Translating book titles is very important as they are intended to achieve the communicative functions and they clearly show the phenomenon of external beings intervened in the process of translation. From this perspective, this study examines how the title translation of Korean fictions in English, which have recently received great attention abroad, has been carried out over the past 20years.
The scope of research is divided from 2001 to 2009 and 2010 to the present, and this paper analyzes the difference in the tendency of title translation between the two periods based on the functionalist view on translation. In addition, it identifies the causes of the problems revealed in the results through the perspective of "translation as cultural rewriting" presented by André Lefevere.
According to the results of the analysis, the literal translation is the most prevalent in both the 2000s and 2010s, but there is a big difference in the method of rewriting. Compared to 2000s, Korean fictions titles that have been published in English from 2010 to the present are rewritten in an unconventional way, such as transforming the morphological framework of the original title or recreating a completely new title regardless of its original function. However, that results in some problems, such as communication errors between English and American readers and the implication of text , showing limitation in such a way that translated title was determined only by individuals or groups rooted in English and American culture.
This indicates that in order for Korean literature to be firmly established among overseas readers while maintaining its characteristics and original value, We need to be fully aware of the importance of functions of title and to take precautions especially for external power that infiltrates the process of translation in a skewed way.