Namwon Sanseong
Unknown (Jeolla Oral Tradition)
Region
Jeolla Province
Genre
Usage
Namdo Folk Song
Recreational Song
Namwon Sanseong is a southern folk song opening with "Climbing up Namwon Fortress," also called Dungga Taryeong for the "dungga" repeated in its refrain. It strings together a quick, joyful spring scene seen from the fortress: hawks and skylarks, gulls and orioles. This record is archive material collected to organize and preserve the representative lyrics and the transmission context of Namwon Sanseong.
Commentary & Notes
Namwon Sanseong: Gyoryong Fortress on Mount Gyoryong in Namwon, a natural stronghold once supplied with 99 wells and water gates in every valley.
Sujini, naljini, haedongcheong, boramae: The names of every kind of hawk — the tamed hawk, the wild hawk, the gyrfalcon, the young hunting hawk — packed nine to twelve syllables per rhythmic cycle.
Each verse is followed by the refrain "Eheya eya eya dungga, heoheo dungga dungga, nae sarang-iroguna" ("…you are my love"), and verses run from two to five rhythmic cycles.
Cultural Background
Namwon Sanseong began to be performed in the early 20th century alongside southern standing songs such as Yukjabaegi and Kkaturi Taryeong, and it pairs with Kkaturi Taryeong to close a southern performance in high spirits. Set in Namwon, home of the pansori epic Chunhyangga, it remains a fixture of southern folk song concerts today.
Lyrics
남원산성 올라가
이화문전 바라보니
수진이 날진이 해동청 보라매
떴다 보아라 저 종달새
석양은 늘어져 갈매기 울고
능수버들 가지 휘늘어진데
꾀꼬리는 짝을 지어
이 산으로 가며 꾀꼬리 루리루
Climbing up Namwon Fortress,
I look toward the gate of pear blossoms —
young hawks and falcons, the gyrfalcon, the hunting hawk
soar up — and look, there goes a skylark!
The sunset lingers, the gulls cry,
and on drooping willow boughs
the orioles, two by two,
fly off across the hills — kkoekkori, ruriru!
