Culture Ministry publishes guide book on translation of Korean words

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and its affiliate agency the National Institute of Korean Language on Wednesday jointly published a 29-page guide book on translation of widely used Korean words.

The publication comes after the ministry published guidelines on the translation of Korean words that often cause confusion due to the absence of clear standards on July 15.

The book provides a translation guide for three languages -- English, Chinese and Japanese — and mainly contains examples of words used for locations, food items, streets and pieces of cultural heritage, among others.

For instance, it explains that the proper way to write the names of the major river in Seoul is Hangang River and not Hangang or Han River.

The Culture Ministry added the guidebook was created mainly for workers in the public sector who are in charge of producing foreign-language signs and promoting Korea abroad. It added that the book is easy to understand as it includes illustrations and the contents are explained in a dialogue format.

The guidebook will be distributed to the offices of local governments and public institutions that promote international exchange. The contents will also be available on the National Institute of Korean Language website https://publang.korean.go.kr.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)