Members of the South Korean pop group BTS are, left to right, front row: Suga and V. Back row: J-Hope, RM, Jin, Jimin, and Jungkook.
Credit: © RB/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images

BTS members are trading in their matching outfits for… different matching outfits. The group, also known as Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean K-pop (Korean pop) music group that rose to international fame in the mid-2010’s. The South Korean government requires men to complete 18 to 21 months of military service, and international pop stars are not immune. The group’s management company, Big Hit, announced their conscription (military draft) on October 17, 2022.

BTS combines elements of rap, hip-hop, pop, and electronic dance music (EDM). The group’s vocals are mainly in Korean. But they also perform lyrics in English and Japanese. The group also is known for its lyrics about the challenges that young people face. BTS plans to come back together as a band in 2025. Maybe they will have new songs inspired by their time in the military.

BTS originally stood as an abbreviation for Bangtan Sonyeondan, Korean for Bulletproof Boy Scouts. The initials were later also said to stand for Beyond the Scene. The members of the group are J-Hope (born Jung Ho-seok), Jimin (Park Ji-min), Jin (Kim Seok-jin), Jungkook (Jeon Jeong-guk), RM (Kim Nam-joon), Suga (Min Yoon-gi), and V (Kim Tae-hyung). In June 2022, the band members announced they would take a break to pursue additional solo projects.

The government normally requires military service to be completed before men turn 28. However, the government granted Jin (Kim Seok-jin), the oldest member of BTH, a two year delay since he was “enhancing Korea’s image” while working with the band. Refusing to serve in the military is considered a crime in South Korea. Many fans called for an exemption for the members of BTS. some athletes and musicians have received exemptions in the past. However, the group decided to enlist despite their musical fame. Now the members are starting off on a different kind of tour. Before starting off on their new endeavors, the group held their last concert in Busan on October 15, 2022.

BTS was formed by the South Korean music producer and record executive Bang Si-hyuk. The group’s first single was “No More Dream” (2013). The song deals with the pressures many young Koreans feel from their culture and society. Since 2013, the group has released many successful recordings. The band’s first full-length studio album was Dark & Wild (2014).

In 2017, BTS released the popular EP (extended play recording) Love Yourself: Her. An EP contains several songs but is not considered a full-length album. The EP’s songs “DNA” and “Mic Drop” became the first tracks by a Korean group to be certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). RIAA presents a gold record to an artist who sells 500,000 copies of an album. The group’s single “Idol” (2018) also became a huge hit. That same year, BTS became the first K-pop group to reach number 1 on Billboard magazine’s “Billboard 200″ music chart, with its album Love Yourself: Tear (2018).

Members of the South Korean pop group BTS are, left to right, front row: Suga and V. Back row: J-Hope, RM, Jin, Jimin, and Jungkook.
Credit: © RB/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images

The South Korean pop music group BTS made history this month—and not because they shattered another sales record. The oldest member of the group, Kim Seok-jin—known as Jin—turned 28 on December 4. According to South Korean law, men must complete 21 months of military service once they turn 28, if not sooner. But on Tuesday, December 1, South Korea’s National Assembly revised the country’s Military Service Act to allow K-pop stars to postpone their military service until they turn 30. (K-pop is a term used to describe music and artists originating in South Korea’s popular music industry.) Under the law, K-pop stars who have been awarded government medals for spreading South Korean culture can apply to postpone military service. BTS won one of these medals in 2018.

BTS, also known as Bangtan Boys, gained international fame in the mid-2010’s with the help of the video-sharing website YouTube. The group is known for its expressive vocals, stylish image, sharp dance moves, and strong fan base and social media presence. The music of BTS combines elements of rap, hip-hop, pop, and electronic dance music (EDM). The group also is known for its lyrics about the challenges faced by young people. The group’s vocals are mainly in Korean, but BTS also performs lyrics in English and Japanese.

BTS originally stood as an abbreviation for Bangtan Sonyeondan, Korean for Bulletproof Boy Scouts. The initials were later also said to stand for Beyond the Scene. The members of the group are J-Hope (born Jung Ho-seok), Jimin (Park Ji-min), Jin (Kim Seok-jin), Jungkook (Jeon Jeong-guk), RM (Kim Nam-joon), Suga (Min Yoon-gi), and V (Kim Tae-hyung).

