It dates to the Joseon Dynasty and is one of the central cultural treasures of Miryang.
Also near the Yeongnamnu stand the Aranggak pavilion and the Miryang City Museum.
The first pavilion was probably constructed on this site in the Silla period, as part of the now-vanished temple of Yeongnamsa.
That pavilion was torn down in the late Goryeo period and replaced by the precursor of the current structure.
The Yeongnamnu shares its name with Yeongnam, the traditional region of Korea in which Miryang is located.