"No 'Unni' or 'Oppa' in Spanish, Making Translation Difficult" [Korean Language Era①]

Sejong Institute Outstanding Student Paula Martinez Gwal
RM Recommended 'I Want to Die But Tteokbokki...' Translation
"Interested in Korean While Watching 'Kkotboda Namja'"
"Overcoming Cultural Differences Between Two Countries Is the Hardest"

Editor's NoteIt is the era of the Korean language. You need to know Korean to read the works of Han Kang, this year's Nobel Prize in Literature laureate, in the original language. To fully enjoy K-pop, dramas, and movies that are captivating the world, you must learn Korean. The number of foreigners working and studying in Korea exceeds 2.5 million (Ministry of Justice Immigration and Foreigners Policy Headquarters, December 2023 Statistical Yearbook). People around the world learn Hangul for cultural activities, work, and study. Asia Economy is launching a series to examine the status and educational realities of the Korean language worldwide in celebration of Hangul Day in October. First, we asked five outstanding students from Sejong Institutes, overseas Korean cultural education institutions supported by the government, why they learn Korean, its value, and their satisfaction. Sejong Institutes are located in 248 places across 85 countries. Over 700,000 students have graduated as of last year.

Paula Martinez Gwal reading the Spanish edition of 'I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki'
Photo by Sejong Institute Foundation

Paula Martinez Gual translated Baek Se-hee’s book “I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki” into Spanish. It is an essay published in twenty-five countries. The book universally weaves conversations between the author, who suffers from dysthymia (a mild, persistent depressive state), and a psychiatrist. It explores depression and anxiety in a novel way while searching for the self. The book attracted great attention in Spain even before publication, partly due to a recommendation from BTS’s RM.

Paula spent about five months on the Spanish translation. “Since it was my first translation, I wanted to do well. I carefully analyzed each text to deeply understand the emotional changes of the protagonist suffering from dysthymia and the counseling therapy. After finishing the translation, I revised it several times. I did my best to fully convey the story of all of us who are entangled in others’ views, imperfect, and messy.”

She became interested in Korean when she accidentally watched the drama “Boys Over Flowers” at age fourteen. She learned grammar, words, and vocabulary on her own through the internet. She concretized her learning by studying other Korean dramas and literature, improving her skills. She also took all Korean language classes at EDI, the official language school in Barcelona. EDI is a language education institution operated by the Spanish government.

Paula Martinez Gwal expressed her thoughts on 'growth' in Korean at the final round of the Sejong Institute Korean Speaking Contest.

Photo by Sejong Institute Foundation

Although she became able to read, write, and speak Korean to some extent, Paula was not satisfied. She still felt her skills were insufficient. To study Korean more deeply, she visited the Sejong Institute in Barcelona in 2020.

“Through the advanced course at Sejong Institute, I learned high-level Korean vocabulary and focused on improving my Korean writing skills, which I had lacked. Thanks to that, I was able to acquire the skills to translate Korean literature. I also learned a lot about Korea. Especially, classes where we presented and discussed historical topics such as the Korean War in Korean were very interesting.”

Paula has a strong interest in history. She majored in East Asian Studies at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. For her, Korean history classes became a medium to continue studying Korean. She steadily learned and was selected as an outstanding learner at the Sejong Institute in 2022. She earned a spot in the finals of the Sejong Institute Korean speaking contest and set foot in Korea for the first time that year. Paula expressed her thoughts on “growth” in Korean and won an excellence award. She got an opportunity to study language at Sogang University.

“I stayed in Korea for six months from September last year and studied Korean. Although it was a short time, I was able to greatly improve my skills, enough to use them effectively in translation work. Looking back, it was an incredible opportunity. I met many people who influenced my life. Thanks to them, I feel I have grown one step further.”

Paula Martinez Gwal lived in Korea and became friends with Baek Se-hee, the author of "I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki."
[Photo by Sejong Hakdang Foundation]

Among them was Baek Se-hee, the author of “I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki”. They became close friends while discussing the Spanish translation published in November last year and the production process.

Paula is preparing to graduate from the Autonomous University of Barcelona after returning to Spain. She is actively continuing her work translating Korean literature into Spanish. The novel “The Workshop’s Account” by Yeon So-min, which she translated in the first half of the year, is scheduled to be published soon. It is a full-length novel depicting the protagonist Jeong-min healing her weary heart while making pottery. She is currently translating “I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki 2”. She smiled, saying, “As I have gained experience, I think I can work faster than before.”

“When I first translated, I spent a lot of time worrying about how to translate Korean words like ‘unnie’ and ‘oppa,’ which do not exist in Spanish. The most difficult part of translation is overcoming the cultural differences between the two countries. For example, the Korean protagonist suffers and struggles over things that would not cause any guilt in Spain. In such cases, sometimes I adapt to the Spanish context, but other times I reflect the Korean way of thinking as it is. That was the case with The Workshop’s Account. I wanted Spanish readers to feel the tone and atmosphere of the novel as it is.”

Paula Martinez Gwal stated that her Korean language skills have improved significantly while studying at Sejonghakdang.
[Photo by Sejonghakdang Foundation]

Paula feels great fulfillment in introducing books written in a completely different language to Spanish-speaking readers. She still remembers the nervous and excited feelings she had when she took on her first translation. “I am still a student and interested in various fields, but I want to continue this work steadily. It is the thing I love most.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.