North Korea - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of North Korea. Strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 107 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Geographical data of North Korea
Location Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea
Geographic coordinates 40 00 N, 127 00 E
Map references Asia
Tarrain mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; wide coastal plains in west, discontinuous in east
Natural Resources coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, precious metals, hydropower
Natural Hazards

late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall

volcanism: P'aektu-san (2,744 m) (also known as Baitoushan, Baegdu, or Changbaishan), on the Chinese border, is considered historically active
Irrigated Land 14,600 sq km (2012)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers
Land Boundaries 1,607 km
Border Countries China 1,352 km; South Korea 237 km; Russia 18 km
Coastline 2,495 km
Climate temperate, with rainfall concentrated in summer; long, bitter winters
Area
Total Area
Land Area 120,408 sq km
Water Area 130 sq km
comparative Area slightly larger than Virginia; slightly smaller than Mississippi
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone 200 nm
Elevations
Highest point Paektu-san 2,744 m
Lowest point Sea of Japan 0 m
Mean elevation 600 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 21.5% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 19.1% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 2.1% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 0.4% (2022 est.)
Forest 49.7% (2022 est.)
Other 28.7% (2022 est.)
Population Distribution

Population concentrated in the plains and lowlands; least populated regions are the mountainous provinces adjacent to the Chinese border; largest concentrations are in the western provinces, particularly the municipal district of Pyongyang, and around Hungnam and Wonsan in the east

People and Society

In North Korea, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese

Population
Pop growth rate 0.4% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 13.2 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 9.2 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density
Total fertility rate 1.81 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 0.88 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate 70.2% (2017)
Est married women (ages 15-49) 69.7% (2023 est.)
Literacy age 15 and over can read and write
Education expenditures NA
Net Migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Korean | Korean(s)
Languages
Religions traditionally Buddhist and Confucian, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)
Age Structure
0-14 years 19.9% (male 2,673,822/female 2,548,775)
15-64 years 68.9% (male 9,054,771/female 9,066,447)
65 years and over 11.2% (2024 est.) (male 1,099,676/female 1,855,175)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 43.5
Youth dependency ratio 27.2
Elderly dependency ratio 16.3
Potential support ratio 6.1 (2021 est.)
Median Age
Total 35.9 years (2024 est.)
Male 34.5 years
Female 37.4 years
Urbanization
Urban population 63.2% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 0.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 3.158 million PYONGYANG (capital) (2023).
Sex Ratio
At birth 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over 0.59 male(s)/female
Total population 0.95 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Infant Motality
Total 15.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male 16.9 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 13.8 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 73.5 years (2024 est.)
Male 70.2 years
Female 77 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: 97.8% of population
Improved: rural rural: 89.1% of population
Improved: total total: 94.5% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 2.2% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 10.9% of population
Unimproved: total total: 5.5% of population (2020 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: 92.7% of population
Improved: rural rural: 73.1% of population
Improved: total total: 85.3% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 7.3% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 26.9% of population
Unimproved: total total: 14.7% of population (2020 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
Total 3.61 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer 0.12 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits 3.48 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
Total 17.4% (2020 est.)
Male 34.8% (2020 est.)
Female 0% (2020 est.)
Child marriage
Women married by age 18 0.1% (2017 est.)
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about North Korea

Want to know more about North Korea? Check all different factbooks for North Korea below.

North Korea is found in Eastern Asia