Miryang

The recorded history of Miryang dates back to the Samhan period, when it was known as Mirimidongguk. Due to its strategic location near the Nakdong River, it played an important role from the Silla period onward. It served as a key station on the Great Yeongnam Road during the later Joseon Dynasty and, in the 20th century, became a stop on the Gyeongbu Line railroad connecting Busan to Seoul. Today, Miryang remains an important stop on that line and is the only city between Busan and Daegu served by KTX express trains.

Miryang is renowned throughout Korea for the Arirang and for the view from the Yeongnamnu Pavilion, a subject of numerous poems from the Joseon period. Other notable landmarks include Eoreumgol and the Pyochungsa. Historical figures from the city include the 15th-century Neo-Confucian scholar Kim Chong-jik and the 16th-century warrior-monk Songun Yu Jeong. The city government actively preserves the memory of these figures, as well as other local cultural traditions such as the legend of Arang.