The Story of Arirang

Arirang
The Name of Korean
Korean Traditional Folk Song.
Main Theme Song of 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup

[tillyd]

My little sister was adopted from Korea when she was 3 years old. She used to hum Arirang without me realising that she was singing it. Now, on her 6th birthday I was just watching a video of SoHyang. The moment she started singing my sister started to cry and told me she always hummed it when she was scared but that she had lost the words. So on her 6th birthday I gave her the words of Arirang. This song is so special to our family.

[donnajarrell]

My father was in US Air Force. I lived at Hickam AFB for 4 years. At my school during my 5th an 6th grades (1961 & 1962) I was in the school choir. The teacher who was the choir director taught us songs from many different countries. We learned two Korean songs one of which was "Arirang." I was 10 and 11 years old at that time. I am now 68 and to this day I remember most of the songs I learned from my teacher Mrs. Tom. She was half Swedish and half Korean - she was beautiful. She had visited Korea many times and had Korean instruments to accompany the choir (she taught us how to play them). We had the traditional Korean flutes, the hand held paddle drums and two very large hour glass drums which she had us use during performances. She also taught choir members traditional dances from many countries. Because of the huge multi-cultural make up of the Hawaiian Islands we also had acquired traditional clothes to wear from the various countries. The other Korean song's English title was Longing for Brother" and is just as beautiful as "Arirang"." I wish I could find it online. The story is a sad one also it is about a young girl waiting for her brother to return after leaving home. But he never returns. The first line of song (English phonetics) is U le u le ue u le o. The tune is a very soft and sorrowful one. Mrs. Tom required perfection from our choir and as a result we sounded almost professional and were invited to sing at venues all over the island of Oahu. Perhaps someone out there knows the other Korean song and can present it on YouTube. Having been a military "brat" and later I myself was in the US Navy I had the awesome opportunity to live in and experience different cultures. I always engrossed myself in those cultures, tried my best to learn the language (usually not well but I tried) and not be "the arrogant American." As a result I made friends with the local community and was often included in activities usually reserved for close family. I was treated like family and loved as family. I always had more local friends than American friends I also learned to cook traditional foods which I still do to this day (my favorites are Portuguese Al catre, Fillipino lumpia nd Chinese dumplings). Wish all peoples of the world could unite with each other and live in harmony as I did with others different from me. To this day I have friends of various cultures and backgrounds. My best friends are University professors who hand been in USA for 1 yr working at University of Oklahoma. One, along with her 7 yr old son, was my roommate for 9 months. She is from Chongqing China. In often video chat with her on WeChat.

[JungKiBok]

Subtitle) The Joseon Dynasty

Na) No one knows who was the first person to sing Arirang. But we know that somewhere in the distant past, Arirang was sung by the people living in mountain villages in Korea. It was handed down by word of mouth. No one could have realized then that Arirang, a very long time later, would have acquired the cultural value it embodies today for humanity to treasure.

Na) Young Koreans these days are enjoying Arirang in many different ways. Arirang is a culture of sharing revealing that we are one.

Na) Korean children don’t learn Arirang through a musical score. Children simply absorb the Arirang sung by their parents and grandparents. It becomes second nature to them. 

Na) This unique sentiment formed naturally during childhood also becomes part of the core of Koreans’ creativity.

Subtitle) Art, Film, Literature, Performance

Na) A variety of versions of Arirang exists in Korea.

Subtitle) Sung by Lee Chun-hee, the Master Singer (Intangible Cultural Asset Number 57 Gyeonggi Folksong Human Cultural Asset)

Subtitle) “Arirang, Arirang, Arariyo, Over the heart of the Arirang hill”

Na) To the older generation, the song embraces other meanings as well.

Subtitle) “There are songs we sing when working in the field when the going gets tough; there are songs we sing when it is hard to live with the in-laws.”

Subtitle)”It’s because of the pent-up piles of sorrow and sadness that couldn’t be released.”

Na) Arirang was a song of consolation to oneself, living a hard life in the country of poverty.

Subtitle)”It just flows out, without me even realizing it. I sing Arirang when I am sad, and when I am happy.”

Na) Like the pain of love and goodbye there are the hills of life that everyone has to conquer. It is the song that people sang when walking along those curves of life, the curves of happiness, sadness, love and anger. The song longing to transform the despair into hope. That is Arirang. 