BTS was formed by the South Korean music producer and record executive Bang Si-hyuk. The group’s first single was “No More Dream” (2013). The song deals with the pressures many young Koreans feel from their culture and society. Since 2013, the group has released many successful recordings. The band’s first full-length studio album was Dark & Wild (2014).

In 2020, the group released the single “Dynamite,” making BTS the first South Korean pop act to debut at number 1 on the Billboard “Hot 100″ chart. It was also the first song the group recorded entirely in English.

February 12, 2020

On Sunday, February 9, the 92nd Academy Awards—commonly known as the Oscars—were held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California. The Oscars celebrate the past year’s achievements in filmmaking. As happened in 2019, the award ceremony went without a host. Instead, the comedians Steve Martin and Chris Rock opened the show, and a variety of celebrities introduced and handed out the awards.

Parasite, which won best picture at the 2020 Academy Awards, stars (from left) Choi Woo Shik, Song Kang Ho, Chang Hyae Jin, and Park So Dam. Credit: CJ Entertainment

The biggest headline on Oscars night was the naming of the South Korean black comedy Parasite as best picture. Black comedy is characterized by bizarrely or morbidly humorous plots and situations. Directed by Bong Joon Ho, Parasite is the first movie in a language other than English to win best picture. Parasite also won best original screenplay and best international film. Bong too made history as the first South Korean to win best director. The World War I drama 1917—the favorite to win best picture before the ceremony—missed out on the top award but took home the best cinematography, best sound mixing, and best visual effects Oscars.

Renée Zellweger won the best actress award for her portrayal of the former Hollywood star Judy Garland in the biopic Judy. Joaquin Phoenix earned best actor for his leading role in the origin story of the Batman villain Joker. Brad Pitt won best supporting actor for his stuntman sidekick role in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and Laura Dern was named best supporting actress as a divorce lawyer in Marriage Story. Toy Story 4 won best animated feature, and American Factory won best documentary. American Factory, the story of a Chinese-run glass factory in Ohio, was the first film made by Higher Ground Productions, a company run by former United States President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. The World War II satire Jojo Rabbit earned the Oscar for best adapted screenplay.

Each trophy given out at the ceremony (there were a total of 24 this year) is officially called an Academy Award of Merit, but the small golden statues have been known as “Oscars” since the 1930′s. The origin of the nickname is uncertain, but most histories center on Margaret Herrick, a former director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Apparently, upon seeing the statuettes for the first time in 1931, Herrick remarked that they looked a lot like her Uncle Oscar. Oscar came into common usage for the award soon after.

November 14, 2018

On Monday, November 12, the SK Wyverns defeated the Doosan Bears 5-4 in 13 innings to win the Korean Series, the championship of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), four games to two. KBO is South Korea’s top professional baseball league and features some of the world’s best players. SK’s last KBO title came in 2010. For Doosan, it was their fourth-straight appearance in the Korean Series, and their second-straight defeat (the Bears were KBO champs in 2015 and 2016).

KBO is the top professional baseball league in South Korea. Credit: © Korea Baseball Organization

Baseball has been played in Korea since the early 1900′s, when it was introduced by Christian missionaries from the United States. The sport flourished in Korea during the time of Japanese occupation from 1910 through 1945. (Baseball is also extremely popular in Japan.) After Korea was divided into North and South, baseball continued only in South Korea. KBO began as a six-team league in 1982, and now has 10 teams—5 based in and around Seoul, the South Korean capital, and the others in the cities of Busan, Changwon, Daegu, Daejeon, and Gwangju.

The KBO regular season covers 144 games from March to October. The best team during the season automatically qualifies for the Korean Series championship. The next-best four teams then compete in rounds of playoffs to determine the Korean Series challenger. In 2018, Doosan ran away with the league with a dominating 93-51 record. SK finished second (78-65) and survived a tough playoff series against the fourth-place Nexen Heroes to face Doosan. Nexen had earlier eliminated the third-best regular season team, the Hanwha Eagles.

KBO is similar to Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the talent level is equivalent to the high minor leagues. KBO has a few differences, however. In South Korea, extra innings are limited to 12 during the regular season, and 15 during the postseason (MLB has no innings limit). If the game is still tied at the innings limit, it must then be replayed from the beginning. Several ballplayers from the United States and other countries play in KBO, but no team may have more than three foreign players. KBO is a high-scoring league, and all teams use the designated hitter (meaning pitchers never bat). In MLB, the American League has designated hitters, but pitchers bat in the National League.

KBO teams are named for corporate sponsors rather than their home cities. The Doosan Bears, for example, play at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, but take their name from the Doosan Group, a conglomerate known for its heavy construction equipment. The SK Wyverns, who play near Seoul at SK Happy Dream Park in Incheon, are sponsored by the SK Group, a conglomerate that owns the nation’s largest wireless company, SK Telecom. A wyvern, by the way, is a mythical two-legged dragon commonly seen in British heraldry.

Several KBO players have enjoyed success in MLB. The first notable star was pitcher Chan Ho Park, who debuted for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1994. Other South Korean stars in MLB have included pitcher Byung-Hyun Kim (Arizona Diamondbacks), outfielder Shin-Soo Choo (Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers), and pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu (Dodgers). South Korean baseball teams have enjoyed success in the Olympics and the Little League World Series, as well as in the World Baseball Classic, which serves as professional baseball’s World Cup. A team comprised of South Korean players, Geelong-Korea, is a 2018 addition to the professional Australian Baseball League.

SK’s American manager Trey Hillman, a former minor league infielder who previously managed MLB’s Kansas City Royals, is the first skipper to win titles in both South Korea and in Japan’s top league, Nippon Professional Baseball. Hillman guided the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to the Japan Series title in 2006 before taking the reins at SK in late 2016.

August 29, 2018

On Sunday, August 26, an all-star baseball team from Honolulu, Hawaii, won the Little League World Series by defeating a team from Seoul, South Korea, 3-0. The Little League World Series is a competition played each year in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, among kids aged 11 to 13. The tournament, first played in 1947, includes 16 Little League teams from the United States and the rest of the world. Little League Baseball is the world’s largest organized youth-sports program, with nearly 180,000 teams.

The Honolulu Little League all-stars flash the traditional Hawaiian shaka “hang loose” hand greeting after winning the 2018 Little League World Series on Aug. 26, 2018. Credit: Courtesy of Little League Baseball and Softball

The ballplayers from Honolulu Little League dominated the final at South Williamsport’s Howard J. Lamade Stadium. Starting pitcher Ka’olu Holt went the distance, limiting the South Koreans to just two hits and no runs over the game’s six innings. Holt fanned eight batters and surrendered just one walk. On the offensive side, Honolulu first baseman Mana Lau Kong homered on the first pitch of the bottom of the first inning, igniting a boisterous Hawaii dugout. Seoul starter Yeong Hyeon Kim settled in after that, but he was the victim of his own lack of control in the bottom of the third. With the bases loaded on a hit and two walks, a wild pitch allowed Honolulu’s Zachary Won to score from third base, and an errant throw on the play brought Taylin Oana home from second to make the score 3-0. Hawaii played flawless defense, and Holt recorded the final out in the sixth on a swinging strikeout.

2018 Little League Baseball World Series.
Credit: © Little League Baseball

After a joyful celebration in front of the pitcher’s mound, members of the Honolulu team thanked their South Korean opponents. They then raced to the center field wall to rub the bronze bust of the stadium’s namesake, Howard J. Lamade—a longstanding tradition for the winning team. (Lamade was a Pennsylvania newspaper publisher and a key figure in the early years of Little League Baseball.)

The Honolulu all-stars rolled through the United States bracket of the tournament, winning all five of their games by a combined score of 26-3, including a 3-0 win over Peachtree City (Georgia) American Little League to reach the World Series final. The championship was the third for the state of Hawaii: the Ewa Beach team took the title in 2005, and the little leaguers from Waipio won it all in 2008. The Seoul, South Korea, squad fought through the tough international tournament, edging the all-stars from Kawaguchi, Japan, 2-1 to reach the final. South Korean teams previously won the Little League World Series in 1984, 1985, and 2014. The 2018 tournament’s 32 games drew a total of nearly 500,000 fans.

June 4, 2018

Korean is the official language of both North Korea and South Korea. Most language scholars place it in the Altaic language family, which includes Mongolian, Turkish, and, according to some scholars, Japanese. Korean and Japanese share a similar grammatical structure and vocabulary, but not all scholars agree that the two languages are related. Korean also shares much of its vocabulary with Chinese, and it is often considered a link language, one that is related to all neighboring languages of the area.

The flag of South Korea.
Credit: © Archivector/Shutterstock

Korean, like Japanese, uses speech levels (also known as speech styles). Speech levels mean speakers use different vocabulary depending on the level of intimacy (closeness) with the person to whom they speak. For example, an adult would use different words when speaking to a child than when speaking to their boss. Korean is an honorific system, which expresses respect by the use of particular nouns, verbs, and honorific suffixes (endings). Certain suffixes are added to words when talking to someone who is older or considered one’s superior.

The flag of North Korea.
© Julia Sanders, Shutterstock

The alphabet of the Korean language is known as Hangeul (also spelled Han’gul) in South Korea and Joseongeul (also spelled Chosongul) in North Korea. This alphabet is a phonetic writing system in which each symbol or letter represents a particular sound. It was developed in the 1440′s in the court of Sejong the Great, one of the most famous kings in Korean history.

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South Korea.
Credit: WORLD BOOK map

Before the invention of Hangeul, Korean people had adapted Chinese characters for writing in Korean. Today, Korean is sometimes written in a mixture of Hangeul and Chinese characters. About 60 percent of the words in the Korean vocabulary are Chinese in origin. About 35 percent are native Korean, and about 5 percent are foreign loanwords (words that come from other languages).

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North Korea.
Credit: WORLD BOOK map

Loanwords in Korean mostly come from the English language and include words referring to modern technology such as  컴퓨터 (keompyuteo) computer and  인터넷 (inteones) internet. Baseball, a very popular sport in Korea, has some familiar terms as well: 스트라이크 (seuteuraeekeu) means strike; 아웃 (ahoot) means out; and 홈런 (homereon) is home run. A few Korean words appear in English, including the martial arts of  합기도 (hapkido) and 태권도 (taekwondo), and such delicious food items as 비빔밥 (bibimbap), 불고기(bulgogi), and 김치 (kimchi).

February 15, 2018

Last Friday, February 9, the Winter Olympic Games opened in the town of Pyeongchang (sometimes written as PyeongChang) in northeastern South Korea. Pyeongchang sits among the Taebaek Mountains of Gangwon Province southeast of Seoul, the South Korean capital. The first week of the Winter Olympic Games saw outstanding performances on the ice and snow, but perhaps the most dramatic event occurred during the opening ceremonies when the North and South Korean teams marched together under a flag representing a unified Korea. The two nations, created in 1948, were embittered by the brutal Korean War (1950-1953), and they have been at odds ever since.

The North Korea and South Korea Olympic teams march together under the Korean Unification Flag during the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium on Feb. 9, 2018. Credit: © Matthias Hangst, Getty Images

At Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium, ornate performances and light shows punctuated international team arrivals, but the most dazzling—and historical—moment was when members of the North and South Korean teams marched into the stadium side-by-side. In the stands, South Korean president Moon Jae-in shook hands with Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Kim Yo-jong’s visit to South Korea is the first by a member of the North Korean ruling family since Kim Il-sung established North Korea as a Communist state in 1948. A combined North and South Korean women’s hockey team later competed in the games, but all other Korean athletes competed under their nation’s individual flag.

In the official Olympic emblem, the symbol ㅍ represents the first consonant of the first syllable of Pyeongchang in the Korean alphabet, (known as Hangeul), and expresses the “harmony of heaven, Earth, and man.” ㅊ depicts the first consonant of the second syllable of Pyeongchang, and represents “snow, ice, and winter sports stars (athletes).” Credit: © Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018

On the snow and ice, athletes from Norway, Canada, the Netherlands, and Germany jumped out to early medals in such cold-weather competitions as cross-country skiing, curling, speed skating, and ski jumping. United States snowboarders dominated as Redmond Gerard, Jamie Anderson, rising star Chloe Kim, and veteran boarder Shaun White won the first U.S. gold medals. U.S. alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin added a gold in the ladies’ giant slalom. Chris Mazder became the first U.S. athlete to medal in the luge, winning a surprising silver behind Austria’s David Gleirscher. In the team figure skating competition, the U.S. won bronze as Mirai Nagasu became the first American woman to land a triple axel jump (3 1/2 spins in mid-air) at the Olympics. The feat was accomplished previously by Japanese Olympians Midori Ito and Mao Asada. (Nagasu’s parents are also from Japan.) Canada won gold in the figure skating team competition, and the Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR) took silver. The International Olympic Committee banned Russia from competing as a team because of performance-enhancing drug use, but individual Russian athletes—cleared by drug tests—have been allowed to compete under the OAR banner.

High winds delayed or postponed many events, but the weather calmed to allow Austrian skiing great Marcel Hirscher to win a long-awaited first Olympic gold medal. Skiers from France and Sweden also picked up gold medals in the first week, and short-track speed skater Lim Hyo-jun earned the host country’s first gold medal.

October 26, 2017

On Sept. 19, 2017, in his first address to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York City, United States President Donald Trump issued a stunning pronouncement regarding North Korea. If the United States was forced to defend itself or its allies against North Korean aggression, Trump told world leaders, “we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.” Trump’s belligerent rhetoric—widely criticized by other world leaders—was the latest volley in a war of words between the two countries in which Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s leader, had earlier threatened to destroy the U.S. Pacific Islands territory of Guam. North Korea’s official name is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

In a show of defiance on Independence Day in the United States, North Korea launches a ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan on July 4, 2017. Credit: © STR/AFP/Getty Images

Tensions between North Korea and the United States have risen steadily since Trump’s inauguration in January 2017. During the year, North Korea escalated its fledgling nuclear weapons program, testing ballistic missiles and conducting earth-shaking nuclear tests in the face of worldwide disapproval. Prior to Trump, U.S. presidents had taken a more diplomatic approach toward North Korean threats, noting that while the United States was militarily capable of overpowering the North, the human cost of such destruction would be too high. Caught in the war of words was South Korea, a traditional U.S. ally that was itself trying to negotiate a long-simmering feud with its northern neighbor. South Korea’s official name is the Republic of Korea.

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A line roughly along the 38th parallel of north latitude separates North and South Korea. Credit: WORLD BOOK map

In 1948, the Korean peninsula was divided into the U.S.-backed democratic nation of South Korea and the Communist country of North Korea, which was supported by China and the Soviet Union. Both Korean governments claimed to represent all Korea. From 1950 to 1953, they fought for control of the peninsula in a bloody conflict known as the Korean War. Neither side won complete victory, and an armistice ended the fighting in July 1953. The United States, which fought with South Korea in the conflict, has stationed troops in the country ever since, and tensions between the Koreas have remained high. To this day, a demilitarized zone runs along the the 38th parallel of north latitude, keeping the bitter enemy countries apart.

Since the war, North Korea’s dynasty of dictators—Kim Il-sung, followed by Kim Jong-il, and his son Kim Jong-un—have kept the country isolated and at odds with much of the rest of the world. A nuclear weapons program started under Kim Jong-il was halted by an international agreement in 1994, but North Korea resumed the program in 2003. Kim Jong-un, who gained power in 2011, continued to develop North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, further increasing the nation’s problematic relations with the rest of the world.

North Korea intensified its nuclear weapons program in 2017. In February, the country began a series of missile tests. Experts believed the missiles were designed to deliver a nuclear warhead, and some appeared to be powerful enough to reach the west coast of the United States. In March, the United States began deploying a missile defense system in South Korea to defend the South and nearby allies from Northern missile strikes. In early August, North Korea announced it was developing a plan to launch missiles at Guam, home to large U.S. Air Force and Navy bases. President Trump threatened to retaliate with “fire and fury” if North Korea attacked.

On August 29, North Korea fired a missile over Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan. (Japan, a close U.S. ally, also hosts U.S. military bases.) The missile firing drew strong international criticism—something that only added fuel to North Korea’s fire. In early September, the “rogue nation” (a nation that ignores international law) further worried the world by detonating a hydrogen bomb, threatening to reduce the U.S. mainland to “ashes and darkness,” and firing another missile over Hokkaido.

In the days following Trump’s September 19 address to the UN General Assembly, he and Kim exchanged insults, threatening increased military action and accusing each other of being mentally deranged. North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho accused Trump of declaring war on his country, saying North Korea had the right to shoot down U.S. warplanes.

