38th parallel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The 38th parallel (Sampalseon/Samp'alsŏn (삼팔선; 三八線) in Korean) was the original boundary between the Soviet and American occupation zones in Korea established after the surrender of Japan in 1945. (See Division of Korea for more details.) In 1948, the dividing line became the boundary between the newly independent countries of North and South Korea. At the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), a new border was established through the middle of the Demilitarized Zone, which cuts across the 38th parallel at an acute angle, from southwest to northeast.
