commonly refers to a channel of water that lies between two land masses, but it may also refer to a navigable channel through a body of water that is otherwise not navigable, for example because it is too shallow, or...
 between South Korea
South Korea

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea , ), often referred to as Korea and the "names of Korea#Revival of the names", is a Semi-presidential system republic in East Asia, located in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula....
 and Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, connecting the East China Sea
East China Sea

The East China Sea is a marginal sea east of China. It is a part of the Pacific Ocean and covers an area of 1,249,000 km?. In China, the sea is called the East Sea....
 and the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan

The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea....
 in the northwest Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portugal explorer Ferdinand Magellan....
. The strait is split by the Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 into the western channel and the Tsushima Strait
Tsushima Strait

is the eastern channel of the Korea Strait, which lies between Korea and Japan, connecting the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.The Tsushima Strait is the broader eastern channel to the east and southeast of Tsushima Island, with the Japanese islands of Honshu to the east and northeast, and Kyushu and the Goto Islands to the south and south...
 (eastern channel).

Geography

To the north it is bounded by the southern coast of the Korean peninsula
Korean Peninsula

The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula in East Asia. It extends southwards for about 684 miles from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan on the east, the East China Sea to the south, and the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the first two bodies of water....
, and to the south by the southwestern Japanese islands of Kyushu
Kyushu

or Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its Japanese Archipelago. Its alternate ancient names include Kyukoku , Chinzei , and Tsukushi-no-shima ....
 and Honshu
Honshu

or Honshu is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait....
. It is about 200 km (120 miles) wide and averages about 90 to 100 meters (300 ft) deep.

Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 divides the Korea Strait into the western channel and the Tsushima Strait. The western channel is deeper (up to 227 meters) and narrower than the Tsushima Strait.

Currents

A branch of the Kuroshio Current
Kuroshio Current

The Kuroshio is a strong western boundary current in the western north Pacific Ocean. It begins off the east coast of Taiwan and flows northeastward past Japan, where it merges with the easterly drift of the North Pacific Current....
 passes through the strait. Its warm branch is sometimes called the Tsushima Current. Originating along the Japanese islands this current passes through the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan

The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea....
 then divides along either shore of Sakhalin Island
Sakhalin

Sakhalin , also Saghalien, is a large elongated island in the North Pacific, lying between 45?50' and 54?24' N. It is part of Russia and is its largest island, administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast....
, eventually flowing into the northern Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Mare Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portugal explorer Ferdinand Magellan....
 via the strait north of Hokkaido
Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island and the largest, northernmost of its 47 prefectures of Japan....
 and into the Sea of Okhotsk
Sea of Okhotsk

The Sea of Okhotsk is a part of the western Pacific Ocean, lying between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, the island of Hokkaido to the far south, the island of Sakhalin along the west, and a long stretch of eastern Siberian coast along the west and north....
 north of Sakhalin Island near Vladivostok
Vladivostok

File:vladivostokrussia.jpgVladivostok is Russia's largest port types of inhabited localities in Russia on the Pacific Ocean and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai....
. The water-mass characteristics vary widely because of the low-salinity waters of the southeast coasts of Korea and China.

Economic significance

Numerous international shipping lanes pass through the strait, including those carrying much of the traffic bound for the ports of southern South Korea. Both South Korea and Japan have restricted their territorial claims in the strait to from shore, so as to permit free passage through it.

Passenger ferries ply numerous routes across the strait. Commercial ferries run from Busan
Busan

Busan Metropolitan City, also known as Pusan is the largest seaport city in South Korea. Busan has a population of 3.65 million and is South Korea's second largest metropolis, after Seoul....
, South Korea to Japanese ports including Fukuoka
Fukuoka, Fukuoka

is the capital cities of Japan of Fukuoka Prefecture and is situated on the northern shore of the island of Kyushu in Japan, across the Korea Strait from South Korea Busan....
, Tsushima
Tsushima, Nagasaki

is a Municipality of Japan governed by Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is the only city of Tsushima Subprefecture and it entirely occupies the Tsushima Island Archipelago, which lies in the Tsushima Strait north of Nagasaki, Nagasaki on the western side of Kyushu, the southernmost mainland island of Japan....
, Shimonoseki
Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi

is a cities of Japan located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. It is at the southwestern tip of Honshu, facing the Tsushima Strait and also Kitakyushu across the Kanmon Straits....
, and Hiroshima. Ferries also connect Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 with Fukuoka, and South Korea's Jeju Island with the Korean mainland. Ferries connecting Busan
Busan

Busan Metropolitan City, also known as Pusan is the largest seaport city in South Korea. Busan has a population of 3.65 million and is South Korea's second largest metropolis, after Seoul....
 and Japanese cities with ports in China
China

China is a Culture of China, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
 also traverse the strait.

