A star for Mong-ryong

The city of Namwon decided to appoint the Arcturus star as the Mong-ryong star for this year's Chun-hyang festival.

Arcturus is a star 6 times brighter than the North Star and means the "guard of the Bear".

Namwon city appointed Arcturus as Mong-ryong's star with the hope that it will guard true love and truth in much the same manner that Mong-ryong defended law and justice as royal inspector.

The city appointed Spica (the alpha star of Virgo) as the star of Chun-hyang last year.

The city will install an astrominical telescope at the playground at Namwon middle school. There will be a "Chun-hyang star party" that will include the appointment and proclamation of the Mong-ryong star as well as a Chun-hyang star search tournament.

A resident of Namwon city said that they decided to give famous names to the stars with the hopes of internationalizing the famous tale of Mong-ryong and Chun-hyang.

by Chang Dae-suk