What is the meaning behind the Mingle Game Song from Squid Game? Origins of the viral song, explored

The Mingle game song from Squid Game has gone viral on social media, thanks to its catchy and adorable tune. The second season of the Korean survival thriller series arrived on Netflix in December 2024, and the tune has been stuck in the audience's minds ever since.

The song has become a sensation across the globe despite being in a language that is not understood by many. Amid all the bloodshed and violence in the show, the track comes as a breath of fresh air, especially due to the endearing dance moves of Thanos and Nam-gyu.

The Mingle game song is a nursery rhyme that is recited by kids and is quite popular in South Korean kindergarten schools. It is called Dunggulge dunggulge in Korean, while its English title is Round and Round.

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Squid Game’s Mingle game song is a nursery rhyme

The song first appears in Squid Game season 2 episode 5, and instantly becomes a fan favorite. Like other challenges in the show, Mingle is also based on games played by kids.

In this round, the players have to step onto a rotating carousel, which moves while the Round and Round rhyme is played. As soon as the music stops, the players are asked to form groups of a particular number and lock the entire group in a room. If they fail to do so, they are shot and eliminated.

While the challenge is horrifying, the song that plays in the background is actually a lively and chirpy rhyme that catches everyone's attention. What makes the song even more special is Thanos and Nam-gyu’s performance.

While other players are scared for their lives, these two are seen vibing to the music with some iconic moves that provide much-needed comic relief in the high-stakes drama. The song is now going viral on social media platforms like TikTok.

Considering its popularity, Netflix released a lyrical version of the song on their secondary YouTube channel, Still Watching Netflix. The video has already amassed more than 42 million views. Round and Round or Dunggulge dunggulge seems to be the Korean counterpart of the English rhyme Ring a Ring o' Roses.

Here is the complete English translation of the nursery rhyme:

“Round and round, clap! Let's spin around and dance together. Clapping our hands, clap! Singing our songs, clap! La la la la, let's joyfully dance. Ring-a-ring-a-ring, ring-a-ring-a-ring. Hand in hand, all together. Let's happily jump around!”

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The origin of the Mingle game song from Squid Game

Dunggulge dunggulge has been around for decades. It was created in 1971 with lyrics from Jeong Geun and music by Dr. Lee Soo-In. Over the years, the rhyme became immensely popular in South Korean kindergarten schools.

With Squid Game, it has now reached and impressed adult audiences worldwide. The lyricist, Jeong Geun, was a television writer who worked on several shows and wrote children’s books. Dr. Lee Soo-In was a music composer who taught Classical music to children.

Like other nursery rhymes, Round and Round is also available on children's YouTube channels like Pinkfong. Interestingly, the animated video featured on Pinkfong showcases children spinning together while holding each other's arms, a move that Thanos and Nam-gyu recreated in Squid Game.

As the song continues to make waves on social media, it has become one of the most unexpected things to go viral out of a show that is full of deaths and bloodshed.

Squid Game seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Netflix.