Arang (Korean narration)
| Korean spelling | |
|---|---|
| Korean alphabet : | 아랑 |
| Hanja : | 阿娘 |
| Revised Romanization : | Arang |
| McCune-Reischauer : | Arang |
Arang is a character in a Korean folk tale . It is one of the most important stories about wongwi ( 원귀 ) - spirits who seek justice through revenge on their tormentors. Arang's real name was Yun Dong-ok ( 윤동옥 / 尹東玉 ) and lived in the mid-16th century.
action
Arang was the daughter of the magistrate of Miryang the time of the Joseon Dynasty . A minor official in the service of the magistrate fell in love with the sight of her. But he knew that he could never take her as his wife. So he bribed her nanny to set a trap for her. When the officer suddenly came to her and confessed his love to her, Arang refused. The officer became intrusive and eventually killed her when she continued to forcefully repel him. The magistrate sent a search party in vain. But she couldn't be found. At one point her father was summoned back to Seoul and others were given the positions of Miryang Magistrate. But all of them died the next day after their inauguration. The rumor spread that the spirit of Arang would haunt them. No one was willing to accept the post until a courageous young nobleman was found who wanted to reveal the secret.
When he was smoking a pipe in his room on his first evening as magistrate, a frightening apparition suddenly appeared in his room. But the young magistrate pulled himself together and asked the figure what it wanted. She came closer and it became apparent that she had a dagger in her chest and three red flags in her hand. The magistrate looked at it and finally nodded that he understood the message. Then the ghost disappeared.
When the magistrate's board of directors arrived the next morning, the magistrate asked if he knew anyone called Hong Kisam. Because hong means “red”, ki means “flag” and sam means “three”. Since the ghost held three red flags, it occurred to him. It turned out that one of the officers was actually called Hong Ki-sam. He confessed to the crime and revealed the place where he buried Arang. A shrine was built to appease the spirit of the late Arang and to preserve their memory.
Since it is an orally transmitted story for over a century, there are also many variations. There are also variants in which the nanny intrigues against Arang, in which Arang can successfully defend himself but her father then suspects lewd behavior and kills her, in which Arang appears as a butterfly and marks the murderer. The names of the people can also be different in the various traditions.
heritage
The Aranggak Shrine is one of the most important cultural heritages of Miryang. The story continued to find its way into the folk song Miryang Arirang and the Dongyahwijip and Cheongguyadam history collections . Furthermore, the horror film Haunted Village (original title Arang ) by Ahn Sang-hoon was released in 2006, which is based on the folk tale. The television series Tale of Arang ( 아랑 사또 전 ), also known as Arang and the Magistrate , tells the story of the ghost Arang who, with the help of the magistrate , searches for her killer. Shin Mina and Lee Jun-ki can be seen in the main roles .