Miryang Baekjung Festival

Whilst Baekjung is a national celebration, the specific festivities in Milyang are regarded as one of the Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea.

[2] It is characterised by prayers to the gods of agriculture; masked dances[3] and "hoe-washing", a form of carnival in which the roles of landlord and labourer are reversed.

[1] The festivities at Miryang begin with a shamanic ritual of supplication to the agricultural deities by the village elders, to purify the area and ensure a bounteous harvest in the coming autumn.

A pole called a nongshindae, similar to a maypole, is raised, and the participants circle it and offer prayers.

These dances tend to be comical satires of their subject, and often include improvisation and impersonation.