Naming of the Strait


Historic impact


Land bridge

See article: Land bridge
Land bridge

A land bridge, in biogeography, is an isthmus or wider land connection between otherwise separate areas, which allows terrestrial animals and plants to cross over and colonise new lands....
During the Pleistocene
Pleistocene

The Pleistocene is the epoch from 1.8 million to 10,000 years Before Present covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
 glacial cycles, the Korea and the Bering Strait
Bering Strait

The Bering Strait is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65? 40' north, slightly south of the polar circle....
s, and the Yellow Sea
Yellow Sea

The Yellow Sea is the name given to the northern part of the East China Sea, which is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It is located between mainland China and the Korean peninsula....
 were often dried up and the Japanese islands were connected to the Eurasian Continent
Eurasia

Eurasia is a large landmass covering about 53,990,000 km? or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface . Often considered a single continent, Eurasia comprises the traditional continents of Europe and Asia, concepts which date back to classical antiquity and the borders for which are somewhat arbitrary....
 through the Korean Peninsula
Korean Peninsula

The Korean Peninsula is a peninsula in East Asia. It extends southwards for about 684 miles from continental Asia into the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by the Sea of Japan on the east, the East China Sea to the south, and the Yellow Sea to the west, the Korea Strait connecting the first two bodies of water....
 and Sakhalin
Sakhalin

Sakhalin , also Saghalien, is a large elongated island in the North Pacific, lying between 45?50' and 54?24' N. It is part of Russia and is its largest island, administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast....
. At the periods, the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan

The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia. It is referred to in North Korea as the Korea East Sea and in South Korea as the East Sea....
 was said to be a frozen inner lake due to the lack of warm Tsushima Current and various plants and large animals, such as the Naumann elephant
Elephas namadicus

Elephas namadicus was a species of relatively small prehistoric elephant that ranged throughout Pleistocene Asia, from India to Japan, where the indigenous Neolithic cultures hunted that particular subspecies for food....
 are believed to have spread into Japan.

Early history

Historically, these narrows served as a highway for high risk voyages. The shortest distance between Busan
Busan

Busan Metropolitan City, also known as Pusan is the largest seaport city in South Korea. Busan has a population of 3.65 million and is South Korea's second largest metropolis, after Seoul....
, South Korea, and the Tsushima Island is about 50 km, as is the shortest distance from Tsushima to Iki Island
Iki Island

Iki Island is an island lying between the island of Kyushu and the Tsushima Islands in the Tsushima Strait, the eastern channel of the Korea Strait....
, Japan.

Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
's Wa
Wa (Japan)

Japanese language , is the oldest recorded names of Japan. Chinese, Korean, and Japanese scribes regularly wrote Wa or Yamato "Japan" with the Chinese character ? until the 8th century, when the Japanese found fault with it, replacing it with ? "harmony, peace, balance"....
 periodically sent year-long embassies to Chinese dynasties, believed that was through the Korean strait and the Korean peninsula, to obtain the latest culture and technologies. In the 6th century, Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
 (Mahayana Buddhism
Mahayana

Mahayana is one of the two main existing schools of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophy and practice. It was History of Buddhism in India....
) was transmitted by Baekje
Baekje

Baekje , or Paekche , was a kingdom located in southwest Korea. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla....
 people to the easternmost Japan of the Emperor Kimmei
Emperor Kimmei

Emperor Kimmei was the 29th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign is said to have spanned the years from 539 through 571....
's era over this strait (See also: East Asian Buddhism
East Asian Buddhism

East Asian Buddhism is a collective term for the schools of Buddhism that developed in the East Asian region, most of which are part of the Mahayana transmission....
 and Buddhism in Japan
Buddhism in Japan

The history of Buddhism in Japan can be roughly divided into three periods, namely the Nara period , the Heian Period and the post-Heian period ....
).

