The purpose of this study is to provide basic data that can serve as a guideline for understanding and interpreting the current state of Korean street dance by examining the inflow and development of Locking dance in Korea.

As research methods, interviews with three Locking experts were conducted and each interviewee’s responses were thematically categorized for the analysis of the study. As a result, Locking dance was introduced to Korean people firstly through video materials such as movies, broadcasts, and dance videos from abroad, and later by inviting well-known dancers from different countries to Korean dance competitions as judges. The introduction to Locking dance in Korean society motivated some Korean dancers to invite, various Locking dancers from across the world to Korea for dance workshops, which gave those who learned Locking dance only by watching videos the opportunity to experience the “original” Locking style. Since then, Locking dance in Korea has been more developed through the steady exchanges between Korea dancers and dancers from other countries. Currently, the number of Locking classes, workshops, and events in Korea has drastically increased.

Among the songs and dances of the western regions that spread, via the Silk Road, to the central regions, Hoseonmu, Hodeungmu, and Jajimu—which are the “three dances of the western regions”—were widely popular during the Tang Dynasty. For this reason, they have been the focus of many studies in China. In Korea, studies have focused on the similarities between the Hoseonmu of the Goguryeo Dynasty and that of the western regions, and between the Yeonwhadae, which is the Dangak-jeongjae of the Goryeo Dynasty, and the Jajimu. While there have been studies on the songs and dances based on the poetic literature, there have been few studies on the introduction and development of the culture of song and dance. Thus, this paper aims to explore songs and dances that were introduced and developed in the East Asian region through exchanges, considering how they were first introduced and then expanded to the central regions by focusing on the three major western dances: Hoseonmu, Hodeungmu, and Jajimu. The songs and dances of the western regions were introduced to the central regions long ago, and it is not clear when the different songs and dances were introduced. Since Gyobanggi and other records state that many western songs and dances were found in Geon-Mu and Yeon-Mu, which were representative court songs and dances during the Tang Dynasty, it is clear that the western songs and dances were introduced to the central regions before the Tang Dynasty. Historical records indicate that the cultural exchange of songs and dances between the two regions started during the Han Dynasty, were promoted during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and reached their peak during the Sui and Tang Dynasties. Hoseonmu, Hodeungmu, and Jajimu held the unique spirit of the western regions and spread from the major cities to Chekiang and from Haizhu to Szechuan, influencing not not only Gyobangs but also military camps and even the nobility. In doing so, they converged with the songs and dances of the Han people in the central regions. In this regard, it is safe to say that the introduction of western songs and dances to the central regions had a great impact on the development of songs and dances in the central regions during the Middle Age. The songs and dances of the western regions converged with those of the central regions and created a new culture of song and dance. By increasing the popularity of these songs and dances, which were mostly court music and dances, a new singing and dancing culture was created that everyone could enjoy. This article focuses on how the three dances were introduced to, and developed in, the central regions. Studies are required on how they spread to, and were transformed in, other regions.