China's 'Cultural Theft' Targeting Arirang: "Protect Korean Folk Songs," VANK Petition to Cheong

VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea) created posters in Korean and English to oppose China's cultural imperialism and distributed them on social networking services (SNS).
[Photo by VANK official blog capture]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Arirang is one of Korea's representative folk songs. Transmitted and recreated widely across regions and generations, Arirang is characterized by having no fixed lyrics and an open theme, allowing anyone to sing it freely.

Along with lyrics that have developed differently in each region, the chorus "Arirang Arirang Arariyo" makes it easy for anyone to create and sing their own version, which was recognized for its value of diversity and registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2012.

However, recently China has shown movements to appropriate it as its own culture. According to VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea) on the 16th, Baidu, China's largest portal site, claims that "Arirang is the culture of the Joseonjok, and since the Joseonjok are part of China, their culture is all part of Chinese culture." There are also claims that Korean folk songs belong to Chinese culture.

In response, VANK rebutted, stating, "The term Joseonjok is one of the names newly created by the Chinese government in 1956 to manage ethnic minorities within China." The Joseonjok are not an actual ethnic minority but an administrative category created for governance in China.

Furthermore, VANK criticized China's claim that the culture of the Joseonjok belongs to China as an extension of the Northeast Project. The Northeast Project refers to China's effort to incorporate all history developed within its territory into Chinese history. Through this, China asserts that the history and culture of ethnic minorities within its borders belong to the Chinese nation and even attempts to appropriate Korea's culture, according to VANK.

In fact, China previously registered Goguryeo and Balhae relics within the Great Wall as its cultural heritage and later as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage after restoration work. It also built large-scale sculptures and museums including Goguryeo and Balhae sites and created extensive parks. Moreover, it registered Nongak (farmers' music), Janggu dance, and Neolttwigi (Korean seesaw) as national intangible cultural assets, and included traditional swing riding, traditional weddings, and traditional costumes as cultural heritage.

Notably, China registered Arirang as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2011. At that time, the Chinese Ministry of Culture included Arirang in the State Council's notification on the third registration of national-level intangible cultural heritage. Other included items were Gayageum art and Pansori.

China's largest portal site, Baidu, introduces Korea's Arirang as a song of the Joseonjok ethnic group. Baidu claims that Arirang is part of the Joseonjok culture and since the Joseonjok are part of China, these cultures are all considered part of Chinese culture.
[Photo by Baidu capture]

Meanwhile, VANK produced posters in Korean and English opposing China's cultural imperialism and distributed them on social networking services (SNS). The posters were created to depict China's attempt to take Korea's Arirang.

They also posted a petition on the global petition site 'Bridge Asia (bridgeasia.net)'. In the petition, VANK explained the composition and value of Arirang, introducing it as "a song embodying Korean sentiment and a folk song that contains human creativity, freedom of expression, and respect for empathy." It emphasized that "it is a living heritage that highlights Korea's characteristic of respecting cultural diversity by accepting different lyrics in each region."

They added, "China claims not only Korean songs but also various Korean heritage and culture such as Hanbok and Kimchi as its own," and stated, "We strongly criticize China's cultural imperialism that tries to appropriate Korean culture."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.