War is not just conflict; it is also a means of confrontation and a reinforcement of one's identification as a member of a group. Summarizing the thoughts of sociologist Émile Durkheim, identity is formed through comparison with the "other": it is the distinction between one’s own group, associated with positive images, and the opposing group, linked to negative elements.  

The Korean War provides a compelling case for understanding identity formation. The temporary division of the Korean Peninsula into two occupation zones, controlled by the Soviets in the North and the Americans in the South, after World War II laid the groundwork for a permanent political and identity-based separation.  

Until 1945, Korea had been under Japanese colonial rule, during which the first national identity ideas began to emerge as a means of distinguishing Koreans from their colonizers. At that time, there was still a single, unified Korean identity centered around the image of an undivided peninsula. However, the occupation led to the establishment of two separate states: the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North) and the Republic of Korea (South). It was the war itself (1950–1953), however, that gave rise to two distinct national identities.  

In the South, the looming threat of invasion from the North served as a unifying force, reinforcing an authoritarian, anti-communist regime. Meanwhile, in the North, the government became increasingly rigid, emphasizing isolationism, mass mobilization, and ideological indoctrination. The war solidified this divide, shaping two distinct identities that would define the entire Cold War era and persist even beyond it.  

In conclusion, as historian Michael Howard once stated, "No nation, in the true sense of the word, could ever be born without a war."