Subtitle) Japanese Occupation Period 1910~1945

Na) Korea was invaded and occupied by Japan during the era of imperialism.

Subtitle) Independence Fighters against Japan

Na) People were grieving under the Japanese brutal rule, and the wave of resistance to bring the country back had grown fiercer.

Subtitle) Film [Arirang]-The embodiment of hurtful and suffering life during the period of colonization

Na) The film <Arirang> evoked an intense sympathy and Arirang became the symbol of resistance. It was not just a song. It became the spirit of the nation. 

Subtitle) 1945, Independence

Na) After regaining the motherland, Koreans had to endure another war and the pain of being torn into two parts.

Subtitle) Division and War

Na) Koreans of the 20th century had to experience one of the harshest hardships. Only 60 years ago, Korea was one of the poorest countries in the world.

Subtitle) One of the world’s poorest countries.
But Koreans didn’t let go of hope.

Na) From a farming country to an industrial nation, from a country in need to provide help- Korean people ran towards the hope from the dawn to the night. And finally, achieving it.

Na) The world have called it the “Miracle of the Han River.”

Subtitle) Miracle of the Han River

Na) Koreans always had a strong, tough grasp of life. They also had Arirang that brought out hope, giving consolation to the people who sang it to each other. The living strength of Arirang was that of Koreans.

Subtitle) 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup

Na) In 2002 at the Korea-Japan World Cup, Koreans’ shouts yearning for victory became Arirang.

Subtitle) The 69th Venice Film Festival/Best Director, Kim Ki-Duk

Na) After receiving the director’s award, the Korean movie director sings Arirang instead of his award speech. 

Subtitle) The 21st Vancouver Winter Olympic Gold medalist Kim Yuna

Na) The Korean figure skater on top of the world shows her respect towards her mother country with Arirang.

Na) Arirang now has become a song to express passion and joy.

Na) Arirang also touches the hearts of the people of other countries.

Subtitle) Pianist, George Winston
“Arirang has a touch of the Blues. The music has the feeling that transcends culture or nations.”

Subtitle) Jazz Singer, Inger Marie
“The sentiment this song is embracing vibes into my heart. Arirang is a song full of emotion. It is a deeply appealing song of the world. ”

Subtitle) 2012 Arirang, UNESCO-Designated

Na) In 2012, Arirang was designated as Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Na) Koreans wish to share Arirang with the people of the world. As it did it for Koreans, Koreans believe that Arirang could bring hope and consolation to each and every one of the people all over the world.

Na) Arirang emerged from the hearts of the ordinary people of Korea. People sang it to themselves and to each other. It made it possible for the people to "ascend the summit called an era." And it came to represent their spirit and their hope for the future. Koreans now sing Arirang, for the whole planet, in every part of the world.

[lianalynnyapin]

🎵 Arirang, arirang, Arariyo 🎶 ☺☺☺ my love that songs country for korean 🇰🇷 very so sound good time heard of today and i was remember korean singing then voice century ago before us meaning something them grand called nature life history i never hear that before more inspirational people new generation to generation 😢 also han river so amazing 🥰😊☺

[faeriegloss]

I’m Puerto Rican but my ancestors were Korean ( so I’m ethnically Korean ) and looking at this is so beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. My great grandmother was in the war and she escaped with the Indians over to Puerto Rico for a better life for her and her daughter. She taught her daughter this song and it went down for generations. She was a brave woman. This song is very special

[osas]

I don't live in Korea but everytime I listen to Arirang I get goosebumps and feel so many things at once. It's an amazing song.

