"Tears of Mokpo" () is a Korean-language

trot The trot is a two-beat diagonal horse gait where the diagonal pairs of legs move forward at the same time with a moment of suspension between each beat. It has a wide variation in possible speeds, but averages about . A very slow trot is som ...

song released in 1935. Its lyrics were written by Mun Ilsŏk (), it was composed by , and it was first sung by

Lee Nan-young Lee Nan-young (; June 6, 1916 – April 11, 1965) was a Korean singer and actress most famous for the 1935 hit trot song "Tears of Mokpo", which sold 50,000 copies. Biography Lee was born in Mokpo, Zenranan Province, Korea under Japanese rule, ...

. The song has remained consistently popular since its release, and has been regarded as a representative song of the trot genre and as Lee's most famous song. It is also strongly associated with the city of

Mokpo Mokpo (; ) is the List of cities in South Korea, third largest and most densely populated city in South Jeolla Province, South Korea, located at the southwestern tip of the Korean Peninsula, close to Yudal mountain. Mokpo has frequent high-speed ...

, and mentions several features of it, but is broadly popular in the rest of South Korea too.

Description

The song was produced during the 1910–1945 Japanese colonial period. In early 1935, the Korean newspaper ''

The Chosun Ilbo ''The Chosun Ilbo'' (, ), also known as ''The Chosun Daily,'' is a Korean-language newspaper of record for South Korea and among the oldest active newspapers in the country. With a daily circulation of more than 1,800,000, ''The'' ''Chosun Ilbo ...

'' held a song-writing contest, with an offer to produce a recording of the winning lyrics by September of that year. This song won the contest. The song quickly achieved immense success; it sold 50,000 copies and also became popular in Japan, under the Japanese name . The song elevated Lee's career. The song can be interpreted as a sad love song; its lyrics seemingly evoke images of someone longing for another. Who is being longed for is left ambiguous; some have interpreted the target as being Korea, and the song as expressing

Korean nationalism Korean nationalism can be viewed in two different contexts. One encompasses various movements throughout history to maintain a Korean cultural identity, history, and ethnicity (or "race"). This ethnic nationalism was mainly forged in opposition ...

. Upon the song's publication, it reportedly quickly drew suspicion from colonial authorities, especially due to one line, which could be interpreted as lamenting 300 years of resentment. While the lyric was excused away during the questioning, the composer of the song later wrote in his autobiography that the lyric was indeed about Korea's resentment towards Japan, which had invaded Korea 300 years earlier. The line references Nojeokbong, a mountain that featured in Korean admiral

Yi Sun-sin Yi Sun-sin (; ; April 28, 1545 – December 16, 1598) was a Korean admiral and military general known for his victories against the Japanese navy during the Imjin War in the Joseon period. Yi's courtesy name was Yŏhae (여해), and he was po ...

's successful defense of Korea. The song is in a time signature, and in a

D minor D minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative major is F major and its parallel major is D major. The D natural minor scale is: Changes needed ...

pentatonic scale A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave, in contrast to heptatonic scales, which have seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale). Pentatonic scales were developed independently by many ancient ci ...

. It is of the trot genre. It has been described as sounding influenced by Japanese music, especially the Japanese genre of ''

enka is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than ''ryūkōka'' music, pop ...

''. The song's popularity is associated with an image of Lee wearing the Korean ''

hanbok The hanbok () is the traditional clothing of the Koreans, Korean people. The term ''hanbok'' is primarily used by South Koreans; North Koreans refer to the clothes as (). The clothes are also worn in the Korean diaspora. Koryo-saram—ethnic Ko ...

'', and singing in a demure manner. The song has remained consistently popular since. It was popular to the extent that in the 1960s, American soldiers were attested to knowing about the song, and in 1966 ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote an article about it. There is a monument to the song on the slopes of

Yudalsan Yudalsan () is a mountain located in Mokpo, South Korea. It is tall. The mountain is sometimes called the Gaegol of the Honam Region, in reference to a nickname for Geumgangsan (now in North Korea). It is one of the "8 Scenes of Mokpo" and is ...

in Mokpo. One survey published in 2016 had people describing the song as a Korean national anthem. Japanese people have covered and rereleased the music over time. In 2024, a Japanese girl named sang a viral cover of the song that reached over 2 million views on YouTube and received praise from many Korean people. Several observers have commented that covers such as these have been seen as symbolic bridges for often-fraught Japan–Korea relations.

Accolades and honors

References

{{Authority control Culture of Korea under Japanese rule 1935 songs Songs in Korean Trot songs