[Publishing Industry Upheaval]⑥ Will a Korean Nobel Literature Laureate Emerge in 10 Years?

Increase in Number of Translated Publications and Awards... Significant Support from the Literature Translation Institute of Korea
Along with Translation, International Literary Sensibility is Crucial
Particularly Focusing on Female Writers at the Intersection of Diverse Hardships

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo Mideum] "The thin white conical hat is neatly folded, fluttering like a butterfly." - Jo Jihoon's 'Seungmu'

It is a poem that almost every Korean knows, but conveying its sentiment to foreigners is not easy. This is because it must be reborn through the translation process, and Jo Jihoon's Seungmu is a classic example illustrating the difficulties of translation. It is also cited as a reason why no Korean has won the Nobel Prize in Literature, with the excuse?often repeated?that Korean sensibility is too rich to be fully captured in a foreign language.

However, this trend is changing. Since author Han Kang won the Booker Prize, one of the world's top three literary awards, in 2016 for 'The Vegetarian' (Changbi), the Korean literary world has been excited by this remarkable achievement despite the handicap of being a translated work. Moreover, Han Kang was shortlisted again for the Booker Prize in 2018 with her work 'White' (Munhakdongne). Following that, earlier this year, author Park Sangyoung was longlisted for the Booker Prize with 'Love in the Big City' (Changbi), and author Jeong Bora was shortlisted with 'The Curse Rabbit' (Ajac).

The reason for these global literary awards is attributed not only to the high literary quality of the works but mainly to the improved translation capabilities that convey their value. According to the Literature Translation Institute of Korea, the annual number of Korean literary works published overseas with the institute's support grew more than threefold from about 50 titles in 2011 to around 180 titles by the end of 2021.

In particular, the number of cases where overseas publishers pre-contract Korean literary copyrights and then apply for the institute's translation support program based on these contracts has steadily increased (2014: 13 cases → 2015: 48 → 2016: 77 → 2017: 95 → 2018: 100 → 2019: 97 → 2020: 142 → 2021: 156).

An official from the institute explained, "This indicates that demand for Korean literature in overseas local publishing markets has increased, and at the same time, a pool of translators capable of translating these works has been established."

It is not just the number of translations that has increased; the trend of winning international literary awards has also become clear. Starting with one case in 2003 (Oh Jung-hee's 'Bird' winning the German Literaturpreis), the number of awards and nominations per year was around 0 to 2 until 2016. From 2017, the numbers steadily rose to 7 (2017) → 12 (2018) → 8 (2019) → 16 (2020) → 17 (2021). As of 2022, there have been four awards and eight nominations so far.

Behind this is the significant effort of the Literature Translation Institute of Korea. Since 2008, it has operated the Translation Academy, a training institution for professional Korean literature translators, producing over 1,000 graduates. Since 2020, it has also run a training program for translators specializing in cultural content. Additionally, it conducts translation, publication, and exchange events targeting 51 language regions where Korean literature has been published.

On the 14th, the institute plans to launch an online platform (KLWAVE) that provides real-time information on Korean literature, integrating information on works available for overseas publishing rights transactions, translator information, Korean authors, and translated works.

Im Ji-won, head of the Policy Planning Team, said, "While producing Nobel Prize-winning authors should not be the goal or evaluation criterion for Korean literature, it is natural that the possibility of winning increases as Korean literature spreads more widely as world literature."

Im added, "Bringing Korean literature closer to the global audience will be the first step toward producing Nobel laureates. It is necessary to further systematize the training and job linkage of excellent Korean literature and cultural content translators and expand exchange opportunities between domestic and international publishers and agencies."

Literary critic Jang Eun-su emphasized the importance of selecting literary themes and raising quality. He said, "In fact, translation issues might resolve naturally over time as more foreigners study Korean. More important is acquiring international sensibility. In the past, our literature was excessively nationalistic or ideologically charged, but overcoming those limitations could lead to earlier achievements like the Nobel Prize."

Jang added, "There are especially high expectations for female authors because they embody multiple hardships simultaneously. Patriarchy, division, the clash between tradition and modernity due to rapid Westernization?all these intersections reveal women's lives, and addressing these issues could influence the universal human experience of women worldwide."