[viatravel]

I am a housekeeper for a Hospital and many of our patients were veterans. Yesterday, for the first time I met a Korean War veteran who fought for the freedom of South Korea. He was one of the US soldiers deployed to Korea and when I walked into the room, I said hello not knowing who he was or what stories he had buried in his heart and mind. Eventually I told him my love story with the guy I am engaged to (who so happens to be a Korean citizen) and told him I will be going to live in Korea with him and further my education over there as well. He looked into my eyes, watery and fragile, he said "He takes good care of you right?" I responded with a "yes sir he does." and he said "When you go over there, open your mind to their culture, and be nice to those Koreans you hear me? Teach them a bit about us and let them teach you." My eyes were watering but I kept a straight face and nodded my head. He told me his stories about seeing the korean children so astonished at the american soldiers for helping them, and told me the poverty they faced years ago. He spoke of how the korean children would beg for foood and he always ended up giving them as much as he could, since food was sparse. I realized the staff of my hospital didnt give him an american flag for the service he did (so I grabbed one for him) and saluted him strongly. With tears rolling down his face he asked me to do him a favor. I said, whatever you need I will do for you. He asked me to find a song he sang with the korean people while serving in Korea and so eventually I found it. I told him that no matter what happens to him, I will save a seat for him at my wedding in Korea so he may come. It was that moment where I turned to him and cried because I knew he wouldnt be alive for my wedding. I will never forget what he taught me. I will never forget to get him the last thing he wanted which was a vinyl of this song, and once I get married I will play this in his honor. One stranger, an old man, made such a connection with me and is now placed in my heart forever. Its amazing how one person can touch your heart so strongly. Korea, you made it. You are strong people and always have been. Its an honor to learn your culture and to have an opportunity to study there.

[justline]

Why did I cry the whole time watching this💕💙👑 it's amazing, that's why we have triaditional songs that root us and remind us, our long ago struggles and how we got here. So, grateful for such knowledge and blessings🙏🙏🙏

[carolineleean]

My birth mother, standing next to me here in the photo you can see... she was born in 1919 and lived through many difficult years. I was born in 1962 when mother was about 43. I was the last of the six children my mother birthed. I am so proud to be born in Korea, to the mother and father, and siblings I had and still have. my mother passed on July 31, 2020 when she was 2 weeks shy of her 101st birthday. Strong, enduring, positive woman I had and I am fortunate to have inherited her strength, enduring and positive spirit. This is especially meaningful to me today as I will be 60 in two days. God Bless us all in our mother country, our adopted country, our planet we all share!

[abjithmanoharan]

Hey guy's I'm a tamilan from tamilnadu...there's is song as like "arirang" in tamil as "araro ariraro" it's traditional song...

[nicolasgoldring]

It's nice to see the history of one of the most iconic and influential songs on Earth, originating from a very beautiful land: Korea.

[emills]

I was taught this song when I was in 6th grade in Maryland. We learned and performed the song in our choir class. One of our fellow students was from Korea and she played the piano was a sang. This was over 30 years ago, and I still find myself singing it at times. Let us all pray for reunification

[apakejadah]

the facts that veteran turkish soldier in korean war sang this song just brought me here to deeply know about this song..

[MilanRai-ot]

Credit goes to respected granny’s ..missing Korea, beautiful people with the most beautiful hearts.🥰

[ARIS-Komuniszt]

Hopefully North and South may reunite some day.

[airahwafaaa]

I'm from the Philippines, When So Hyang sing this song, even I dont understand every lyrics, I feel the emotions, that I can't stop crying, so I search the meaning of Arirang made me goosebumps when I heard the meaning.

[michaelverive]

We learned this in band as “Variations on a Korean Folk Song”, and the melody stuck with me, and I learned to play it on guitar. 20 years later as a medical student I worked as a research assistant for the director of Pediatric Endocrinology (Dr. Songya Pang). She hosted a Christmas party one year and I brought my guitar. At one point she brought out a harmonica and played Arirang. I immediately recognized it and played it with her. The smile it brought to her face was amazing! 20+ years later after studying cello for 5 years I recorded it and sent it to her, and she remembered when I played it with her decades earlier. Every time I hear or play this song I think fondly of my former mentor in Pediatric Endocrinology.

[Dale]

And in 2018 the Arirang became the OBS theme of Winter Olympics in Korea. I liked it from the get go!

[dipmala]

I don't know why but I'm crying 😭😭😭

[KevinVang]

It sounds soooo Hmong. We suffer the same. As a Hmong person, we are half-brothers through our father, Emperor Chiyou. We may not be related by blood, but Chiyou, our father, had three wives. Koreans are our second baby brother.

Hmong and Koreans share the same father. He is known as Emperor Chang/Jiang Chiyou Yang.

I am proud of my baby half-brother. The Hmong people are happy that you've grown so much. Remember us, Korea.