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What Contributed to the Rising Fame of Korean Literature among Algerian Readers scrap

by Imane Bouhnikago link March 1, 2024

What Contributed to the Rising Fame of Korean Literature among Algerian Readers 이미지

Algerians are slowly warming up to the Korean literature wave, especially with the emerging numbers of works translated into Arabic, French and English. A large percentage of Algerian readers prefer reading foreign literature books in Arabic, making it challenging for the popularity of K-literature to officially take off without translations available before 2019.

What has contributed to the slow rise in popularity of Korean literature in Algeria? It’s hugely known how impactful the Hallyu wave is, worldwide. K-pop and K-dramas serve as gateways that introduce other aspects of the Korean culture to people from different age ranges. These two forces have contributed a lot to the promotion of Korean literature among Algerians. Many books, recommended by Korean artists like Kim Nam-joon, the leader of BTS, have received huge interest from Algerian fans.

 



Book covers of I’ll Be Right There by Kyung-Sook Shin (tr. محمد نجيب) and The Plotters by Kim Un-su (tr. محمد نجيب) in Arabic.

 

Another the key factor instrumental in the rising popularity of Korean literature is the increased availability of Korean books at local exhibitions and fairs. Popular K-books can now be found at famous book fairs like SILA, one the biggest annual events held in Algiers, the capital of Algeria, that attracts foreign and local publishers alike.

SILA, short for Salon International du Livre en Algérie, or the International Book Fair in Algeria, is considered a hub for book enthusiasts, drawing thousands of visitors from various regions of the country. During its twenty-fifth edition last year, which ran from March 24th to April 1st, the fair was an exceptional experience for visitors because of its vast array of language learning books, Asian literature, and especially Korean literature.

During my visit to the fair, I encountered several Korean language learning books specifically designed for French-speaking beginners. These books are somewhat rare to find in Algerian libraries and bookstores, so SILA offers a unique opportunity to acquire them.

  



SILA book fair in Algeria

 

Fortunately, there were also many contemporary Korean literature books translated into Arabic, such as the famous novel written by Cho Nam-joo, مولودة عام 1982 (Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, tr. Manar Ahmed), which topped the bestseller list. The novel narrates the daily struggles faced by Ji-young, a Korean woman that has to deal with gender bias in Korean society while raising her young daughter.

Numerous publishing houses were present, offering translated Korean literature and novels in Arabic. One such publisher is the Egyptian Al-Mahrousa, which published two Korean novels: المتآمرون by Kim Un-su (The Plotters, tr. محمد نجيب ), and سأكون هناك by Korean author Kyung-Sook Shin (I’ll Be Right There, tr. محمد نجيب ). Shin is the first Korean woman to win the 2011 Man Asian literary prize for her acclaimed novel, Please Look After Mom (tr. Chi-young Kim).

 

 

 

Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo translated inArabicbyManar Ahmed, purchased by an Algerian reader

 

Many recently published Korean literature books have gained popularity in Algeria, piquing readers’ curiosity to explore the intellectual and narrative richness of Korean literature. The availability of translated books in Arabic has helped Algerian readers discover a variety of novels from Korea.

What sets Korean literature apart from other publications is the themes of its novels. Korean authors don’t hold back on expressing social issues that we face nowadays, such as school bullying, gender equality, misunderstandings between younger and older generations, and so on. These recurrent themes are easy to relate to, especially for the Algerian reader community because these issues easily mirror the current situation in our society as well.

  

Picture credits: permissions acquired by Publishing house Mahrousa

Writer 필자 소개

Imane Bouhnika

Imane Bouhnika

Imane Bouhnika is an Algerian doctor who works part-time as a Korean language tutor for beginner learners. She became interested in Korean literature after reading numerous popular novels.

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