Mongolian invasion

See main article: Mongol invasions of Japan
Mongol invasions of Japan

The of 1274 and 1281 were major military invasions and conquests undertaken by Kublai Khan to take the Japanese islands after the capitulation of Goryeo....
A joint Mongol-Korea fleet crossed this strait and attempted to invade Japan in 1274 and 1281. The force severely ravaged the Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island

Tsushima are islands of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of Korea Strait at 34?25'N and 129?20'E. It is the largest island of Nagasaki Prefecture....
 on the way to Japan but failed to defeat Japan. The typhoon (kamikaze
Kamikaze

The were suicide attacks by military aviation from the Empire of Japan against Allies Of World War II shipping, in the closing stages of the Pacific War of World War II, to destroy as many warships as possible....
, usually translated as "divine wind") is said to have saved Japan from a Mongol invasion fleet led by Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan

Sorry, no overview for this topic
 in 1281.

Wokou and Oei Invasion

See main article: Wokou
Wokou

Wokou or Japanese pirates were pirates who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the thirteenth century onwards. Originally, the Wokou were mainly soldiers, ronin, merchants and smugglers from Japan, but became predominantly from China two centuries later....
 and Oei Invasion
Oei Invasion

The Oei Invasion was the 1419 invasion of Japan, Tsushima Island led by the Joseon Dynasty....
After the Mongolian invasion ravaged Tsushima, it became a base of the Wokou (Japanese pirates). The Korean Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty

Joseon , was a sovereign state founded by Taejo Taejo of Joseon, and lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo Kingdom at what is today the city of Kaesong....
 sent a fleet to Tsushima in 1419 for the suppression of Wokou activity. Korea subsequently agreed to grant the Japanese limited trading privileges.

Battle of Tsushima

See main article: Battle of Tsushima
Battle of Tsushima

The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the ?Sea of Japan Naval Battle? in Japan and the ?Battle of Tsushima Strait? elsewhere, was the last and most decisive sea battle of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904?1905....
The Battle of Tsushima, fought between the Japanese and Russian navies on May 27 and May 28, 1905, took place in the Tsushima Strait part of the Korea Strait, east of the north part of Tsushima and due north of Iki Island. The Russian fleet was virtually destroyed by the Japanese.

Future

The possibility of a Japan-Korea Undersea Tunnel
Japan-Korea Undersea Tunnel

The Japan-Korea Undersea Tunnel is a proposed tunnel project to connect Japan with the South Korea via an undersea tunnel crossing the Korea Strait utilizing the strait islands of Iki and Tsushima, a straight line distance of approximately 128 kilometers at its shortest....
 or bridge, similar to the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel

The Channel Tunnel , also known by the portmanteau Chunnel, is a undersea rail transport tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent, Kent in England with Coquelles near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover....
 between France and the United Kingdom, has been discussed for decades. It remains to be seen, but Japan has interest in shipping goods through Korea and Russia to Europe though there are many technical challenges.

See also

  • List of Japan-related topics
    List of Japan-related topics

    Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of People's Republic of China, Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea in the south....
  • Geography of Japan
    Geography of Japan

    Japan is an island nation in East Asia comprising a large Stratovolcano archipelago extending along the Pacific Ocean coast of Asia. Measured from the geographic coordinate system, Japan is 36? north of the equator and 138? east of the Prime Meridian....
  • List of Korea-related topics
    List of Korea-related topics

    This is a list of articles on Korea-related people, places, things, and concepts. For help on how to use this list, see the #Introduction below....
  • Russo-Japanese War
    Russo-Japanese War

    The Russo-Japanese War or the Manchurian Campaign in some English sources, was a conflict that grew out of the rival imperialism ambitions of the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over Manchuria and Korea....
  • Battle of Tsushima
    Battle of Tsushima

    The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the ?Sea of Japan Naval Battle? in Japan and the ?Battle of Tsushima Strait? elsewhere, was the last and most decisive sea battle of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904?1905....
  • Tsushima City
    Tsushima, Nagasaki

    is a Municipality of Japan governed by Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is the only city of Tsushima Subprefecture and it entirely occupies the Tsushima Island Archipelago, which lies in the Tsushima Strait north of Nagasaki, Nagasaki on the western side of Kyushu, the southernmost mainland island of Japan....


External links