South Korea
애국가
Aegukga
Aegukga
1896
1948
Yun Chi-ho or Ahn Changho (debated)
Ahn Eak-tai
🌿 Nature ❤ Love of homeland 💪 Resilience ✝ God / Faith |
Key Facts
- 1. Composer Ahn Eak-tai wrote the melody while living in Spain and later conducted the premiere with a European orchestra, but he never returned to Korea to hear it performed as the official anthem.
- 2. The anthem references Mount Baekdu, which actually sits on the North Korean-Chinese border, meaning South Korea's anthem celebrates a mountain it has no territorial access to.
- 3. South Korean law does not require citizens to stand for the anthem, but a specific etiquette code published by the government suggests placing the right hand over the heart.
Lyrics
동해물과 백두산이 마르고 닳도록
하느님이 보우하사 우리나라 만세.
[후렴]
무궁화 삼천리 화려강산
대한사람 대한으로 길이 보전하세.
남산 위에 저 소나무 철갑을 두른 듯
바람서리 불변함은 우리 기상일세.
[후렴]
가을 하늘 공활한데 높고 구름 없이
밝은 달은 우리 가슴 일편단심일세.
[후렴]
이 기상과 이 맘으로 충성을 다하여
괴로우나 즐거우나 나라 사랑하세.
[후렴]
Translations are non-official and intended to convey meaning, not replace originals
Analysis
EditorialThe lyrics were written around 1907 during the Korean Empire's final years, when Japan was tightening its colonial grip. The original melody was actually the Scottish tune 'Auld Lang Syne,' which Koreans sang for decades. The current melody was composed by Ahn Eak-tai in 1935 while he was studying in Spain, and officially adopted in 1948.