Quiz on Korea is a South Korean television

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...

organized as part of an annual international public diplomacy program by the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

of the Republic of Korea and KBS television. The quiz tests participants general knowledge of Korea. ''Quiz on Korea'' aims to help spread Hallyu, the "Korean Wave".

Overview

Preliminary domestic rounds are held within selected countries and national winners receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Korea to represent their country in the final round in Korea. The representatives are taken on a week-long guided tour around Korea. The final round is filmed at KBS studios in Seoul and broadcast on KBS as a special program for the

Chuseok ''Chuseok'' (; , literally "autumn evening"), also known as ''Hangawi'' (Hangul: ; ; from archaic Korean for "the great middle (of autumn)"), is a major mid-autumn harvest festival and a three-day holiday in South Korea celebrated on the 15th ...

holidays, which generally fall in September or early October. It is also aired by KBS World for some 200 million people in 88 countries around the world to watch. Since its inception the grand prize for the overall winner has been a brand new Hyundai car.

Eligibility

*Foreign nationals who speak Korean and/or English. *Individuals and his/her immediate families shall not be of Korean nationality or ethnicity.

Format

Three sudden-death multi-choice rounds are held, with the winner of each round progressing to a fourth and final round.

First ''Quiz on Korea''

Twenty three countries were invited to participate to mark anniversaries of diplomatic relations. The final was held on August 31, 2012, and was broadcast on

KBS1 The Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) () is the national broadcaster of South Korea. Founded in February 1927, it is one of the leading South Korean television and radio broadcasters. KBS operates seven radio networks, ten television channels, a ...

on September 30 during Chuseok. The MCs were: * Shin Dong-yup (신동엽), a comedian, * Kim Hong Seong ( 김홍성), a KBS announcer, *

Sooyoung Choi Soo-young (; born February 10, 1990), professionally known as Sooyoung, is a South Korean singer, actress and songwriter. She was a member of the short-lived Korean-Japanese singing duo Route 0 during 2002 in Japan. After returning to Sou ...

(최수영), a

K-pop K-pop (), short for Korean popular music, is a form of popular music originating in South Korea as part of South Korean culture. It includes styles and genres from around the world, such as pop, hip hop, R&B, experimental, rock, jazz, gos ...

star from the girl group

Girls' Generation Girls' Generation (), also known as SNSD, is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group is composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona, and Seohyun. Originally a nine-piece ensembl ...

. Entertainment between rounds was provided by: *

KARA Kara or KARA may refer to: Geography Localities * Kara, Chad, a sub-prefecture * Kára, Hungary, a village * Kara, Uttar Pradesh, India, a township * Kara, Iran, a village in Lorestan Province * Kara, Republic of Dagestan, a rural locality in Da ...

- "

Pandora In Greek mythology, Pandora (Greek: , derived from , ''pān'', i.e. "all" and , ''dōron'', i.e. "gift", thus "the all-endowed", "all-gifted" or "all-giving") was the first human woman created by Hephaestus on the instructions of Zeus. As Hes ...

" *

EXO-K Exo ( ko, 엑소; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean-Chinese boy band based in Seoul formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. The group consists of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai ...

- "

Mama Mama(s) or Mamma or Momma may refer to: Roles *Mother, a female parent * Mama-san, in Japan and East Asia, a woman in a position of authority *Mamas, a name for female associates of the Hells Angels Places *Mama, Russia, an urban-type settlement ...

" The overall winner of ''Quiz on Korea'' was Hulkar Erdonova, a student from Uzbekistan.

Second ''Quiz on Korea''

Thirty countries participated. The final of the second ''Quiz on Korea'' was held on August 31, 2013, and was broadcast on KBS 1 on September 19 during Chuseok. The MCs were: * Hui-jae Lee ( 이휘재), a comedian, * Ga Aeran ( 가애란), a KBS announcer, and * Jae Kyung ( 재경), a

star from the girl group

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

. Entertainment between rounds was provided by: *

Crayon Pop Crayon Pop (Hangul: 크레용팝) is a South Korean girl group formed under Chrome Entertainment in 2012. The group consisted of four members: Geummi, Ellin, Choa, and Way. Their fifth member, Soyul, left the group in 2017. Crayon Pop officiall ...

- "Bar Bar Bar" (Hangul: 빠빠빠) *

B.A.P B.A.P (; an acronym for Best Absolute Perfect) was a South Korean boy band formed in 2012 under TS Entertainment. B.A.P made their musical debut with the single "Warrior" on January 26, 2012, followed by the release of their debut EP ''Warrio ...

- " Badman" *

- " Runaway" The overall winner of the second ''Quiz on Korea'' was Michael Smith from New Zealand.

Third ''Quiz on Korea''

Twenty-one countries participated. The final of the third ''Quiz on Korea'' was held on September 5, 2014, and was broadcast on KBS 1 on September 9 during Chuseok.

References

External links

Official websiteSummary of first ''Quiz on Korea'' (in Korean)Newsclip of second ''Quiz on Korea''Promotional video of ''Quiz on Korea''
{{KBS Entertainment Shows South Korean game shows Korean Broadcasting System original programming