Translating Korean manhwa

Abstract

When translating Korean literature, we often come across words and phrases that might not have a direct equivalent in the target language. One of the most difficult genres to translate is, in our opinion, the comic, or the manhwa. We try to offer illustrative examples of translation from the source language, which is Korean, into the target language, which is English, with emphasis on translating words and phrases that might pose problems, such as culture-bound words, names of places, and characters. We will also discuss other linguistic phenomena that are common to graphic novels, such as mots expresifs, onomatopoeia, charactonyms, also tackling issues regarding historical references, cultural references, behavior, and customs pertaining to the source, but also a target, social groups. The reason why we are focusing on translating manhwa2 is the fact that it has started to become more and more popular in other cultures/countries. We chose the manhwa called 신과 함께 (Along with the Gods), as it is one of the most popular of its kind, and it is one that intertwines Korean folklore, tradition, history, and mythical creatures with contemporaneity.