Ariran

“Ariran” is a famous Korean folk song. It is considered the unofficial anthem of Korea. There are countless versions in each region.

There are many interpretations of the meaning of this word. Here we will consider one of them. The word “Ariran” is written with three hieroglyphs. The first character “e” (愛) means “love”, the meaning of the second character “ry” (里) is “village”, the third character “ran” (嶺) can be translated as “mountain range”. So it means the path leading to the village you love.

Gradually, “Eriran” turned into “Ariran”, that’s how this name appeared. It means “clear day when we will find lost love”. What does Mount Ariran symbolize? In the song it is said that the people of Korea must go over the pass and overcome 12 mountain peaks. It also says that a person’s legs will hurt and he will fall down without strength before walking even 10 miles (4 km). Also, in the last part of the song there are such words: “village of love”.

The song “Ariran” has a sad content. Often when Koreans sing Ariran, they cry. For thousands of years, the Korean people lived in difficult conditions, constantly being attacked. They kept the root of sorrow (khan) in their heart. This shows the character of the long-suffering people.

Korean folk songs contain many indications of how people will live in the future. And in the song “Ariran” there is also a message that it is necessary to win after overcoming the Ariran pass.