North Korea

Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea (the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea), serving as its political, economic, and cultural center on the Taedong River. It houses the country’s ruling institutions, major monuments like Kim Il-sung Square, and many state media and universities. One of the peninsula’s oldest cities, Pyongyang was a capital of the ancient Goguryeo kingdom and was rebuilt after the Korean War with wide boulevards and monumental architecture reflecting the state’s Juche ideology. Memory tip: DPRK’s P can cue Pyongyang, while Seoul is South Korea’s capital—Beijing is China and Tokyo is Japan.