China, a traditional North Korean ally, has distanced itself from its troublesome neighbor. Yet China has much to lose in a potential conflict, and the nation remains a vitally interested spectator. China’s foreign ministry spokesman, Lu Kang, advised caution in late September: “We hope the U.S. and North Korean politicians have sufficient political judgment to realize that resorting to military force will never be a viable way to resolve the peninsula issue.”

August 30, 2016

On Sunday, August 28, an all-star baseball team from Maine-Endwell, New York, won the Little League World Series by defeating a team from Seoul, South Korea, 2-1. The Little League World Series is a competition played each year in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, among kids aged 11 to 13. The tournament, first played in 1947, includes 16 Little League teams from the United States and the rest of the world. Little League Baseball is the world’s largest organized youth-sports program with nearly 180,000 teams. Endwell’s Little League title was the first for a U.S. team since 2011, and the first for a New York team since Staten Island won in 1964.

On Aug. 28, 2016, New York’s Ryan Harlost scores on a passed ball in the fourth inning of the Little League World Series title game against South Korea in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania. New York defeated South Korea 2-1. Credit: © Rob Carr, Getty Images

Pitching and defense dominated the title game at South Williamsport’s Howard J. Lamade Stadium. Endwell’s Ryan Harlost and Seoul’s Junho Jeong mowed down hitters and both teams made sparkling defensive plays to help keep the game scoreless through three innings. New York’s first hits came in the decisive fourth as the team pushed two runs across on three singles and a passed ball. South Korea’s Yoomin Lee homered in the fifth, narrowing the score to 2-1. The Seoul Little Leaguers kept the pressure on in the sixth and final frame, putting two runners aboard with two outs. Harlost fanned young Minho Choi to end the game, however, and Endwell hats and gloves flew into the air before a miniature team pile formed near home plate. A raucous and happy home crowd cheered the New York champions, who gathered with the gracious South Koreans for a group jog and wave around the ball field. U.S. President Barack Obama took a few minutes from his busy schedule to place a congratulatory phone call to the champs after the game.

The Seoul all-stars rolled through the international bracket of the tournament, downing a tough Panama team 7-2 to advance to the World Series title game. The undefeated Endwell ball club won the U.S. championship 4-2 over the all-stars of Goodlettsville, Tennessee. The tournament’s 32 games drew a total of nearly 500,000 fans.

June 12, 2015

Health officials in South Korea this week sealed off staff and patients at two hospitals in the latest effort to stem an outbreak of a deadly respiratory disease called Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). By mid-June, more than 128 people were known to be infected with the contagious virus and at least 13 had died. Patients at the two hospitals are not allowed to leave their rooms; doctors and nurses, clad in protective clothing to prevent infection, care for them.

Workers wearing protective gear spray antiseptic solution as a precaution against the spread of MERS at an art hall in Seoul, South Korea, June 12, 2015. (Credit: AP Photo)

MERS is a severe, sometimes fatal, respiratory disease first identified in the Middle East. The disease was discovered in 2012 after a patient in Saudi Arabia died of the then-unknown respiratory illness. Symptoms of MERS include fever, cough, and shortness of breath, which sometimes progresses to pneumonia. About 30 percent of the patients infected with the disease in the Middle East have died. No vaccines or drugs are yet available to prevent or cure MERS. Treatment of infected patients mainly involves relieving the symptoms of infection.

Cases of MERS are known mainly from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt. Doctors believe the outbreak in South Korea originated with a person who had recently returned from a trip to the Middle East. In 2012, scientists identified the cause of MERS as a previously unrecognized variety of coronavirus, designated MERS-CoV. In human beings, coronaviruses are among the many viruses that cause common colds. MERS-CoV is classified in the same family as the coronavirus that causes SARS, a respiratory disease that caused panic in 2003 when an outbreak occurred in Asia. Scientists believe that dromedary camels are the likely source of the MERS-CoV. They have isolated strains of viruses that are genetically similar to MERS-CoV from camels in the Middle East. The disease can be transmitted to humans who come into contact with camels or such camel products as unpasteurized milk and undercooked meat.

To stop the spread of MERS, health officials in South Korea have closed thousands of schools and quarantined more than 2,500 people who may have been exposed to the virus. Individuals quarantined are asked not to leave their homes. Health officials are monitoring the quarantined population remotely through the use of smart phones and social media.

Other World Book articles:

• Saudi Arabia (2014-a Back in time article)
• Public health and safety (2014-a Back in time article)