在多如繁星的阿美族現代流行歌謠中，〈馬蘭姑娘〉大概可算是最為人熟知的一首。該曲以一位阿美族女子的愛情訴求為主題，臺東馬蘭部落的阿美族知名女歌星盧靜子的演唱被視為代表性的版本。民族音樂學者採錄過旋律十分接近的變體，且往往被視為衍生自盧靜子的唱片錄音，可能的理由不外乎是唱片具有較高的流通能力以及民間歌唱慣有的即興色彩。然而透過田野訪查、旋律以及歌詞用語的探討發現，盧靜子的演唱版本可能不是〈馬蘭姑娘〉的原貌，曲子也不是源自於馬蘭部落。〈馬蘭姑娘〉還數度改編為國語版及臺語版的歌曲，搭配的是以山地少女與平地青年戀愛故事為主軸的電視劇、電影或小說，造成此曲十分流行，而衍生出諸多翻唱版本，現在大家演唱的阿美語歌曲可能也是受到漢語改編的影響，以至於旋律與歌詞與早期面貌不同。〈馬蘭姑娘〉之所以流行，除了歌曲本身動聽以外，其實還因為數十年來眾多漢人音樂家、作詞家、編劇家的創作貢獻，這些作品建構出一個想像出來的原住民世界，甚至也影響到現在原住民的認同意識。

“The Maiden of Malan,” possibly the best-known modern Amis popular song, tells about the romance of an Amis maiden. A famous rendering of this song is recorded by an Amis singer Lu Jingzi, from Malan, Taidong. Ethnomusicologists have since collected several very similar tunes. Considering the prevalence of the album and the folk singers’ tendency to improvise, they were taken to be derivations from Lu Jingzi’s recording. However, field investigation and studies of the rhythm and lyrics indicate otherwise. Lu Jingzi’s interpretation might not be original, nor did the song come from Malan. “The Maiden of Malan” has been adapted into mandarin and Taiwanese versions, used as theme songs for TV series, film and fiction that feature a romance between an aboriginal maiden and a Han young man. Because of the popularity of this song, there are several cover versions. The current Amis version of “The Maiden of Malan” was possibly influenced by the mandarin version; its rhythm and lyrics are different from those of the earlier one. In addition to its pleasant tune, creative adaptation by Han musicians, lyric writers, and dramatists all contribute to the success of “The Maiden of Malan.” They constructed an imagined world of the aboriginal people that in turn influenced the aboriginal people’s self-identity.