연오랑과 세오녀

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Description

연오랑과 세오녀(延烏郞 - 細烏女)는 《삼국유사》(권1, 〈기이〉1, 연오랑 세오녀) 및 《필원잡기》(권2)에 수록되어 전하는 설화이다. 원전은 고려 이전의 문헌인 《수이전》에 실려 있었다고 여겨지며, 태양신(太陽神)에 관한 한국의 신화로 일본 태양신 신화와의 비교연구가 주목되고 있다.

Origin & Background

The story of Yeonorang and Seo-nyeo is said to be included in the fairy tale collection 'Sui-jeon', which is known to have been compiled around the 11th century. In the 13th century, there are records of it for the first time in the 'Giyi' section of 'Samguk Yusa'. It is also included in 'Pilwon Japgi', which was written around the 15th century.

The Legend

Yeonorang and Seo-nyeo were a couple living on the eastern coast of Silla. While Yeonorang was working at sea, he was suddenly swept away by a rock and ended up in Japan. The Japanese people regarded him as a noble and made him their king. To find her husband, Seo-nyeo discovered his shoes and climbed the rock, also ending up in Japan. Later, Yeonorang became the king of Japan, and Seo-nyeo became the queen. In Silla, when the light of the sun and moon disappeared, the sun god wanted to bring them back from Japan, but Yeonorang said he could not return due to the command of heaven. Instead, he told Seo-nyeo to perform a ritual with the silk he had woven. After the ritual was completed, the sun and moon regained their original light.

This article is based on the Wikipedia article "Yeonorang and Seonyeo" (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikipedia