It is believed that "Arirang" originated in Jeongseon, Gangwon Province. "Arirang" as a term today is ambiguous in meaning, but some linguists have hypothesized that "ari" (아리) might have meant "beautiful" in ancient Korean and that "rang" (랑) might have been a way of referring to a "groom." According to a legend, the name is derived from the story of a bachelor and a maiden who fell in love while picking Camellia blossoms near the wharf at Auraji () — a body of water which derives its name from the Korean word "eoureojida" (어우러지다) that translates to something close to "be in harmony" or "to meet," like Auraji connects the waters of Pyeongchang and Samcheok to the Han River. There are two versions of this story. In the first one, the bachelor cannot cross the Auraji to meet the maiden because the water is too high and so, they sing a song to express their sorrow. In the second version, the bachelor attempts to cross the Auraji and drowns, singing the sorrowful song after he dies.