Seoul (/soʊl/; 서울; Korean: [sʰʌ.ul]) – officially the Seoul Special City (서울특별시) – is the capital and largest metropolis of the Republic of Korea, forming the heart of the Seoul Capital Area, which includes the surrounding Incheon metropolis and Gyeonggi province, the world's 14th largest city and second largest metropolitan area. It is home to over half of all South Koreans along with 678,102 international residents.