Arirang

Arirang is not one song. It is a form: a refrain built on the word arirang, and verses that anyone can add - about leaving, being left, work, hardship, love - so that thousands of variants exist, grouped by region. The three usually named as the main branches are Jeongseon Arirang from the mountains of Gangwon, slow and drawn out; Jindo Arirang from the south-west islands, livelier and often sung with a drum; and Miryang Arirang from Gyeongsangnam, brisker still. The version foreigners hear most, the so-called standard Arirang, was popularised by a 1926 film. Because it is open to new verses, it has served as a work song, a protest song and, in the twentieth century, an unofficial anthem. UNESCO inscribed it in 2012. Jeongseon holds a festival and runs a permanent centre where the local version is performed and taught.

What you actually see

• The regional versions - Jeongseon, Jindo and Miryang, each distinct.
• The open verses - lines improvised and added by singers.
• The Jeongseon centre - regular performances and teaching in Gangwon.
• The autumn festival - Jeongseon's Arirang festival.

When to go

Any time for a performance; autumn for the Jeongseon festival. The Jeongseon centre has a fixed schedule, which makes it the most reliable place to hear an unstaged version.

Honest expectations

This is a song, not a site. Lyrics are in dialect and untranslated. The version played to tourists is usually the 1926 popular one rather than a regional original.

Nearby

Jeongseon in Gangwon, Jindo in Jeollanam and Miryang in Gyeongsangnam are the home regions.